Data from the Australian Institute of Petroleum shows the average price across the country (126.0 cents per litre) is at its highest level since the week of January 17 to 24, with all states excluding the Northern Territory and Tasmania experiencing hikes last week.

Adelaide was the hardest hit capital city with prices soaring 7.3 cents per litre to 125.7, while Melbourne was close behind with a weekly change of 6.3 cents per litre for a weekly average of 124.4.

New South Wales and the ACT were in line with the national average, cumulatively adding 3.6 cents per litre to rise to 125.6.

Queensland and Western Australia were not hit as hard this week but remain more expensive overall with weekly averages at 126.6 and 126.4 cents per litre respectively.

Tasmania experienced no change to remain steady at 131.5 while the Northern Territory dropped 0.2 cents for a weekly average of 134.7.

Unleaded was at its most expensive in Tennant Creek where motorists were charged an average of 150.2 cents per litre last week, while the cheapest fuel was on offer in Toowoomba where it was as low as 121.6.

CommSec economist Savanth Sebastian said increasing profit margin pressures on major oil companies and readjustments after the “unsustainable” local price war were behind the recent rises.

“After selling petrol for what was virtually below cost, petrol stations are once again increasing margins in an attempt to remain profitable,” he said.

National average diesel prices rose 0.4 cents per litre last week to 127.1, representing the first increase since the week of January 17 to 24.

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Designed as a single, integrated unit to fit in the home garage, the station produces enough hydrogen (500g) in an eight hour overnight fill to power a fuel cell electric vehicle for its typical daily commute (roughly 44km, or 16,000km a year). Refilling overnight lets owners take advantage of less expensive off-peak electrical power and removes the requirement of hydrogen storage.

Honda’s FCX Clarity – currently available in small numbers in selected markets – is capable of being fast-filled in five minutes and has a driving range of 386km.

Designed to support the needs of the future owners of fuel cell electric vehicles, Honda says the Solar Hydrogen Station was designed to complement a public network of fast-fill hydrogen stations.

“A key strategy in creating a solar hydrogen station for home use was to create a new lifestyle with convenient, clean, energy-efficient and sustainable home refuelling, by addressing the need for refuelling infrastructure that can advance the wider use of fuel cell electric vehicles by consumers.

“The combination of a fuel cell electric vehicle and the solar hydrogen station could help lead to the establishment of a hydrogen society based on renewable energy, resulting in a major reduction of CO2 emissions and greater energy sustainability,” Honda said in a statement.

Honda’s previous solar hydrogen station system required both an electrolyser and a separate compressor unit to create high pressure hydrogen. The compressor was the largest and most expensive component and reduced system efficiency. By creating a new high differential pressure electrolyser, Honda engineers have been able to eliminate the compressor entirely – a world first for a home use system.

This innovation also reduces the size of other key components to make the new station the world’s most compact system, while improving system efficiency by more than 25 percent (based on simulations) compared to the solar hydrogen station system it replaces.

The new Solar Hydrogen Station employs the same 48-panel, 6kW solar array that powered the previous system, utilising thin film solar cells composed of copper, indium, gallium and selenium (CIGS), which Honda says generate less CO2 than conventional solar cells.

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Toyota Tsusho Corporation, 21.8 percent owned by Toyota, will provide US$4.5 million (AUD$4.9 million) to fund the completion of the Definitive Feasibility Study of Orocobre’s flagship Salar de Olaroz Lithium-Potash Project in Argentina.

Orocobre will operate the venture and will continue to own 75 percent of the Olaroz Project.

At an estimated cost of $85-$110 million, it is expected to produce 15,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate equivalent per year, making it the fifth-largest lithium carbonate producer for batteries in the world.

The final studies and pre-development activities are expected to be completed by third quarter 2010 with a possible project start date later in the year.

Orocobre managing director, Richard Seville, said Toyota Tsusho was a perfect fit as a development partner for the Olaroz Project.

“Toyota Tsusho becoming our strategic partner allows Olaroz direct access to Toyota Motor Corporation and its partners such as Panasonic and Sanyo.

“These companies have significant expertise and understanding of supply requirements in large format lithium-ion batteries for the automotive industry and consumer sector, and that will add greatly to our understanding of end-user requirements and demand.”

Mr Seville said as electric car demand continues to grow Toyota Motor Corporation would have the opportunity to become a cornerstone off-take customer.

Toyota Tsusho said its strategy was to invest in the Olaroz Project in order to secure access to competitive, low-cost lithium carbonate production in a timeframe closely aligned with worldwide lithium requirements for hybrid and electric vehicles.

“The size and quality of the deposit is world-class and we believe will produce high purity, battery-grade materials required for the global battery industry, at a cost that is competitive with existing lithium brine producers in South America.

“Global demand for lithium across the electronics, industrial and automotive sectors continues to grow and we are very pleased to have secured access to a project of this size and quality, with a strong and focused development partner,” it said in a statement.

CarAdvice reported earlier in the week that Toyota aims to produce one million hybrids per year by 2011 which will mean a sharp increase in its lithium demands.

Toyota is favouring lithium-ion batteries over its current nickel-metal-hydride units for future models because of their greater energy-to-weight ratio – which leads better range and efficiency.

The Prius Plug-In Hybrid will be among Toyota’s first lithium-ion powered vehicles when it enters full-scale production, believed to be in 2012.

