VAN BUREN TOWNSHIP, MI — Visteon will share some of its powertrain electronics technology with the United States Department of Energy as part of a project to help foster the use of ethanol-fueled E85 optimized vehicles.

The company is participating in a project that the Department of Energy has initiated for its High Efficiency Clean Combustion E85 Optimized Engine (HECCE) program. The project involves fuel-efficiency research as part of the Bush administration’s "20-in-10" initiative, which calls for displacing 20 percent of gasoline usage in the next 10 years by increasing the use of alternative fuels and boosting efficiency.

Visteon’s involvement is part of a joint collaboration, led by Mahle Powertrain, to develop the next generation of engines by optimizing operation to achieve gasoline-like fuel economy when using E-85. The world-class team of technology experts includes representatives from Visteon, Mahle Powertrain, Argonne National Laboratory and Michigan State University.

Visteon’s contribution to the project features powertrain electronics and control technology for the engine management system through the use of low pressure direct injection and ionization closed loop combustion control in a commercially viable E85 optimized engine. The goal is to allow the engine to run at various levels of ethanol fuel content up to 85 percent with minimal impact on fuel economy and no degradation in engine-out exhaust.

For more information about Visteon, go to: http://www.visteon.com.