Sekarang ni selalu kalau korang dengar kat era, iklan shell pegi penang pastu turun balik ke kl dengan hanya satu tangki penuh. masa aku dengar iklan ni aku mmg dah agak mesti dorang ni mesti pakai kereta kancil ataupun tak memandu cara biasa, tapi aku takdak bukti masa tu. skang dah ada, 2 hari lepas dalam NST sedara ridzwan a rahim ada citer penuh cemana nak buat. Dan dari artikel tu, komfem nak capai satu tank pegi balik penang adalah satu pengalaman yang menyeksakan.
- Tutup aircond tengah hari buta, sepanjang perjalanan :-O
- Tidak dinyatakan, tapi dalam tips tingkap kena tutup. Gila apa, aircond tutup, tingkap tutup :-O
- Bawak 80KMh je :-O
- Maintain rpm 2000-2500 rpm
Pertama sekali, no 1 dan no 2 adalah gila dibuat tengah2 hari buta. Kedua ini bukannya cara pemanduan orang-orang Malaysia. Maknyanya, korang memang takkan dapat punyalah satu tank pegi balik. Ketiganya, dorang ni pakai Vios yang agak baru, vios yang terlalu baru belom habis run-in, enjin dan lain-lain perkakas semuanya dalam keadaan baik. Dan apa yang pasti, VVTi cam dalam iklan tu, tutup ekon masa memotong mmg tak menolong dalam test dorang hari tu sebab ekon pun tak pasang hahaha.
Dulu aku memang pakai Shell, kendian secara terpaksa sebab minyak dah nak habis aku isi Petronas Primax, sekali isi macam lagi bagus. Terus cuba lagi, memang lagi bagus dari Shell dan sehingga sekarang aku “setia” dengan petronas je. Baru-baru ni aku “terpaksa” isi dekat shell, beza dekat 20KM kurang. Memanglah boleh nak debat cara pemanduan yang berbeza-beza, tapi itulah cara pemanduan aku hari-hari. Janganlah suruh aku bawak cara lain kalau nak jimat minyak guna shell. Kebetulan pulak masa aku tulis post ni, Proton dengan Petronasa akan bekerjasama utk cipta rekod penjimatan minyak kombinasi Proton Savvy + Petronas Primax. Mari kita tunggu dan lihat keputusannya nanti. Aku harap xde pulak dorang ni sampai kene tutup ekon semata-mata nak jimat minyak. Waktu aku taip ni, kebanyakan web local xleh bukak including proton dan savoc dan semua web hosting dengan exabytes, so aku xleh nak amik details event tu. Kendian-kendianlah aku update.
Artikel dari NST dalam komen. Aku paste terus kesini takut-takut nanti dah xleh bukak dekat NST.
I fuel good
13 Sep 2006
RIDZWAN A. RAHIM
Is it possible to drive from Kuala Lumpur to Penang and back on a single tank of fuel? Absolutely. But you will want to take your time and be dressed casually, says RIDZWAN A. RAHIM.
FOR the life of me, I never thought that one day I would be driving on the PLUS highway at 80km per hour, under scorching sun and — get this — with the air-conditioning turned off! But that’s exactly what I did recently.
In the car with me was my co-driver, Fabian from Hitz FM, who struggled to remain his jovial self in the heat.
“I feel like we’re putting up an act. This is not who we really are,” he said. “Malaysians don’t drive at 80km per hour on the highway. And we certainly don’t turn off our air-con!”
So what’s up with the painful driving lah? We were actually on a journey up north as participants in an event called Shell Super One Tank Challenge organised by Shell Malaysia.
The idea was to drive from Kuala Lumpur to Penang and back on just a single tank of fuel — a scary proposition.
So one way to ensure that we arrived safely back in Kuala Lumpur, in addition to using the fuel-saving Shell Super fuel, was by turning off the air-conditioning and driving at an optimum speed all the way.
Well, Shell called it the Super One Tank Challenge but “we shall call it the Shell Super Long Journey Challenge,” I told Fabian.
After all, it does take at least six hours to get to Penang driving like that (and six hours under the hot sun feels twice as long).
Sharing the torture with us were some 30 other people consisting of local celebrities, members of the media and winners from the Shell Spot The Medal contest.
Thankfully, we didn’t have to use our own cars. Ten cars, all fairly new 1.5-litre Toyota Vios(es), were provided by the organiser for the trip.
And best of all, for instructors, we had Australian couple John and Helen Taylor, arguably the best teachers in the world in fuel efficient (or fuel stretch) driving.
The Taylors, if you have not already heard about them through the Shell ads, are an outstanding couple. They recently set a Guinness World Record together with Shell for the most fuel-efficient circumnavigation of the world ever undertaken in a standard car.
Driving a Volkswagen Golf 1.6 FSI, their journey started in January in London. They spent the next 78 days (around the world in less than 80 days!) driving through all sorts of temperatures, climates and terrain — -15ºC in Macedonia, 46ºC in the Australian Outback, storms, cyclones, torrential downpours, snow.
By the time they returned to London, John and Helen had covered 28,970km across 25 countries with just 24 fill-ups of the Shell Fuel Economy Formula. They averaged 22.2km per litre, surpassing Volkswagen’s official consumption figure of 14.3km per litre.