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Toyota’s executive vice president of product planning and advanced technology, Takeshi Uchiyamada, said that fuel cell vehicles could be less expensive than hybrid and electric vehicles in selected markets that have the appropriate refuelling infrastructure.

Speaking at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Mr Uchiyamada would not speculate on the type of vehicle that may enter the market by the scheduled 2015 entry date, but said it would need to be affordable and have a great fuel range.

The announcement is backed up by Toyota’s recent commitment to introduce more than 100 fuel cell vehicles into its demonstrator fleet test program in California and New York.

Previous testing with the Highlander FCHV (fuel cell hybrid vehicle) achieved an estimated range of 693km on a single full tank of compressed hydrogen gas and an average fuel economy equivalent to 3.4 litres/100km.

Toyota is also boosting its global research and development resources, with a new electric division of around 50 engineers working on next-generation battery technologies.

Toyota’s managing officer in charge of developing batteries, Koei Saga, said battery technology needed to improve significantly heading into the future.

“We believe a key to the electrical mobile technology lies in innovation of battery technology.

“Lithium-ion batteries will already be a step forward, but we need batteries that offer far superior performance,” he said.

The current version of the Prius uses nickel-metal-hydride batteries but Toyota has confirmed the Prius PHV (plug-in hybrid vehicle – due for release in 2012) will be powered by the more energy efficient lithium-ion units.

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

Hyundai-Kia managing director, Kim Hae-jin, said his company would focus on diesel hybrid technology rather than electric vehicles in the short term.

“[Diesel hybrid] commercialisation will be established around 2011.

“Electric cars will be produced in 2011 as well, but it will take five or six more years to churn them out.  So the company will concentrate more on diesel hybrid models,” he confirmed.

Kim would not reveal which models would receive the diesel hybrid system first, but did explain that it would be a “mild-type” hybrid (with the motor and engine running together) rather than a “full-type” hybrid like the Toyota Prius (where the two operate separately).

Kim said his company would forge ahead with the technology despite dwindling demand and government surcharges on diesels in South Korea, citing the efficiency gains international popularity of diesels as reasons to pursue it.

“Combustion efficiency will surge 30 percent in hybridised diesel engines, over the 25 percent rise expected in gasoline hybrid engines.”

So far no manufacturer has released a mass-produced diesel hybrid vehicle.

Peugeot will be among the first next year with its 1.6-litre 308 HDi, capable of 3.4 litres/100km and CO2 emissions of just 90g/km.

Mercedes-Benz has also invested a significant time and money into its BlueTec concepts, which are nearing production-readiness.

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“There has been a lot of recent industry and media discussion regarding alternative fuels and electric powered vehicles in particular. VACC can see the potential of plug-in vehicles, but they are for the future, especially when you consider re-charging networks and training courses for repairers still need to be addressed. But LPG is for the now. It is viable, environmentally friendly and the technology and infrastructure is proven,” VACC Executive Director, David Purchase, said.

LPG (also known as Autogas) is environmentally friendly, producing the lowest life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of all commercially available automotive fuels.

The LPG industry is covered by a National Code or Standard and also has State Regulations to ensure the systems are safe to use, repair and safe in an accident.
Autogas is usually 50 per cent cheaper than the other available fuels. The National average for ULP price from November 2008 to October 2009 was 120 cpl and LPG was 55 cpl.
With the Federal Government offering private motorists a rebate of $1750 to convert there car to LPG it will pay for itself in no time. Most vehicles can be converted with the conversion taking one to two days. Victoria has over 50 per cent of the Nation’s LPG conversions with more than 600 LPG conversion businesses registered.

Victoria has over 1,000 service stations offering LPG and filling the tank is easy to use and cleaner than diesel.
Close to 6,000 national conversions are done per month and has a turnover of $350 million per annum. More than 600,000 Australians run their cars on Autogas.
Australia has a huge supply of natural reserves of LPG and produces three million tonnes per annum.

“LPG is the sensible and practical choice when it comes to alternative fuels. And, unlike electric-powered vehicles, you do not have to buy a new car to benefit: you just convert your current model through a VACC Accredited Alternative Fuels Specialist,” Mr Purchase said.

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Widely used throughout Europe and the US, the new nozzles contain a seal or hose which captures up to 95 per cent of vapours at the bowser, including benzene – a known carcinogen.

NSW Climate Change and Environment Minister, John Robertson, said the new pumps significantly reduce health risks and said the difference will be obvious to drivers.

“One of the first things customers will notice when refuelling at a service station with this technology is that the overpowering smell of petrol is missing.

“The second thing is that there are no shimmery vapours, or smog forming pollutants escaping from the tank,” he said.

Robertson said the vapour capturing nozzles would reduce smog-forming emissions by around 5000 tonnes each year.

“This makes it the single biggest initiative underway in the Greater Metropolitan region to tackle air pollution.”

NSW is the first state to implement fuel vapour regulations, and from July 2010, all new and refurbished service stations in Sydney, Newcastle, Wollongong and the Central Coast will be expected install the pumps.

by Tim Beissmann (with The Manly Daily)

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Think has a loan application in the earlier stages as a part of the US Government’s scheme to encourage the local production of fuel-efficient vehicles.

