Australian Car Advice | News Blog

Read more…

As it currently stands, Xenophon fears the new scheme could encourage collusion in the market between the big players and wipe out the independents.

“We’re still wanting to understand how it won’t push petrol prices … up and we also want to know how FuelWatch won’t squeeze out independents,” he said.

FuelWatch has been operating in Perth since 2001, with NRMA president Alan Evans suggesting ‘nimble’ independent operators have been able to gain an advantage.

Mr. Evans also continues to point the finger squarely at the supermarket giants.

Coles and Woolworths, who have been known to drive out independent competition and consistently set the highest price for fuel, are not subject to oil codes unlike oil companies.

Essentially there are fears that the introduction of this scheme could result in higher average petrol prices linked to reduced competition.

There have also been accusations that petrol companies could ‘gang up’ and collaborate to set fuel at a higher cost.

“There are severe criminal penalties for collusion, and on that basis we strongly suggest that any suggestion of collusion in the petrol market be supported by factual evidence, rather than throwing around baseless accusations.” BP spokesman Chandran Vigneswaran

Senator Fielding said he would not be supporting the legislation until his “serious concerns” were addressed by the government.

« Hide It

Read more…

“Holden has always been committed to providing vehicles that enable Australian families to enjoy spacious, safe and comfortable motoring at a price within their reach. As rising petrol prices continue to put pressure on all motorists, LPG offers an affordable solution that is already widely available. It gives motorists access to large car benefits at small car fuel costs.” GM Holden Chairman and Managing Director, Mark Reuss said.

The three sedan models available include the Commodore Omega, Berlina and 60th Anniversary. All three have their LPG system price reduced from $3900 to $2400.

Meanwhile there is an equivalent price drop from $4900 to $3400 for VE Omega ute (auto only). Potential buyers in Western Australia also benefit from the States additional $1,000 subsidy.

Holden quotes fuel economy figures of around 15.5 litres per 100km for the Dual-fuel Omega and Berlina sedan and 15.7 litres for Omega ute.

Seems like a lot? Consider that LPG costs around $0.63 a litre and unleaded petrol comes in at around $1.45. Holden claims a typical motorist covering 20,000kms annually would recoup the initial $400 outlay on an LPG Commodore sedan in just four months, and the $1400 on a LPG Ute in less than a year.

Not much power is lost with LPG models either, with the LPG powered sedans producing 175 kW @ 6000 rpm (petrol 180 kW @ 6000 rpm) while torque comes in at a healthy 325 Nm @ 2600 rpm (petrol 330 Nm @ 2600 rpm).

Using two separate tanks, the dual fuel option on the sedan includes the 73 litre cylindrical LPG tank (located under the parcel shelf in the boot) whilst the ute receives a slightly larger 74 litre cylindrical tank. The regular 73 litre petrol tank still remains on both variants allowing a significantly increased “distance to empty” per cycle.

Buyers are also assured the LPG kits fitted to the cars by Holden are covered by the company’s three-year/100,000km new vehicle warranty, having undergone extensive safety and crash tests.

There is no significant difference in specification between the petrol and LPG models either. The main difference is the minor increase in service costs, with an LPG vapour filter needing replacement every 15,000 kms, and a liquid filter every 120,000 kms.

Would you consider the LPG Commodore as your next family car?

« Hide It

Read more…

The fleet also consists of models from Daimler, General Motors, Honda, Hyundai-Kia, Nissan, Toyota, and Volkswagen.

“Being on this tour will show more people that hydrogen is truly the best alternative transportation fuel. An internal combustion engine, powered by hydrogen should play an important role in the future of sustainable mobility,” said Tom Baloga, BMW Vice President of Engineering.

The BMW Hydrogen 7 uses one of the cleanest energy sources available, producing essentially zero emissions.

Only water vapour is produced in the combustion process – and BMW boasts that it is safe enough to drink!

The Hydrogen Road Tour is a unique collaboration between the world’s leading automotive figures, including key federal departments, influential non-governmental organisations and hydrogen fuel providers to bring the reality of practical, clean energy to our nation’s legislators and the public.

« Hide It

Read more…

For this week’s adventure I decided, I’d had enough of “Fuel Prices Hit the Hip Pocket” stories and wanted to prove not only to myself, but to all of you out there, that there is still a place for big traditional Aussie V8s in today’s world of volatile fuel prices.

