By Keith Hebert, Fuel Efficiency Analyst

Send Keith an e-mail. To order a Scangauge, visit here.

No doubt most of you are aware of the US program ‘Cash For Clunkers’, where the taxpayers were subsidizing new car purchases by up to $4500. My take on this is that if there was to be any real, lasting benefit for the environment, it was a poorly executed plan. But it seemingly was meant primarily as a short term economic stimulus, and really, the environmental benefits were just a side dish. True, the MPG of the vehicle purchased were better, with some sources online claiming the average MPG improvement was better than 50%.

But for me, it’s even doubtful that the ‘economic stimulus’ will have worked in the end analysis. There was no requirement for the purchased vehicle to be American, or even North American built. Despite this, the popular Toyota Corolla (built in California) was a top choice, but if it were me handing out 3 billon dollars, I would want to know I was getting the best possible value for the money.

In Canada, there was a 2 year program called Eco-Auto Rebate, which was more demanding on the purchaser to buy a very fuel efficient vehicle. Up to $2000 was available, but most qualifying cars and tiny SUVs only qualified for $1000. Also, there was no requirement to turn in a clunker with the federal program. Canadian provinces also had a variety of programs, most notably BC, with a Scrap-it clunker program, and a sales tax rebate, each for up to $2000. This made it possible at one point for the purchaser of a Toyota Prius or smart car to get up to $6000 in total savings.

The idea of rebates though, has to fade away. It’s not sustainable to commit the taxpayer to paying for it all, especially when it just goes onto some mysterious national debt. What’s the real cost at the end of the day? And no one really seems to want to bring this up: If we’re wanting to impact climate change, then it naturally follows that we should see an economic downturn in our traditional sectors of oil, gas and automobiles. Reducing consumption is going to impact the economy. I have no issue being down 10%. 40% was a bit steep all at once, but some reduction is to be expected if we want a sign that we’re making any progress.

Governments really have done little for such a long time, mostly by not requiring improvement in fleet fuel economy averages, that it’s no surprise they roll out quick fix ideas. But, with the USA now mandating improved mpg from the automobile producers, I have some optimism that we’re moving in the right direction. Government needs to support the research and developement of advanced vehicle technologies. And, what’s more, taxing inefficiency should also be considered. BC has the carbon tax, which applies to gasoline and diesel purchases… I think this is a model that North America should consider carefully, and implement properly.

We can’t lay blame solely on the government for a lack of fuel efficient vehicles on our shore, but they deserve a hefty chunk for sure.

Thanks for stopping by.

It was four years ago today that I set out from Victoria, BC on the 100 MPG Challenge. Over the next month, I’m going to share what I’ve learned about fuel economy issues.

By Keith Hebert, Fuel Efficiency Analyst

Send Keith an e-mail. To order a Scangauge, visit here.

It was 4 years ago that I embarked across Canada in a diesel smart car for over 30 days and 10,000 miles on the 100 MPG Challenge. In addition to allowing the City of Abbotsford to utilize my smart car for promoting the One Tonne Challenge via a full wrap with colourful graphics, I also set up this site to promote greater awareness of how automobiles impact climate change.

Since then, the ScanGauge fuel economy computer, and the term ‘hypermiling’ have taken many fuel economy enthusiasts, dare I say professionals, on quite the ride. I’ve even landed one or two jobs as a fuel analyst for large trucking companies, helping shave millions of dollars off the annual fuel bill. My current employer is Van Kam Freightways in Surrey, BC.

Beyond this, we’ve had $150 per barrel oil prices, near collapse of some automotive companies, and a mad race towards electric cars. North America had high hopes for new diesel models, but we’re still waiting. Presidents and almost-Presidents have made their mark on the world too, conveniently or, well, you know…

So really, where does this leave us in 2009 and beyond?

In the coming month, I’m going to share my experiences and thoughts here at 100mpg.ca and onehundredmpg.com.

Thanks for checking in!

Greg Williams
For The Calgary Herald

Friday, August 01, 2008

When Mercedes-Benz designed the Smart car, chances are good it wasn’t thinking it would be a high-mileage freeway cruiser.

Or that it would be towing a light-duty trailer on a regular basis.

They obviously hadn’t heard of Les McDonald, a Cochrane-based Smart car owner. This microcar devotee has put 150,000 kilometres on his Smart ForTwo, driving to Cabo San Lucas in Mexico once, to the Maritimes twice, and Vancouver three times.

“This car can do a lot more than people think it can,”

McDonald says of the car’s utility factor. “With a Clever End (it expands the car’s carrying capacity) and a hitch, there’s just a world of things you can do.”

McDonald figures he’s towed a trailer for more than 110,000 kilometres, confidently pulling up to 275 kilograms.

This year, the little vehicle that obviously could, and that has transformed the world’s roads is celebrating 10 years of production.

On July 2, 1998, the first Smart car rolled off the assembly line at Smartville — the nickname for the car’s factory in Hambach, France.

The pint-sized vehicle drove onto roadways throughout Europe, and arrived in Canada in 2004. In early 2008, the Smart car hit the U.S.

Right now, more than 900,000 Smart cars are on the road in 37 countries.

However, the initial idea for the Smart goes back to 1972.

History….

Read the full story online…

I’ve been asked a few times if I actually need a Scangauge. Some people have thought that owning an already fuel efficient vehicle would negate the value of such an investment. Not the case… Having a fuel economy computer like the Scangauge during The 100 MPG Challenge would have yielded better fuel economy results.

