General Motors today provided an E85-capable Chevrolet Tahoe to the Ohio Corn Growers for use in the state as part of a campaign to promote ethanol and E85-capable vehicles in Ohio. The vehicle presentation was made today during the Ohio State Fair at an event attended by Ohio Director of Agriculture Fred Dailey, Rep. Steve Reinhard and Sen. Larry Mumper.

As part of the campaign, the Ohio Corn Growers will showcase the E85-capable Chevrolet Tahoe in various ways and events throughout the year. Currently, Ohio has an estimated annual ethanol production capacity of more than four million gallons.

The announcement is part of a campaign by GM and the Governors’ Ethanol Coalition (GEC), a bipartisan group of governors devoted to the promotion and increased use of ethanol. This collaborative effort is designed to increase awareness of ethanol and flexible fuel vehicles, and to promote the increased use of E85 as a renewable, alternative transportation fuel that is able to meet the demands of today’s drivers.

GM has made a major commitment to E85 flexible fuel vehicles in the United States, with more than one million of these vehicles on the road today. GM approved the use of 10 percent ethanol blended gasoline in all GM products more than 20 years ago, and produces almost five million E10-capable vehicles annually.

In addition to Ohio, GM has provided E85-capable vehicles for use in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Wyoming. GM will also provide vehicles to the following states: Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas.

Ethanol delivers similar performance as regular gasoline and is a renewable, domestically produced fuel that reduces sulfur and aromatic hydrocarbons for improved exhaust emissions performance. E85, a blend of 85 percent ethyl alcohol and 15 percent gasoline, is produced from the starch in agricultural products, primarily domestically produced corn. Growing corn actually removes CO2 from the atmosphere so that the total effect of using ethanol made from corn is a significant reduction in greenhouse emissions when compared to the use of petroleum-based fuels.

GM’s E85 vehicles are capable of operating on either gasoline or 85 percent ethanol without any additional modifications, aftermarket conversions, or cumbersome switches for vehicle users. Currently, there are almost 400 public E85 fueling sites in operation across the nation.

GM has joined a growing partnership of states and organizations that support the increased use of ethanol that includes the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition, the Renewable Fuels Association, the National Corn Growers Association and the Clean Fuels Development Coalition.

More information on GM’s alternative fuel product offerings can be found at www.gmaltfuel.com.