Around 2300 Think City small cars have been ordered in the past 12-18 months and production will begin in Finland in December – in the same city as Porsche makes its Boxster and Cayman.

Think is aiming to sell 4600 units next year and then double production by 2011.

Think City can travel up to 180 kilometres in one charge, with a top speed of 100km/h.

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

In the three- and five-door models, the stop/start 103kW 2.0-litre TDI drops fuel economy to 3.66 litres/100km combined and cuts CO2 emissions by 16 per cent to 115g/km.

The Cabriolet boasts similar reductions, now managing 3.83 litres/100km and 119g/km CO2.

But Audi Australia corporate communications general manager, Anna Burgdorf, said a frugal A3 with the stop/start diesel system is still a few years away for local customers.

“The A3 will be likely to get stop/start technology but it won’t be that model for Australia. We probably won’t see it until the next model generation.”

The stop/start system cuts engine power at idle when the clutch pedal is released and the gear lever is in its neutral position then restarts in two-tenths of a second when the clutch is depressed.

Regenerative braking provides further fuel and CO2 savings by recycling wasted kinetic energy and storing it temporarily in the battery to reduce the engine load when the car accelerates again.

While the upgrade applies immediately in the UK and parts of Europe, Burgdorf said the decision to delay its arrival had to do with Australia’s climate.

“At the moment because Australia is classified as a hot country that car is not available to us, but we will definitely have stop/start technology in Australia next year,” she said.

Burgdorf confirmed that the new system will be introduced on the A4 and A5 early next year.

All three models have been success stories for Audi Australia this year, with A3/A3 Convertible sales increasing YTD by 31 per cent, while the A4 is up 2.5 per cent and the A5 up 59.3 per cent.

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

Production Class Small Car Diesel

• Ford Fiesta ECOnetic

Production Class Small Car Petrol

• Suzuki Alto GLX

Production Class Ute/Light Truck

• HSV Maloo Ute

Production Class Large Car Petrol

• Ford Falcon XR6 Turbo

Production Class Large Car Diesel

• Skoda Superb

Production Class Medium/ Off Road

• Hyundai Santa Fe SLX – Entry#5

Production Class 2 seat Electric

• Tesla

Modified Production Small Electric

• Deep Green Research

Modified Production Hybrid

• Annesley College

Modified Production Motor Bike

• Top Gear Magazine – Honda CT-110

Suzuki:

The Suzuki Alto smashed all records and achieved a surprising 2.0L/100km fuel economy figure on the last day of the Global Green Challenge.

What’s more amazing is that this figure was achieved on the inner city roads of Adelaide in the middle of morning peak hour.

Proving that fuel economy can be achieved in stop start motoring, setting a new standard for fuel economy not only for petrol cars but for diesel cars too.

Most of the 3000km journey from Darwin to Adelaide was against headwinds and some of Australia’s toughest roads and conditions. The manual Alto recorded an economy rating of 3.9L/100km, 18.55 per cent lower than the ADR fuel rating of 4.8L/100km. CO2 emissions also recorded a low 89.9g/km compared to the usual 113g/km.

“The Global Green Challenge has been a fantastic opportunity for Suzuki to show its commitment to fuel efficient and low-emission vehicles driven in real-world conditions and readily available to all consumers,” said Suzuki Australia General Manager Tony Devers.

“The Alto proves that it is possible to maintain economical driving in urban traffic where we all know most motorists do the bulk of their driving and all of this without costly technologies such as hybrid powertrains or stop-start technologies.

“Starting in November the Alto will be priced at less than $13,000 on the road. That price tag is more than $10,000 cheaper than any other vehicle competing in this event. It’s simple and safe motoring at its best.”

Skoda

In the medium to large car class the Skoda Superb proved to be to most fuel efficient vehicles in the last days of the Global Green Challenge. Coming in at fourth place behind the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic, Mini Cooper D and Suzuki Alto GLX, all competing in the light to small class.

The fuel consumption was as low as 4.59 litres per 100km, the 2.0 TDI with 125kw and 350Nm took most contenders by surprise.

As well a being a contester the Skoda Superb was also a support car for the Top Gear Australia team and its ‘postie’ bike. Carrying an excess amount of weight, an extra passenger and frequent fuel stops for the bike all affecting the fuel consumption the Superb still came in ahead of its large car competitors.

Skoda Australia has achieved the goal of proving that a large luxurious car carrying luggage and passengers can still be as economical as a traditional small car.

Hyundai

The new Santa Fe R diesel has won the SUV class in the Global Green Challenge and is one of the best medium SUV to own in its class.

On the southward bound trip the Santa Fe had a consumption rate of just 5.1L/100km beating its official government specified fuel consumption by 23.9 per cent.

The week long trek from Darwin to Adelaide included two urban loops and covered a distance of 3,147 kilometres, all vehicles had to keep an average speed on highways.

After the seven day trip the Santa Fe consumed a total of 160.46 litres of diesel fuel and also produced a low 137.67 grams of CO2 per kilometre.

The Santa Fe was driven by former Australian rally champion Ed Ordynski and motoring commentator John Cadogan. “This is a practical, versatile and rugged vehicle with serious off-road capability and seven seats. Yet with a combination of the latest technology and conservative driving techniques, we achieved the equivalent of 56 miles per gallon – a result that would have been unheard of just a decade ago,” said Cadogan.