In my 30+ day drive from Victoria to Labrador and back, I managed 3.63 L/100 km, but the target was actually 3.5… and with a Scangauge, I think I could have come in at 3.3 - a whole 10% better. Knowing the engine load on hills and having access to instant fuel consumption readouts would have enabled changes, and effected better performance.

Well, all that aside…. if you missed it, you can hear the CBC Hypermiling interview from July 28th, here. (Warning - It is a large 21 mb file, best to save it and then open in iTunes perhaps.) You might also like to visit cleanmpg to learn more about hypermiling.

I’m in Kirkland WA right now, visiting with my friends at The Green Car Company, who BTW, have some gasoline smart cars in stock, available for immediate delivery. Oh, and BTW, we should all learn by next Friday if Mercedes-Benz is for once and for all going to officially bring the smart car to the United States in 2007. Rumour has it Penske will be the distributor. The smart factory in Hambach France is going to be shutdown for several months for retooling - and later this year, production of the next generation smart car will begin. There have been reports of vehicle testing in Arizona about a month ago.

I’ve had a chance this afternoon to put all my fuel receipts together. You can view a copy of the spreadsheet by clicking here. I’ve made note of the tire PSI, speed, and the biodiesel % that I was running with.

I’ll be spending a few days on Whidbey Island now with some friends. More updates to the site are coming.

Contact Keith by e-mail.

Here’s the final round of pictures from my June trip to Saskatchewan.

The Blue Willow Motel in Wadena is very economical - you get free long distance, breakfast and wireless internet for about $45 per night.

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Contact Keith by e-mail.

During my September 2005 100 MPG Challenge, where I travelled from Victoria to St Johns and Labrador, I was able to achieve better than 100 mpg (imperial) on five different occasions.

I knew I would be coming back to Saskatchewan this spring/summer to try and beat my previous fuel economy record of 113 mpg (imperial).

I wanted to run on biodiesel, and achieve 100 mpg (US), which is 120 mpg (imperial). That would require a 6% improvement. My gut feeling was that I could do it given the same road/weather conditions, with less cargo, and a few more PSI in the tires.

With all this in mind, I ran my tank down to 1.0 L remaining Tuesday morning as I drove to Birch Hills, SK, just outside of Prince Albert. When I arrived there, I stored my luggage in a friend’s shed, put 20 litres of soy based biodiesel in the tank, and topped up with petroleum diesel at the local Coop. The PSI in the tires had already been set to 43 (cold) in the morning.

I set out for Yorkton, but by the time Wadena came on the horizon, I knew the run was failing. And sure enough, 215 kms on 6.747 litres was way short of the goal. I turned around and headed back to Birch Hills - trying again, this time without using cruise control… but once again, I was way short - 199.3 kms on 6.370 litres. The winds were not in my favour.

With my luggage reloaded, I went back to Wadena again. Attempt # 3 was yet another failure - 204.4 kms on 6.674 litres. I began to wonder if the 40-80% biodiesel blend was contributing to the low mileage. Surely I could get a better number than 88.3 mpg (imperial)? (618.7 kms on 19.791 L = 3.2 L/100km)

I decided to wait in Wadena and see which way the wind was blowing. A call to ‘Walter from Wadena’ revealed the answer - and by Wednesday morning, I knew I had to get to Yorkton, refill, and head north-west again in order to have any chance. Luggage again was placed in the car. I then had a leisurely morning, taking in breakfast and some gab with Walter… (more…)

Alan Thompson - fellow smart car owner in Melfort:

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7:45 pm, Wadena, SK

Excellent wind conditions today, blowing from the south-east, allowed me to accomplish my goal of beating 100 miles per US gallon.

I departed Yorkton, SK at approx 4 pm and made a near perfect 81 kmh trip to Wadena, passing through Canora on hwy 9, and then through Buchanan, Rama, and a few other small towns on Hwy 5.

As per the GPS, the trip was 151.13 km. I filled at the Wadena Coop - twice in fact - to make sure the fuel level was as full as it could be… I filled 3.104 litres and then another 0.273 litres - and each time painstakingly made sure there was no foam. Even 5 ml overflowed. I was brutally AR on this, more than ever before - the Coop attendants were curiously dumbfounded as to why, but nevermind. :-)

151.13 km on 3.377 litres works out to 44.75 kms to a litre, or 2.23 L/100km.

That in turn works out to 126 mpg (imperial), and for my US friends, 105 mpg (US).

I had dwindled the B80 biodiesel I ran with yesterday to approx B20. I will recap this in detail later. Temperature today was 24 to 26 celcius.

Also - I did make this trip with all of my luggage and extra biodiesel. Based on a government scale yesterday in Melfort, let’s call that 80 kgs, or 170 lbs, minimum, probably more, as I picked up another 15 litres of biodiesel today at Foam Lake. The car and luggage scaled in at 810 kgs yesterday, and I’m 110 kgs.

I have some pictures to post of course, but for now, I’m going to shower and get a hot meal. A storm has also moved in, and lightening with it.

Got thinking tonight about Percy Schmeiser, the Saskatchewan farmer that took on Monsanto. Different subject altogether. But Canola was the crop. And wouldn’t you know it, I’m right in the heart of Canola country.

Milligan Bio-Tech has a biodiesel plant at Foam Lake, a mere 50 kms away from where I am staying. I might try and get a tour.

The Saskatchewan Canola Development Commission has some great online biodiesel resources and studies if you are interested. You might also want to check out the biodiesel page at the Canola Council of Canada website - there seems to be some good info there.