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| The new Smart is a prime example of clever buying to save fuel, but locally it won’t beat the benchmark pricing set by Ford’s 1,0 EcoBoost engine and six-speed gearbox. |
IF you are the average driver, the tank you filled up on Tuesday night
to save about R70 is already down to three quarters today.
You are wondering if you can afford to drive the family on the weekend
outing. For even in a small-engined car that gives you 12 km to a litre in city
traffic, the new fuel price means to get there you will be paying over a rand a
kilometre just in fuel.
You forget that we are still about R4 cheaper per litre than last year
August and fume instead that more than half of the latest increase is made up
by an 80,5 cents levy for the dismally administered Fuel and Road Accident
Fund; and none of
the road levy seems to be used to fix the bloody potholes.
But that way lies madness, so meditate on these calming solutions
instead to save fuel and your sanity, as well as your money.
Just stiffen that right
ankle
There are a plethora of fuel additives on the market, a few drops of
which in your tank is supposed to dramatically improve any engine’s fuel
consumption. Buy them by all means if it makes you happy, but know that by just
lifting your right foot a little, you will achieve even more dramatic fuel
savings.
As we published in last week’s edition Wheels under “Save fuel like a
trucker”, the trick is to drive with your eye (and ear) on the rev counter to
keep the needle in the so-called green band – that sweet spot where your engine
makes the most torque at the lowest revs.
For most petrol engines, this is between 2000 and 2500 revolutions per
minute (rpm). For diesels, the needle should play around 2000 rpm.
By uing your right ankle to hover the needle around this sweet spot,
you will automatically drive a lot more economically. Once you’ve mastered the keep-the-revs-low
trick, you can move to the next level, where bad drivers brake and good drivers
just cruise at the right speed.
Also stiffen all four tyres
Think of your tyres as your legs. The sidewalls are your knees, and the
tread your feet. The more bent your knees/sidewalls and the flatter your feet/tread
are, the less capable you are of running. Stiffen those knees and firm those
soles, and you can dash like Ussein Bolt. A tyre that is typically under
inflated by about 0.3 bar will give a softer ride, but will also add two
percent to your fuel consumption and wear a lot quicker. Which is why truckers,
who use a lot of tyres on a single vehicle, believe you simply cannot have your
tyres pumped too hard. If you decide to buy the harder tyre compounds that
offer lower rolling resistance, note these do add markedly to your stopping
distances in an emergency, because they do function as it says on the
packaging.
Keep the oil golden
Remember that dream where you are trying to run, but your legs can only
move in sluggish slow motion? That is what your engine feels like when you
drive it with dirty oil.
It is the mantra of Jens Denk at Denk’s Motors that oil is the
lifeblood of an engine and the filters its lungs. Thick, black oil on your dipstick
tells you your car’s life blood is choked with cholesterol and it may soon give
you a heart-attack bill at the workshop.
Even if your car was sold to you with service intervals only every 20,000
km, you will save yourself a lot per kilometer in the long run by changing the
oil when it is dirty, rather than when the handbook says you should. Talk to
your mechanic to get the best viscosity for the temperatures you drive in, as
all oils are nowadays tailored to help engines that operate in either cold,
humid or very hot conditions.
Take a deep breath
Next time you stand downwind from the braai fire and cough from the
smoke, think of your poor engine, for that is how it feels with a dirty air
filter. Your engine needs three things to work, air, fuel and spark. If it
cannot get enough air through a clogged filter, it will use more fuel. Use the pressurized
air at fuel stations to blow out the dust from your filters on a regular basis,
and replace the filter when it is oily or have holes. While you are at it, take
a deep breath yourself, put a smile on your dial and think calm thoughts. This
will help a lot to lift that right ankle when you get back on the road.
Avoid these fuel guzzlers
Passengers, roof racks and temperature changers working at full blast
all add to the workload on your engine and will make it thirstier. A 100 kg
passenger will increase the consumption on an average 1500 kg car by 6,7%. The
air conditioner can add 20% to your fuel bill if you keep it on full blast in
stationary traffic, so turn it down and open the window a bit to allow the hot air
to escape. However, when moving at even moderate speeds, an open window will
cause more drag than the air conditioner, so close the windows tight and turn
the fans on for best results while moving.
Heaters and big speakers draw power that requires pulleys to turn and
the engine to speed up a little, so use these sparingly.
Racks on the roof are the worst offenders as the speed increases. At
the legal highway speed of 120 km/h, an empty roof rack will add 20% to your
fuel bill. Take the time with the screws and store the carriers in the garage
if you are only going to load the boat or bike on the weekend.
Drive like a bowls player
Stick to the speed limits. Yes, it is more boring than watching beige
paint dry to drive this way, but the fun comes in noting how far you suddenly
get on each litre of fuel. As an example, my six seat, big-assed 1,9 turbo
diesel family mover with the aerodynamic properties of a brick, gives me more
than 20 km from each litre of 50 ppm diesel when I drive like a bowls player. The
reason for this is that the air resistance increases exponentially as your
speed increases. At 120 km/h, air has the consistency of wet cement. The slower
you go, the easier it becomes for your car to slip through the invisible walls
in front of you.
Buy a smaller engine
If you are a frequent traveler or the type of driver who insist on the
reassurance that comes with a brand new car, we strongly recommend you prepare
for the next fuel price increase by investing in a car with a smaller engine.
But first forget everything you thought you knew about small engines.
Especially Ford’s littlest EcoBoost engine will simply shred even your recent
ideas about 1-litre engines.
This little block has won the International Engine of the Year award
for three years running since 2012 and really is a marvel of techno wizardry
that makes 92 kW and 170 Nm at just under 2000 rpm. For those who don’t understand
what Messrs Newton and Watts were on about, this means a 1-litre can these days
do for you at the coast what 2-litre engines used to do, and at the Highveld
what a 1,6 engine felt like. All at about 7,8 litres per 100 km even when
driven in anger.
All car makers have followed Ford in offering such sub-1000 cc fuel
misers, with the offerings from Chevrolet, Hyundai, Kia, Renault and Volkswagen
also worthy of a test drive. Base your final decision on the discount you are
offered.
As benchmark you can mention that the top Ford 1-litre engines is now
sold in the Fiesta with a six speed manual gear box from less than R195k, which
general marketing manager at Ford Motor Company of Southern Africa Tracey
Delate said will open “a world of improved performance, lower fuel consumption
and reduced emissions”.
And for those who still think these tiny blocks will blow up after a
few hard miles despite all those international engine awards, Ford offers a
four year or 120000 km comprehensive warrantee, which should put such
skepticism to rest.