Ordynski added: “Competition in the category was extremely close. I think what we proved was that smarter driving and making the right choice of vehicle can make a real difference to ordinary Australians – both economically and environmentally.”

The R 2.2 diesel produces 145 kilowatts and up to 436Nm of torque (manual), seats seven and has a five star safety rating.

Over the same journey two years ago the Hyundai i30 CRDi had a 3.2L/100km.

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Over the entire trip, the Maloo had a combined average fuel consumption of 7.74 litres per 100 kilometres, representing the largest improvement over the manufacturers indicated fuel figure.

Its nearest competitor made a 39.81 per cent improvement, while the third-placed vehicle improved its consumption rating by 33.5 per cent.

The winning team, comprising Senior HSV Engineers Gerry Bechet and Leigh Russell and motoring journalist Joshua Dowling, credit their success to consistent driving and willingness to put up with difficult cabin conditions.

“For instance we kept air-conditioning use to an absolute minimum, which meant coping with cabin temperatures of more than 50 degrees Celsius for hours on end,” Gerry Bechet said.

Although this result does not make the Maloo the most frugal competitor in the Global Green Car Challenge fleet, only the vehicle to improve upon its fuel consumption rating by the biggest margin – a rather dubious method to crown a champion.

Nevertheless, Managing Director of HSV Phil Harding congratulated the team on their result, adding that “the real world fuel efficiency of the Holden Special Vehicles range is extremely competitive.”

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

The Land Glider is approximately 110 cm wide and looks like it is a motorbike with a glass domed roof. The wheels and guards tilt to allow the car to lean when going around curves in the road.

The concept car is seriously being considered for Nissan’s luxury brand Infiniti.

Takashi Nakajima, director of exploratory design for Nissan said “This is our second phase of electric-vehicle design.”

The Land Glider uses individual electric motors positioned above its axles allowing the car to lean up to 17 degrees. This tilting action maintains stability and allows the car to take curves at high speed.

In 2007 Ryusuke Hayashi, a Nissan product planning manager became frustrated unable to find a car park in Tokyo. “I thought, if only my car was narrower, it would be easier to park.”

Now he is a product planning manager for the concept, “As a product planner, I wanted the car to be even narrower than what you see now. But our engineers decided it would be safer to drive if we made it a little wider.” So it was built 110 cm wide and 310 cm long.

The car is a two seater but like a motorbike the passenger sits behind the driver. This second seat may not make production due to dear impact issues that Nissan engineers are working on.

A one seater luxury car may sound crazy but Nakajima said the car is designed with the future in mind. “In the past five years, we were doing a lot of exploratory work on electric-vehicle concepts. And now today, we have a Leaf production car.”

Nissan has spent $2 billion on the Leaf manufacturing plant in Smyrna, Tenn., that includes the construction of the lithium ion battery plant. The Leaf is aimed at the family car market the Land Glider concept is not.

The concept is aimed at people who would like to ride a motorbike but don’t feel safe. Nakajima said “Maybe they feel like a motorcycle isn’t safe, this would satisfy the concerns of their family”.

“We want to position this car to be competitive against these alternatives.”

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

Technology from the Germans is always technology worth paying attention to. Practical, logical, simple and genius is how we describe the three new heat-harnessing technologies BMW is currently working on.

Simple physics would suggest that no energy is ever created or destroyed, simply transformed into another form. For this reason, BMW has decided to make use of all that heat energy produced by vehicles.

BMW says it’s working on harnessing the heat energy to help improve fuel consumption and reduce CO2 emissions.

There are three different ways that BMW engineers have developed to harness heat energy. Firstly, an idea to banish cold starts forever (help reduce emissions). Secondly, converting heat released from the car’s exhaust into good old electricity (technology inspired by space probes of the 1960s). Thirdly and perhaps the easiest of all, to use waste heat to heat the interior of a car.

“We want cars to warm up as quickly as possible, since higher temperatures mean less friction, less friction means less fuel consumption and, therefore, less CO2,” says Dr Andreas Eder, Head of Heat Management Pre-Development Projects at BMW Group.

The first technology will see the engine provided with better heat insulation to prevent it from cooling down too quickly. Of course this technology would be most beneficial in colder climates.

BMW has worked out that each degree Celsius the engine temperature is above the ambient temperature reduces fuel consumption by 0.2 per cent

If you’re wondering if it’s disadvantages for the engine to remain so hot, engineers have even worked out a better way to protect components in the engine compartment which have to be cooled. Meanwhile the engine itself will cool down much slower and can even keep temperatures of approximately 40 degrees Celsius after 12 hours of being switched off.

This technology will also mean hot air for the interior can be produced quicker, a feature most diserable in European winters.

The second technology is turning exhaust heat into electricity. Given that between three to eight per cent of total fuel consumption in modern cars is a result of its electricity needs, BMW has worked out that by using a thermoelectric generator in the exhaust gas recirculation cooler system, it can harness up to 250 W of energy (roughy half the on-board electricity consumption in a BMW 5 Series).

To put that into real world figures, the system can help reduce fuel consumption by about two per cent.