In addition, between the two of them, John and Helen hold 34 notable fuel economy driving achievements. So our little drive to Penang was child’s play compared to what the Taylors have achieved.
Before the trip to Penang, the couple shared with us their “secrets”. We were told that so many factors contribute to fuel efficiency — the way we drive, the fuel we use, tyre pressure, whether the car’s engine is well-tuned, driving conditions, etc. (see accompanying story)
Apparently, one of the major culprits of fuel usage is the air-con. According to the Taylors, it consumes about one-third of the car’s fuel.
So turn off the air-con, we were told. Everyone groaned. But we had no choice; Toyota said the Vios could travel 630km on one tank of petrol and we were expected to go a total of 760km.
On paper, the task looked simple — take the car to Penang and bring it back — but once we got behind the wheel, we found it to be an exercise in patience, concentration and mental strength.
We had to bring the car up to 80km per hour (engine rev at 2,000 to 2,500rpm) and keep that up for the next six hours or so. Every time another road user — cars, bikes, trucks — overtook us, the temptation to just let go and drive like “normal Malaysians” was overwhelming.
To make matters worse, the Vios’ fuel pedal is sensitive and comes without cruise control so it was quite a challenge, initially anyway, to maintain speed.
But we did eventually reach Penang where we spent the night. And the next day, all we had to do was drive the same way all the way back to Kuala Lumpur.
Happily, everyone made it back to KL with at least a quarter tank of fuel left.
Wanna try the same thing? First of all, you should be dressed comfortably. T-shirts and jeans are the best. Some of the participants showed up in Bermudas and tank tops.
It is also important to have comfortable seats. The Vios had fabric seats that were comfortable enough to fall asleep in during the hot trip. I doubt that would be the case if we were sitting on, say, PVC seats.
You also need to bring plenty of bottled water to drink, because there is the danger of dehydration. Finally — and this is something parents can relate to — perhaps it’s not a good idea to have children in the car.
All in all, the Penang trip was a hot and sticky affair. By the time we got back to KL, everyone was decidedly smelly. Some of us were seen treating themselves to ice-cream. Eating it, I mean.
The Taylors’ smart driving tips
“IT’S not good that fuel prices are going up, but there are things you can do about it,” says Helen Taylor, one-half of the world record breaking couple in fuel-efficent driving.
Her husband John concurs, saying that smart, sensible driving can help people save money.
“I saved £2,000 (RM13,800) every year from fuel stretching and gave the money to my wife,” he offers.
Here we share with you the Taylors’ tips to going further with your Shell fuel:
1. Drive smoothly. Aggressive driving can use as much as a third more fuel than safe driving. Avoid accelerating or braking too hard and try to keep your steering as smooth as possible.
2. Use higher gears. If you drive a manual car, change up a gear whenever you can.
3. Tune and service your engine. A well-tuned engine can improve fuel economy by up to four per cent, so change your oil and follow your car manufacturer’s recommendation on servicing.
4. Keep your tyres at the right pressure. A tyre that is under inflated by just 1psi can reduce fuel efficiency by as much as three per cent.
5. Avoid carrying excess weight. For every extra 45kg you carry, your fuel efficiency can drop by one to two per cent.
6. Keep the windows closed. Wind blowing through an open window will affect the car’s aerodynamic efficiency.
7. Remove the roof rack when not in use. They create drag, reducing fuel economy by as much as five per cent.
8. Use the correct oil. Using the manufacturer’s recommended lubricant can improve fuel efficiency by one to two per cent.
9. Fuel matters. All fuels are not created equal. Fuel economy is maximised in the engine through a combination of good driving habits and using the right fuel, one that helps reduce friction and improve cleanliness in the engine.
10. Use cruise control on major roads to help you maintain a constant speed.
11. Avoid excess idling. Turn the engine off when you’re in a queue or waiting for someone.
12. Plan trips carefully. Reduce driving time by combining all your short trips and errands into a single journey.
13. Avoid over-revving. Change gears prudently when you’re accelerating. Never “redline” the rev counter.
14. Keep your distance. Leave a sensible distance between yourself and the car ahead to give you ample time to brake evenly.
15. Avoid high speeds. The faster you go, the more wind resistance you’ll encounter and the more fuel your vehicle will consume just to maintain speed. Driving just 5mph over the speed limit can affect fuel economy by up to 23 per cent.
16. Use air conditioning sparingly. Air conditioning puts added strain on the engine and uses fuel to operate.
17. Replacing clogged air filters. It can improve fuel economy by as much as 10 per cent.
18. Avoid rush hour. If you can travel outside of peak times, you’ll spend less time stuck in traffic and consume less fuel as a result.
19. Conserve momentum. Instead of coasting when you reach a downward slope, maintain steady engine revs. This will mean you pick up speed, and if you’ve then got a hill to climb, it gives you considerable added momentum to help go up it.
20. Check the seal on your fuel cap is airtight. Fuel evaporates every time you open the fuel cap. To stop this, make larger fill-ups as opposed to repeatedly topping up your tank.
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