To do this, I first needed a V8. Holden volunteered the Commodore SS, equipped with a monstrous 6.0-litre, 270kW and 530Nm of torque engine. It seemed the ideal choice to do a reverse fuel economy story.

Next, we needed a destination, being in Brisbane, beaches are aplenty, but the Gold Coast just wasn’t going to cut it, so we headed towards the Sunshine Coast (Budrim and Mooloolaba in particular). First things first, pull over, and fill’er up all the way.

$84 got 52L of 91 RON fuel and the trip computers were reset to zero before we headed off.

Google Maps said the journey consisted of roughly 80km of inner city driving (From Brisbane’s east onto Gympie road) plus 140km of highway driving (Bruce Highway), a reasonable balance of both conditions. Peak our traffic times were picked to further emphasis the inner-city fuel consumption.

Holden says the 6-speed automatic SS Commodore (our test vehicle) will manage 14.3L/100km for a combined city and highway cycle. A little more than the Prius, sure, but a lot more fun too.

Literally as we pulled out of the service station there was an accident up ahead, which meant our first 25 minute delay. This gave me some time to get to appreciate the Commodore a little more.

The formula is still essentially unchanged, big V8 at the front driven via the rear-wheels. Lots of fun, lots of noise, great big smile on my face. Can I live with it? Why not!

Next page…

Pages: 1 2 3

« Hide It

Read more…

When the ECO Pedal system is activated, it receives data on the rate of fuel consumption and transmission efficiency during acceleration and cruising, and then calculates the optimum acceleration rate.

If the system detects excess or unnecessary pressure, it responds by pushing back the driver’s foot through the pedal - but of course it can be completely deactivated.

At the same time, an eco-driving indicator integrated into the instrument panel feeds the driver with real-time fuel consumption levels to help improve their driving behaviour.

Nissan hopes to launch this new technology by as soon as 2009, with research showing the new system can improve fuel efficiency by up to 10 percent.

The new system resembles just one portion of a “triple-layer” approach by Nissan that encompasses vehicle technologies, driving behaviour and traffic conditions in the pursuit of real-world efficiency improvements.

« Hide It

Read more…

“The number of retail outlets selling ethanol blend has increased three-fold over the past two years, concentrating in Queensland and New South Wales and to a lesser extent in South Australia and Victoria,” APAC Consultants joint chief executive officer Mike Cochran said.

Over the past 12 months, there has been a 300 per cent rise in ethanol-blended petrol sales. Even so, we must question if this increase is due to the rising cost of petrol, or the questionable environmental benefits.

“Price would be a contributor but I think people are interested in being more environmental about their fuels and also promoting an alternative source of fuel” Mr Cochran said.

E10 fuel is a 10 per cent ethanol and 90 per cent petrol mixture, currently on sale for roughly two cents less than standard petrol.

The benefits of using E10 fuel have been under scrutiny for some time, given the CO2 produced during the development cycle as well as the impact on food supplies. More on that here.

Ethanol-blended petrol is safe for most naturally-aspirated vehicles manufactured after 1985, a full list of compatible vehicles can be found here.

« Hide It

Read more…

The sales of these SUV’s has increased by 13.2 percent for this year alone - making it the fastest growing segment at a rate of more than treble the overall market.

“Rising fuel prices have definitely accelerated demand for fuel-efficient four-cylinder cars,” Mr Buttner said. “However, families and other SUV buyers are focused on requirements such as space, comfort, performance and reliability - as well as fuel efficiency,”

Australian motorists purchased almost 110,000 SUV’s in the first half of this year - with 20 out of 23 manufacturers improving over the same period last year - second only to the small-car total of 123,000.

Toyota leads this sales list with its Prado, Kluger and RAV4 models which take the top three positions in a segment which offers over 50 models.