This technology is inspired by space probs of the 1960s, which makes us wonder if it really takes 50 years for space craft technology to make it to cars? We could try and explain to you how the thermoelectric generator works, but we best let BMW do that:

“(It) uses the effect of the temperature gradient in thermoelectric semi-conductor elements generating electrical voltage (the Seebeck Effect). The bigger the difference in temperature, the higher the voltage generated.”

The third heat-harnessing technology will see BMW engineers working on an exhaust gas heat exchanger. The idea is to help quickly warm up the drivetrain more quickly. Such an exchanger conveys heat, or thermal energy, from one flow to another, apparently Petrol engine powered cars will benefit the most from this as diesel cars are now too efficient to generate too much wasted heat.

In fact for most diesel cars the excess heat generated by the engine is now longer sufficient to heat the interior, forcing manufacturers to use an additional electric heater, which BMW claims can add as much as 1 litre per 100 kilometres extra fuel consumption.

The solution? BMW engineers have worked out how to use the hot exhaust emissions (using a heat exchanger) close to the catalytic converter to help heat the interior.

All technologies are still in the works and we may not seem them for some time (although prototypes do already exist).

It’s worth congratulating BMW for their innovation in creating more fuel efficient cars, although the savings may not be that significant, mixed in with a whole range of other technologies, the future of BMW environmentally friendly cars is looking very green.

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

On the eve of the Tokyo Motor Show Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosen spoke at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan. Ghosn said that outsourcing the manufacturing of the batteries may happen in the future but for now Nissan want to maintain control of the battery development, controlling cost and production.

“If you want to be in control of the cost, you’d better be involved,” Ghosn said. “We want to make sure we can drive the battery where we want to go.”

Nissan will be working with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory on future battery development. Oak Ridge are said to be able to develop a battery that can travel 643 km on a single charge.

Ghosn said “We are ready to sell the battery to whoever is interested,” Nissan’s batteries will be “an important profit center” in the future.

Nissan would like to build a plant in Smyrna, Tenn., with the aim to make 200,000 batteries each year.

Nissan, NEC Corp and NEC Tokin Corp are working together on a project called Automotive Energy Supply Corp. A plant is being built in Japan that should produce 13,000 lithium ion battery packs each year, with the ability to make 65,000 battery packs yearly.

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

The new Diesel engine with the six-speed manual gearbox offers 32 percent more power as well as a 10 percent reduction in fuel consumption and green house gas emissions.

The Global Green Challenge, which runs from Darwin to Adelaide this month will showcase the cars abilities to cope with the harsh Australian outback over the 3,027 km journey. The journey begins on the 24th October and the car will be released before the end of the year.

The suspension set up in the new Santa Fe has been changed to deal with Australian roads, improving handling and a six-speed automatic gearbox on the options list that helps with economy.

“Hyundai will demonstrate how significant fuel economy savings can be made by driving a latest generation AWD seven-seat SUV,” said Kevin McCann, Sales and Marketing Director of Hyundai Motor Company Australia. “It will be a real world test – no wing mirrors folded flat or anything like that – and will show owners how much they can save in terms of both fuel costs and reduced emissions by driving the latest generation Santa Fe.”

One of the Santa Fes will be piloted by no other than CarAdvice editor John Cadogan.

The Hyundai i30 CRDi competed in the Panasonic World Solar Challenge in 2007. This challenge was also between Darwin and Adelaide where the car achieved and average fuel consumption figure of 3.2L/100km.

Find out more about the Global Green Challenge.

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Previous years have seen the event take place but only include the World Solar Challenge which is essentially limiting the category to solar vehicles only. This year however will see the introduction of a new class to allow production and prototype eco friendly vehicles that are on their way (or already available) in showrooms.

The 17 cars involved will start from NT’s Parliament House in Darwin this Saturday and finish in Adelaide the Saturday after. The cars involved are powered by a wide variety of fuel saving technology.

At the very top, Internode ISP founder Simon Hackett (together with Kym Cleggett) will be leading the challenge in his all-electric Tesla sports car meanwhile on the otherside of the scale TopGear Australia magazine has entered a Honda ‘postie bike’ running on alcohol fuel.

Manufacturers that have contributed more than one car include: Ford, Kia, Hyundai, and BMW Mini. Additionally Holden, Skoda, and Holden Special Vehicles (HSV) have single car entries. Deep Green Research has decided to enter an all-electric Honda Civic. Students from Annesley College in Adelaide will also be involved in a modified Holden Viva.

BMW & Mini will enter three vehicles driven by Le Mans winner Vern Schuppan, ABC motoring commentator Will Hagon, and motoring writer Bob Jennings together with V8 Touring Car racer Chris Smerdon, Andy Ford, Jaedene Hudson, and BMW’s own Toni Andreevski.

Ford’s Fiesta Econetic will be driven by Motoring writer Peter McKay and Carolyn Barry. Interestingly the blue oval has also entered a Falcon XR6T driven by motoring writer Damien Smy and Russel Christophers.

Suzuki has entered its tiny Alto which will be piloted by Karla Pincott and Feann Torr.

Skoda will put Petra Beneda and Jenny Wu in a Superb, Holden’s Sportwagon 3.0 SIDI will be competing with Andrea Matthews, motoring writer Scott Heyward, and Simon Cassin behind the wheel.

