No serious challenges perceived on cars using E20 fuel in E10 compliant vehicles: Renault India

New Delhi: Carmaker Renault India on Wednesday said no serious challenges have been perceived on its cars plying on roads using E20 fuel in E10 compliant and tested vehicles.

Clarifying on queries raised by customers regarding the use of E20 fuel in vehicles tested and certified for E10, the company said a rigorous durability testing was conducted jointly by Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and ARAI, involving various fuel combinations, including the use of E20 fuel in vehicles certified for E10.

The draft report of this study, shared with all OEMs, while acknowledging that the present on-road vehicles are compatible for E20, concluded that there is no adverse impact from using E20 fuel in E10-compliant vehicles.

"Based on these findings, no serious challenges have been perceived in Renault cars plying on roads using E20 fuel in E10 compliant and tested vehicles," the company said.

Renault India said as per the then prevailing norms, E10 was the declared fuel for the purposes of type approval and production tests of the Renault Triber model of 2022.

The company currently sells three models, Kwid, Triber and Kiger in the Indian market.

There has been a debate on social media over the impact of E20 fuel on vehicles prompting the Oil Ministry to clarify that " the critiques that E20 causes a 'drastic' reduction in fuel efficiency are misplaced".

Automotive industry experts had pointed out that the usage of 20 per cent ethanol-blended petrol in vehicles could lead to a 2-5 per cent drop in fuel efficiency, depending on the type of cars.

They had also noted that in older vehicles, which are not E20 compliant, there could be erosion of gaskets, fuel rubber hoses and pipes in the long term, but not immediately.