[coldtea]

You can make tires quite easily with simple tools.

You can't make gasoline as easily - or extract oil.

[kazinator]

No, you can't. Not puncture-resistant, durable, pneumatic tires that don't have to be changed every mile.

Not tires that don't turn into chewing gum in hot weather, or under hard braking, and don't freeze and crack in cold weather.

[JoeAltmaier]

Ethanol?

[Symbiote]

Is it more efficient (and/or easier) to make ethanol to fuel an internal combustion engine, or instead to burn the fuel you would have used to distil the ethanol to fuel an external combustion engine? (i.e. a steam engine.)

[JoeAltmaier]

Ethanol wins. You can use ethanol to make more ethanol. Its a positive yield. Has been for years.