On the Korean side, Kia will enter two new Sorento models piloted by rally drivers Brendan Reeves and Glen Raymond, Geoff Forshaw and Anthony Caldwell. Sister company Hyundai has entered two Sante Fe models driven by rally champion Ed Ordynski together with Motoring Editor Keith Didham. CarAdvice’s editor John Cadogan and Chris Riley are competing in the second Santa Fe.

Holden Special Vehicles has decided what better car to enter the Global Green Challenge in than a Maloo Ute.

The idea is to challenge the vehicles involved to produce the best results in comparison to their fuel/energy consumption and emissions listed in the Australian Design Regulation figures. It’s not particularly a race, more so a challenge to see which car company really can deliver the fuel economy it says it can.

Winners will be selected based on the greatest percentage improvement of the official government figures published in the Green Car Guide. As such, the challenge will also include two ‘urban’ cycles, one in Darwin and one in Adelaide. The main event is a 3,000 kilometre journey from Darwin to Adelaide.

The week long challenge itinerary is as follows:

• Darwin – Start Saturday October 24
• Katherine – Overnight Saturday October 24
• Tennant Creek – Overnight Sunday October 25
• Alice Springs – Overnight Monday October 26
• Cooper Pedy – Overnight Tuesday October 27
• Port Augusta – Overnight Wednesday October 28
• Adelaide – Overnight Thursday October 29
• Adelaide – Urban cycle Friday October 30
• Adelaide – Global Green Challenge Awards Ceremony Saturday October 31 (Adelaide Convention Centre 6.30pm – invitation only)

Of course the first thing we noticed was Toyota’s name missing from the list. We asked Toyota Australia why the company had not entered the Global Green Challenge.

“The main reason was timing. Unfortunately our financial year is in line with Japan’s, that is April to March. We were approached by the organisers after we had committed our budget for Hybrid to other marketing activities, we couldn’t justify diverting funds from these activities to the Global Green Challenge.” Toyota Public Relations manager Mike Breen told CarAdvice.

We’d like to know which manufacturer you believe will perform the best in this year’s Global Green Challenge.

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

Updated 3 pm: Ford Australia has revealed details of Australia’s most fuel efficient car, the Ford Fiesta Econetic.

Using just 3.7 litres of fuel per 100km, and producing 98 grams of CO2 emissions per kilometre, the Fiesta takes the title from the Prius and Mini Cooper D.

Pricing is $24,990 drive away and the Fiesta comes with a 5-star ANCAP safety rating.

Ford Australia President and CEO Marin Burela told CarAdvice the development of the Fiesta Econetic, which has been on sale in Europe for some time, was heavily supported by Ford Australia. The eco-friendly Fiesta has so far sold to over 60,000 buyers in Europe, despite having an initial target of around 2-3,000.

Australia’s most fuel efficient car is expected to go on sale in December and Ford Australia believes its priced just right to appeal to young and young-at-heart buyers alike.

Mr Burela said Ford’s own testing has shown to car to use around 3.2-litres per 100km on a normal urban cycle. According to Ford’s research the new third generation Prius is indeed more fuel economical in city traffic, however given the massive price gap between the two cars, Ford has worked out that it will take 115 years (based on September fuel prices) to make up the cost of the additional fuel the Fiesta uses over the Prius during city driving.

The diesel powered Fiesta makes use of a 1.6-litre 66kW engine with 200Nm of torque. Fuel saving technologies used include low resistance tyres (tyre size: 175/65 R14), uniquely tuned transmission, lowered suspension for better aerodynamics, low friction oils and weight reduction everywhere possible.

In regards to the transmission, the Fiesta Econetic is only available with a five-speed manual with no current plans for an automatic. The Fiesta weighs 1088kg (kerb weight).

You can see the full technical specification document: Ford-Fiesta-Technical Specifications

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

Mr Allan Dick and Mr Donn Anderson each drove an Alto, one with a manual and one with an automatic transmission, from Auckland to Invercargill, and then onto the Bluff, the most Southerly point, before making the return journey back to New Zealand’s largest city.

The objective of the trip was to not only monitor the frugal petrol consumption of the 1.0-litre, three-cylinder Suzukis, but to gauge the comfort levels of the compact cars on the six day journey, in much the same way CarAdvice did with its 12-hour Economy Challenge drive around Melbourne recently.

The manual gearbox Alto consumed a total of 150.1 litres of fuel which was an average of 3.68L/100km. Compared to the manual car, the four-speed automatic transmission Alto used 165.4 litres, averaging 4.16L/100km.

The best individual leg result for the Alto manual was on the final day from Paraparaumu to Auckland where the car achieved 3.31L/100km. In the run from Oamaru to Invercargill on the third day, the Alto automatic posted its best result of 3.80L/100km.

Mr Dick, an experienced motoring journalist and long distance driver, said the Alto was every bit as practical on the Auckland to Bluff run as he knew it was going to be.

“There are plenty of New Zealanders who still think that you need a big car for journeys longer than going to the supermarket,” said Mr Dick. “We have just proved that any prejudices about small cars can be put aside.”

“We did the Auckland to Wellington drive with the speedo needle sitting close to 100 km/h all the way and were never passed by anything that wasn’t going in the opposite direction.”

“This was something of a marathon drive for a small car, and one that surprised many people,” said Mr Anderson. “But the Altos took the journey in their stride and there is no doubt we could have taken a day less to complete the trip and still been in good shape.”

