Maple's methanol sedan to be delivered this year

Shanghai, May 14 (Gasgoo.com) The Haifeng methanol sedan will be delivered to the experimental market, said Shanghai Maple Auto, a subsidiary company of Geely Holding Group, last week. Although Maple has launched a lineup of 1.3L products to meet market demands, Maple will still develop toward mid-luxury sedan market.

At the recent Beijing auto show, Maple displayed a Haifeng methanol sedan powered by a 1.5L 4-cylinder 16-valve DOHC-Intercooled electronic multi-point injection engine which generates 75 horsepower at 6000rm and 14.3kgm at 3400rm. Haifeng accelerates to 100km in 14 seconds and consumes 9.4L methanol/100km, meeting the Euro Ⅳ emissions standard. Both the methanol and gasoline fuels are available for this model, yet methanol can develop an output 10%－15% higher and save 40% more fuel than gasoline sedan with the same emission.

The Maple methanol sedan has been in the final preparation and is expected to be delivered to the experimental market in 2008, said Zhang Hongyan, general manager of Maple's sales company.

Zhang Hongyan also said, the Haifeng sedan by Maple was a trial model for Maple to enter the sedan market in 2007, and Shanghai Maple Automobile Institute will continue to develop its own-brand mid-luxury sedans.