Monday, January 13, 2014

Neil Young Gets Caught In A Lie....

 Guess Neil's a little confused. In reply to a statement put out by the Canadian government, Young had this to SAY,, "Of course, rock stars don't need oil. I drove my electric car from California to the Tar sands and on to Washington DC without using any oil at all and I'm a rock star. My car's generator runs on biomass, one of several future fuels Canada should be developing for the Post Fossil Fuel Age. This age of renewable fuels could save our grandchildren from the ravages of Climate related disasters spawned by the Fossil Fuel Age; but we have to get started."

 Problem is he's lying, or at the very least ignorant of the facts. I've been involved in the auto industry for 37 years, and gotta admit Young's customization of the '59 Lincoln called Lincvolt is pretty cool. It's modified to run on bio-mass fuels and E85. And that's where the problem is. Young''s press release claims he he never used any oil in his trip to Fort McMurray. And yet he has something completely different posted on this BLOG! Now check out this quote:

"On my recent trip to Fort Mac in Alberta, I drove Lincvolt about 1800 miles from San Francisco running on E 85 fuel. I have chosen to use Ethanol, a much cleaner fuel created from plants nourished by the sun and rain and grown by farmers rather than run on gasoline, which has a carbon footprint of 19.5 LBS (pump to tailpipe) per gallon or 28 LBS CO2 per gallon (earth to tailpipe) according to the Mass  Insitute of Technolgy. "although E 85 is hard to find in some parts of the USA, it is much cleaner than gasoline and since I am a believer in Climate Chaos as a result of Global Warming, I have chosen this greener fuel. On the trip back from Fort Mac, I ran out of fuel in Red Deer Alberta after searching in vain for an E 85 or pure ethanol fuel source in CANADA. In Red Deer Alberta we were told by Husky Oil reps that they had “never heard of E 85”. Lincvolt does not run on gasoline by design."

 Now I'm a licensed mechanic, and have training in the use of ethanol in fuels. It's called E85 for a reason. 15% is actual gasoline. So sorry Neil, if you drove 1800 miles on E85 than you damn well burned some oil. Not to mention the fact E85 driven vehicles can get upwards of 26% less fuel economy than a car running on straight gasoline. Which brings up another point. Canada mandated gasoline sold in Canada as of 2010 must have a minimum of 5% ethanol. The thing I really like about Young's comments is the fact most mechanics and garages tell people to stay away from Husky, as they have a higher percentage of ethanol in their gas. The result is less power, poorer performance, and fuel system repairs down the road.And the bigger issue, emits acetaldehyde. This compound is a probable human carcinogen. Long-term exposure produces symptoms similar to those of alcoholism. 

 Seems Young was so quick to bash the oilsands and Canadian government he forgot what he put on the internet before. A lie? An oversight? An honest mistake? You be the judge.

9 comments:

Martin said...

If not fuel, then is oil not needed for lubrication? Conventional engines have a crankcase full of quality motor oil, or else they do not go too far. I don't know about the conversion, but even generators need some lubricant, do they not?

paulsstuff said...

Yes they do. And those tires are derived from oil. Guys another hyocritical loon.

Anonymous said...

"Well I heard Mister Young sing about her. Well, I heard ole Neil put her down. Well I hope Neil Young will remember - A Northern man don't need him around anyhow. Sweet Home ALBERTA, where the skies are so BLUE, and the Guv'ment's true. Sweet Home ALBERTA...Lord, I'm coming home to you." (Hurray for Lynyrd Skynyrd)

paulsstuff said...

Love it Robert:0)

robins111 said...

Story is, that his car started on fire from a Volt battery and was destroyed about a year ago..

Lorne Russell said...

If he really wanted to save mother earth from the affects of burning carbon he could have just stayed home and not driven 1800 miles in his fancy caddy.

Then the CBC would not have had to burn all that carbon to cover his trip. And Susuki would not have had to fly in to join his publicity stunt.

This is getting exponential. Massive carbon reduction.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
westwood said...

E85 is 85% gasoline and up to 15% alcohol not the other way around.

paulsstuff said...

E85 is supposed to be 85% ethanol, though it can range between 52%-85%.
The biodiesel used on Young's bus emits 52% less emissions, but still puts out far more than a smaller vehicle does.