“We proved it was possible to get close to petrol/electric hybrid economy in a conventional car that carries a considerably lower price tag than those more complex vehicles.”

• For a full review of the new Suzuki Alto, click here.
• To read CarAdvice’s Suzuki Alto 12-hour Economy Challenge, click here.
• To read more about driving in New Zealand, click here.

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

Green motoring has finally become cool.

Model Tested:

• 2009 Mini Cooper D; 1.6-litre, four-cylinder, turbo-diesel; six-speed manual; hatch – $33,750*

Incredible fuel economy; green but still cool; Mini handling; practicality; perfect city car

A little pricey; weak stereo

CarAdvice Rating:

The Mini Cooper D is an interesting car, it’s both cool and yet still green, two concepts which so far haven’t gone all that well together despite the best attempts of the world’s largest car companies. Making a car that can go 1000km+ on a single tank, put out very little CO2 emissions and yet still be fun and not embarrassing to be in? Is it even possible? Yes.

It takes several hundred kilometers to review a car properly and usually when an evaluation vehicles goes home it has about ¼ tank of fuel left in it. So you can imagine my shock as I was handing the Mini Cooper D test car back to BMW and realised that the fuel tank was still more than half full. That would’ve been more than believable had I not done 496km!

On the whole I am not a big fan of fuel efficient cars, in a way they say a lot about the mentality of the automotive industry today, with manufacturers desperately trying to be environmentally conscious and promoting their green image, meanwhile keeping the passion and performance aspect alive at the same time. There is a lot incongruent with that idea.

Fortunately though, the Mini Cooper D is a little different to the rest, for a start it’s a Mini so it instantly has some cool factor attached to it. Additionally, it’s not powered by some super complicated electric hybrid engine that requires half the planet to get involved in its construction.

Of course, then there is the drive factor, it drives like a proper car, you can push hard into corners and you can drive up a twisty mountain and it won’t complain, it won’t make you feel like you’ve sold your soul just to save a few trees.

Best of all though, it’s not incongruent, it’s not confused, it knows exactly what it is. Mini call it Minimalist design even though the car is relatively well equipped.

I collected the Cooper D from Brisbane BMW in Fortitude Valley and headed into peak hour traffic, BMW had decided that since I’m going to be driving it around for a week, it may as well use the car as an advertising billboard. Two giant stickers each side made sure of that, one side read 3.9L/100km and the other side read 104g co2/km.

I was driving around in a beacon of the green movement in peak hour traffic, hippies waved, men in BMW M3s frowned as they sped past. Alas, I am open minded, so what if it helps save the planet, it can still be cool, it’s a Mini! Plus if you buy one, BMW promises to take the stickers off.

On the first set of lights in the middle of Brisbane CBD, the car turned off. Oh dear, had I stalled the car? Had the car broken down, could this get any more embarrassing? For a good 30 seconds there, I started wondering how I was going to end up on the 6 o’clock traffic helicopter with the tag line reading “Hippy in eco friendly car stops Brisbane traffic”.

I looked down, the car was in neutral, how could it possibly stall? It hadn’t, the Mini is so smart it had decided to turn it self off similar to hybrid cars that turn off their petrol engine when stopped. Perhaps if I had paid more attention to the lady explaining the car’s ins and outs 10 minutes ago the Mini’s start-stop system wouldn’t have come as a surprise.

With the system on, the Cooper D will turn itself off (safely) everytime you’re stopped in traffic, even if its for 10 seconds, when you press the clutch in, it will turn back on instantly. Now if you’ve never experienced a car with Start-Stop technology, it may seem like a gimmick, something that might slow you down, however it’s quite a brilliant system.

The idea is that instead of the engine running while you’re not moving, it simply turns off for the duration of your stop to save fuel. To the outside world, it may seem like you’ve gone mad with the ignition switch (or are incapable of driving) but it’s all very seamless and after a few days you get used to it.

Start-stop aside, there is a lot more to the Mini that makes it fuel efficient, it’s powered by the BMW/Peugeot designed 1.6-litre turbo-diesel engine. With 80kW and 240Nm of torque, by no means is the Cooper D a performance car, but nor is it slow. It will go from 0-100km/h in about 10 seconds but somehow BMW have managed to bring fuel usage down to just 3.9L/100km (equal best fuel rating on the market). It does help that the car only weighs 1090kg.

To put that into perspective, the new third generation Toyota Prius with all its ultra-modern technology, electric drives, batteries, hybrid engine and what not can only manage the same fuel rating.

For a car that costs $33,750 you get a lot of underlying technology to go with the good fuel economy. Mini’s famous driving dynamics apart, the Mini Cooper D comes with pretty much the basics, the chilli variant ($37,350) gets a rear spoiler, uprated interior, 16-inch alloys (as oppose to 15), front fog lights and a better stereo system (10 loudspeakers and a digital 8-channel amplifier).

Safety wise you can’t expect anything less than five-star these days and the Cooper doesn’t disappoint. With airbags all around and a five star rating from Euro NCAP Crash Test the Mini also comes with Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), Cornering Brake Control (CBC), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Brake Assist, Automatic Stability Control Traction (ASC T) and Dynamic Stability Control (DSC).

During the week I drove to the Gold Coast, around town and even used the Mini to move some furniture. If you’re like me and don’t have any kids, it’s hard to argue against the Mini’s practicality.

