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Drivers Turn To Ethanol To Combat High Gas Prices

POSTED: 3:38 pm PDT June 9, 2008
UPDATED: 6:20 pm PDT June 9, 2008

To many people, gas prices stink.

Many drivers are paying an arm and a leg for regular, super, premium, ethanol, diesel and other forms.

However, ethanol is priced at $3.59 per gallon, and many people are willing to pay that amount.

Ethanol is mostly alcohol and is made out of corn, sugar cane and expired Coca-Cola.

Mike Lewis of Pearson Fuel said, "You can make ethanol out of waste citrus peel."

For the past five years, ethanol has been sold in only one place in San Diego County -- Pearson Fuel on El Cajon Boulevard. On Monday, it was selling for almost $1 cheaper than regular unleaded gasoline.

"There have been days when we didn't sell a drop of ethanol out of this pump, many days," said Lewis.

But in the last week, the dollar-difference has helped set 5 sales records for Pearson Fuel.

"This Sunday, we messed up because we sold so much on Friday and Saturday that we ran out for half the day on Sunday, which almost never happens," said Lewis.

It almost never happens because there are only about 40,000 ethanol vehicles in San Diego County. These cars could run on gas or ethanol but some drivers don't even know it.

"I would say half the people that have an ethanol vehicle know they have an ethanol vehicle," said Lewis.

How could drivers tell? A Flexcar logo is the biggest clue. Dodge, Ford and Chevrolet -- among others -- make ethanol vehicles. Some of the cars have yellow gas caps, and drivers could also find out by checking under the hood.

Some drivers who already knew they were riding in an ethanol vehicle are now reaping the benefits of the days when fuel was only $3.50 a gallon.

There are two places in San Diego County where drivers with ethanol vehicles could fill up -- Pearson Fuel in El Cajon and the Carlsbad Shell station in Bressi Ranch that just opened their ethanol pump Monday.

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