SUV SALES BY MODEL 2008 (TO 30 JUNE)

1. Toyota Prado 7,854 +4.8%

2. Toyota Kluger 7,513 +278.7%

3. Toyota RAV4 7,684 +6.7%

4. Ford Territory 7,266 -19.4%

5. Subaru Forester 6,910 +13.2%

6. Toyota LandCruiser 6,407 +48.0%

SUV SALES BY MARQUE 2008 (TO 30 JUNE)

MARQUE SALES +/- MARKET SHARE

1. Toyota 29,458 +40.2% 26.9%

2. Nissan 10,852 +0.2% 9.9%

3. Subaru 10,707 +6.2% 9.8%

4. Ford 8,417 -20.2% 7.7%

5. Mitsubishi 7,841 +0.7% 7.1%

SEGMENT 109,669 +13.2%

« Hide It

Read more…

In current arrangements, LPG Autogas is a lighter fuel which yields less energy per litre than petrol therefore more is needed per kilometre resulting in higher consumption, however at over a dollar less.

“However, the lower pump price of Autogas - currently about a dollar a litre below standard unleaded petrol - much more than compensates. Its light, low carbon structure gives it the added benefit of lower greenhouse gas emissions.”

The European-developed system dubbed JTG (Just Think Green) consistently achieves consumption of around 10 percent less litres per kilometre than vapour injection LPG systems and around 10 to 15 percent more litres per kilometre than petrol systems.

Initial testing of the product by Australian LPG Warehouse yielded a power increase of 18kW in an Falcon XR6 Turbo, with the company already developing kits for popular models, including the BA Ford Falcon and VE and VZ Holden Commodore.

It is also developing this system for small engines such as the four-cylinder Toyota Camry and Corolla.

“If a consumer can drive their vehicle with improved performance, similar fuel consumption, no maintenance or longevity penalty and save plenty of money, it’s a revolutionary result for them and for the greater LPG industry.”

LPG Australia’s industry development manager Phil Westlake said LPG liquid injection technology increased motorists’ fuel savings over petrol - and that having Autogas’ litres per 100km figures closer to those of petrol would simplify real-world direct comparisons between the two fuels.

« Hide It

Read more…

“More than ever, it’s important to consider not only the car’s ticket price but also its ongoing running and environmental costs,” Transport Minister Anthony Albanese said.

On average, a Holden Commodore will cost $2430 in petrol to run per year and will put out 3.8 tonnes of carbon dioxide doing so. The Ford Falcon does the same distance costing $2272 in fuel and releasing 3.6 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

The most surprising news however, was the Mazda 3, which came third, costing $1845 in petrol. Meanwhile Australia’s most popular car, the Toyota Corolla came fourth with a $1672 yearly petrol cost.

 Out of all the cars tested, the Green Vehicle Guide recommends the Toyota Yaris as the cheapest option for getting around (not including hybrids). The Yaris costs $1350 a year.

The Prius was the cheapest hybrid car to run, with a total bill $990 in fuel each year. CO2 emissions for the ‘revolutionary’ Prius where half of the Commodore’s at 1.6 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

For more information you can check out the Green Vehicle Guide at www.greenvehicleguide.gov.au (which ironically, is currently off-line with “Server too busy” errors).

CarAdvice recently conducted a fuel economy test with a new VE SS Commodore to find out if the era of big V8s is coming to an end. The results will be released before the end of next week.

« Hide It

Read more…

“Lack of education is becoming less of an issue, people are becoming more comfortable with the technology.” Mike Marshall, Power’s director of automotive emerging technologies said.

In the 2007 survey, the main reason  consumers weren’t considering hybrids was lack of familiarity with the technology, which this yeah is no longer the top concern.

What does worry consumers, however, is whether or not hybrid powertrains will pay for themselves over the period of ownership.

Another interesting find was the move away from E85 vehicles. Only 43 percent of consumers are still interested in the ethanol cars, the main concern being the affect it has on agricultural production.

 ”As agriculture starts shifting production to ethanol, prices are going up. People are starting to get that. It’s one of many solutions out there, but it has negative consequences as well, and these consequences show up in the grocery store.” Marshal said.

JD powers also released its annual Automotive Environmental Index, which indexes the top 30 models based on a number of environmental aspects including air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and fuel economy.

Toyota and its luxury arm Lexus came out number one with a combined seven vehicles in the index: six Toyotas and one Lexus. General Motors which includes, GM, Chevrolet, Pontiac and Saturn had its best year with a combined six vehicles, meanwhile Ford had three vehicles.

Are you considering a hybrid as your next car?

« Hide It