Of course it wouldn’t be a proper green car if it didn’t have a few gimmicks, for example the Brake Energy Regeneration system helps charge the car’s battery whenever the driver brakes or the car is coasting in traffic.

In the manual variants, there is even “Shift Point Display” that works out what’s the best gear to be in and prompts the driver to shift up or down via arrows in the rev counter.

For the low to mid 30s there are a few other alternatives on the market, Volkswagen, Peugeot, even Fiat make similarly specified cars for around the same or lower price. So the question you have to ask yourself is, and if I may use Toyota’s marketing department genius for a minute, are you a Mini person?

What makes a Mini person? Being a little different, as much as I love the Volkswagen Golf diesel (and it’s a brilliant car), it’s not exactly a unique car and as much as I want to recommend a Fiat to anyone, resale and reliability come to mind with all Italian cars. So for me it comes down to the Peugeot 207 and the Mini Cooper D.

The only minor downside that is worth mentioning is the stereo, it’s just not what I expected from a car of this caliber as it seems to be lacking much needed bass and clarity. However if you go for the Chilli variant that won’t be an issue.

Handling and performance wise, there should really be no need to explain as the 1.6-litre diesel is the fastest 1.6-litre diesel in Australia (0-100km/h) but it also handles rather well despite its tiny 15-inch wheels (16- on chilli). Steering response is typical go-kart like as with all Minis and the pedal position feel makes for an easy drive.

You have to remember the Mini Cooper D can travel 1,025 km from a single 40-litre tank – and that’s no small feat. Yes it’s a little more expensive than its other European rivals, but being cool has a price.

If you’re looking for a car that is green but still keeps its cool factor whilst being extremely fuel efficient, it’s really hard to go past the Mini.

Ratings:

CarAdvice Overall Rating:
How does it Drive:
How does it Look:
How does it Go:

Road Test the Rivals:

• Audi A3 Sportback TDI e (from $38,900*)
• BMW 118d (from $42,170*)
• Fiat Ritmo JTD (from $25,990*)
• Hyundai i30 CRDi (from $21,890*)
• Peugeot 308 HDi (from $30,690*)
• Renault Megane dCi (from $30,490*)
• Volkswagen Golf TDI (from $28,490*)
• Volvo C30 D5 (from $43,450*)

*Pricing is a guide as recommended to us by the manufacturer.

Specifications:

• Engine: 1560cc DOHC four-cylinder (16 valve)
• Power: 80kW @ 4000rpm
• Torque: 240Nm @ 1750-2000rpm (260Nm Overboost)
• Transmission: Six-speed manual
• Driven Wheels: Front
• Brakes: Discs with ABS, EBA & EBD
• Top Speed: 195km/h (Claimed)
• 0-100km/h: 9.9 seconds (Claimed)
• CO2 Emissions: 104 g/km
• Fuel Consumption: 3.9L/100km (ADR)
• Fuel Consumption: 3.9L/100km (As Tested)
• Fuel Tank Capacity: 40L
• Fuel Type: Diesel
• ANCAP Rating: Five-star
• Airbags: Dual Front, Side & Curtain
• Safety: ESC with Traction Control
• Spare Wheel: Full-size Alloy
• Cargo Capacity: 160L/680L
• Turning Circle: 10.7m
• Warranty: Three Year/Unlimited km
• Weight: 1165kg (Tare)
• Wheels: Alloy 15 x 5.5-inch (5-Star Spooler)

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.

Although the single picture is just of the instrument panel, we can clearly see the focus and purpose of hybrid Camry is on fuel economy.  The locally built Camry will be the first hybrid to be built in Australia and Toyota hopes it will become a favourite with government and private fleets as well as attracting new customers to hybrids.

Using the same technology as the Prius, the Camry is capable of running on all electric power during certain conditions. From the picture above you can see a luminous green “ready” symbol which in this instance indicates that the although the ignition has been switched on the petrol engine remains off.

So whilst the car is standing still or travelling at low speeds the electric engine can do all the work, hence using no fuel and emitting zero emissions.

Toyota says the image release of the Hybrid Camry coincides with with the start of the second and final stage of pilot production for the car.

If all goes to plan, full-scale production will begin in December this year with the first Hybrid Camrys expected in Toyota dealerships from February 2010.

Hybrid Camry will be powered by the 2.4-litre four-cylinder petrol engine found in current Camrys with the addition of an electric motor generator which gets its power from a hybrid battery that stores electrical energy.

The Big T can already claim to sell Australia’s most fuel-efficient locally produced car with the normal Camry using 8.8 litres of unleaded to travel 100km. The Hybrid variant is expected to do at least 20 per cent better, meaning fuel economy figures of around 7 litres per 100km or better.

“It will save motorists hundreds of dollars a year in fuel – and the more you drive, the more you’ll save on fuel.” Toyota Australia’s senior executive director sales and marketing David Buttner said

As the car undergoes its final stages of quality and assurance testing, we’d like to know what you think of Australia’s first locally built hybrid? Will the Camry become a favourite with taxis, government and private fleets as well as everyday car buyers?

Would you buy a Hybrid Camry? Why or why not?

©2010 Car Advice | News | Reviews - http://www.caradvice.com.au - All Rights Reserved.