As the most basic alcohol, methanol is a desireable choice as a transportation fuel due to its efficient combustion, ease of distribution and wide availability around the globe.  Methanol is used in transportation in 3 main ways - directly as fuel or blended with gasoline, converted in dimethyl ether (DME) to be used as a diesel replacement, or as a part of the biodiesel production process. 

        Alcohol fuels have been used widely in transportation ever since the invention of the internal combustion engine, and continue to be employed today as an alternative to gasoline derived from oil. When Henry Ford first pioneered the production of automobiles in the United States, he created engines designed to run on either gaoline or alcohol fuels.  It was only with the wide-spread introduction of cheap gasoline that alcohol fuels were tabled in favor of optimzing engines to run on gasoline.

        Methanol is an ideal fuel for transportation in large part because of its efficient combustion and low cost compared to all other fuels.  When combusted, reformulated gasoline produces a number of harmful and toxic byproducts that are reduced or eliminated by replacement with methanol. Emissions of unburned carbons and carbon monoxide are much lower when consuming methanol fuel, and methanol also greatly reduces NO_x emissions as well.  Methanol also burns with almost no particulate matter - which can lead to respitory problems like asthma.  Emissions from methanol fuel are also less reactive, and create less ground-level ozone and smog.

        Methanol is a high octane fuel that enables very efficient and powerful engine performance.  Engines optimized for methanol are as much as 75% more efficient than conventional gasoline-fueled engines.  The power-producing qualities of methanol are well-known and it is used in several professional and amateur racing sanctioning organizations. 

         But you can't simply put pure methanol fuel in your car today.  At high levels, methanol fuel is corrosive to certain materials commonly used in engines and fuel lines.  In order to be able to operate on high-level blends like M-85 (a mixture of 85% methanol and 15% gasoline), small modifcations must be made to an engine to include methanol compatible componenets.  These modifications generally cost less than 0.5% the cost of a new automobile.  Low-level blends of methanol though do not cause adverse effects to a car's engine., and can be used in cars today where the fuel is available without any adverse effect  Methanol is used as a denaturant for ethanol fuel in many countries, and some amounts of methanol are combusted with those blends everyday.