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As a possible alternative fuel of the future, methanol plays an important role in Volkswagen's research programs. Within this framework continuous progress has been made in the development of concepts over more than 15 years. Various large-scale test programs have proved the applicability of methanol as a fuel. These involved both fuel blends with gasoline and diesel fuel as well as virtually pure methanol. To round off these projects the possible use of ethanol was also considered. While energy saving and the lowest possible consumption of energy was the top priority for vehicle concepts in the early years, the environmental advantages of methanol as a fuel have increased in importance in the last few years.

Based on the knowledge of previous years, different engine-vehicle designs for the use of alcohol fuels have been developed by the Research Department of the Volkswagenwerk AG in West Germany. These designs represent the basis for ethanol vehicles in Brazil and methanol vehicles in West Germany and the U.S. Different fleet test programs in West Germany, South Africa and in the State of California have been put into practice. The presented paper deals with the design, application and test results of the German and California fleet vehicles. Priority was given to minimal fuel consumption by especially adjusted mixture control units. The high octane numbers of alcohol fuels allow a higher compression ratio of the engines compared to conventional gasoline engines. Emphasis was also laid on the emission characteristics of the German as well as of the American vehicles. As the American fleet vehicles were placed in California the emission standards for California had to be met.