Scepticism over fuel-saving schemes

NATASHA MARTIN/Timaru Herald

TUNE FOR EFFICIENCY: Rueben York, from Vaughan Motors, uses a portable digital air-fuel ratio meter to improve fuel efficiency.

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Fuel-saving devices and additives are probably a waste of money, says the Automobile Association - a view several Timaru mechanics share.

The AA said there was a lack of scientific testing and a reluctance by manufacturers to put forward products for independent testing.

Bob Robb Motors' Malcolm Gavin has tried a number of additives in his car, even a magnetic device intended to improve fuel economy.

While his car possibly ran smoother with some of the products, any savings weren't large enough to attribute to the additive or device alone.

His advice was that a well-tuned car with properly inflated tyres used less fuel.

"Sometimes people only have about 10 pound (air pressure) in their tyres and are moaning about the price of fuel."

Graeme Vaughan was unaware of any additive which saved fuel, but said some injector cleaners emulsified water in the petrol and let it burn off cleanly. Although they could not carry out a complete job they could improve fuel injection.

A good air filter improved the ratio of air to fuel being used.

It was also possible with diagnostic equipment to analyse how efficiently a car was running under different conditions. His business was testing a fuel control device which could override the computer system to have a car run leaner, with more air to fuel, at a chosen speed.

Timaru's Repco stocked no additives claiming to save fuel. Manager Bryce Taylor said if additives improved how a car ran there would be improved fuel efficiency.

AA technical advice manager Jack Biddle said an invitation by the AA in Australia for independent testing of devices and fuel-saving additives saw only one put forward and it did not save fuel.

Mr Biddle admired people's efforts to extract hydrogen from water and use it as a fuel source, but he didn't believe the system had been established or developed to a stage that really worked.

When it came to spending money there wasn't hard evidence showing fuel savings. He said the Environmental Protection Agency in the United States had tested more than 100 fuel-saving devices and none was shown to work.

Ash Palmer, of Diesel Injection Services, was sceptical of what fuel additives could achieve. When his tyre was worn out he didn't expect a spray to repair the worn section. When engine parts were worn it was likely they had to be repaired or replaced. He said no customers had ever raved about fuel savings from a product.