A word on our Environment

Most people love to accessorise -- I know I do! Whether it be nice fashion items, some bling, or cool gadgetry -- its as much fun looking for stuff as it is owning it.

It could be a $10 costume jewelry from the flea market, or a $2799 Samsung Omnia, or a $35,000 hand-stitched Hermes handbag or even a $550,000 Hummer -- if you like it and can afford it, there's nothing wrong in getting it. Right?

Well, financially, perhaps. But these days, we have to look beyond just the price tag and understand what is the true cost of a given item -- stated in terms of the (usually negative) impact of our choices and lifestyles have on the environment.

Take my 7-seater MPV for instance. I just learnt that if I traveled a modest 15,000 kilometers a year, it would have generated -- get this -- nearly FOUR TONNES of carbon dioxide. Our other family car equivalent, although spotting a fuel-efficient engine, would still put out another 2.4 tonnes of CO2!

So just from commuting and weekend driving alone, the two cars would have added 6.4 tonnes of greenhouse gasses to our atmosphere, contributing yet a bit more to global warming.

It is because of this that some bodies are advocating attributing an environment cost to a product. That means besides the usual specifications of a product, manufacturers are encouraged to also state the environment cost of:

1. Producing the item -- how much pollutants were generated in the production of one item


2. Maintaining or operating it -- how much more will be generating with its continued use (think: fuel / power consumption / CO2 or pollutant emissions etc)


3. Disposing it off eventually -- impact to landfills; threat of dangerous chemicals leaching into groundwater etc
   

Now that we've started talking about the amount of CO2 generated by a car, should we also look at other aspects of our lives that also contribute to global warming?

• How about your food choices?
• How about your garbage dispossal?
• How about the things you own and use -- do you repair or replace?
• What are your at-home habits -- are you using more resources than you need to?
• Selling off old newspapers is fine, but what about the other garbage -- do you separate them for recycling?
  

I started poking around the Internet, to see what was the impact to my lifestyle on Mother Nature... and honestly, some of the numbers surprised me. And you're talking to someone who *think's* he's already quite environmentally cautious:

• We only switch on the a/c when it is very warm (over 31c), and even that for an hour just to cool things down
• We actively use recyclable bags to avoid unnecessary use (and subsequent disposal) of plastic bags
• We try to carpool and avoid single-occupancy driving as much as possible.....

So it was quite a disturbing but good learning experience when I took some quizzes and realized that there are so many other of my choices and actions that also impact the environment, that I'd never thought about so far!


Did you catch that number?
99 tonnes of CO2 a year! That's what the survey tells me what my family's lifestyle is likely producing. And that means we are living as if we have got 2 planet Earths to support us. We are living as if we have 3.7 hectares of land absorbing enough CO2 to offset what my family is producing!


I'd say this is a wake up call! Are we aware what is the impact our actions are having on the earth... and what is it our children will be inheriting from us.... our mistakes or our conservation efforts?


Read up more
http://www.carbonfootprint.com/



Test yourself

http://www.nature.org/initiatives/climatechange/calculator/

http://footprint.wwf.org.uk/

http://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx

How to get more KMs out of your car (Pt 2)

Hi again... hope you found yesterday's tips useful. As promised, today we continue on the 2nd and final part of the tips.

• Tip #4 - Beware the bling - Bro / Girl, if you gotta pimp your ride, then forget about fuel economy. The power amps you use to drive those huge sub-woofers and speekers draw a lot of current... and current comes from the alternator (i.e. dynamo) which draws power from your engine... and yes, hits your fuel economy. LCDs and all your multimedia gadgetry look great for your ICE but adds more weight for your car to carry.

• Tip #5 - Plan your trip - Short trips with loads of start-stop situations burn up fuel unnecessarily. Putting some thought to where you are going, when and how makes a difference. You not only save on fuel, you'll see your blood pressure lowering too!
  
  

1. Is your 'usual' route the most efficient route? In the past you may have avoided the shortest way because you had to pay toll. Now, relative to the fuel increase, would it be cheaper to just fork out the dough than to be stuck burning fuel in a crawl for another 20 mins?



2. Must you go at that time of the day? Would going earlier or postponing it to a non-rush window be possible? What can you juggle around to make that happen?
   
   
3. Combine your multiple runs to the nearby sundry store or for your errands.... make a list of stuff and just go there once for all the things you need. Once you get into the hang of it, you'll find yourself being more proactive instead of leaving it till you're at your last teaspoon of sugar before you make that mad dash to the minimart. Then you get home and you realize actually you needed some soy sauce too!! 'AARGH!??!' right?
   
   
4. Read the map before you get on the car. Have a mental picture of where you want to go first, then drive. Stopping by the road and figuring out your route is not only fuel inefficient, its dangerous!!!
   

• Tip#6 - Beware your habit - Some of the pefectly innocent habits we have actually cost os money. Changing them doesn't cost a cent but helps reduce your fuel consumption.
  

1. Air conditioning -- Mow many of you have the settings at full blast by default? Achieving the maximum cooling in the shortest time is one thing... but maintaining it there throughout the journey is the real fuel killer. But if you really *must* have it at the higher setting just to feel cool... you might want to have the air-cond guy look at it to be sure its running properly.
   
   
2. Waiting -- Make a trip to Damansara Uptown or Taipan or any busy commercial area, and you'll see plenty of people waiting patiently in their car. The engine would be running and of course so is the aircond. Every litre of fuel burnt in that manner does ZERO to your fuel efficiency. Instead, switch off, get out of the car and find a nearby shady spot to wait.
   
   
3. Parking -- We all love to be able to park right at the mall entrance... but at what cost? Lots of us are willing to sacrifice a lot of fuel to wait for someone to vacate a spot. Instead, park somewhere further and walk. You're not just doing your pocket a favour, you're helping reduce greenhouse gases... you're helping save the world!
   
   
4. Checking -- Our standard procedure is to start the engine the moment we get in. Deos it matter that we actually still need to fasten seatbelts, look 3 times in the vanity mirror, adjust our clothes, put on makeup, holler at the kids at the back first? How about if did all of that first, then switch on the engine? OK, Ok, we all want the cool comfort of the aircond when doing all of that..... right....

• Tip #7 - Set personal targets - Go ahead, do a benchmark. See how far you're going with a full tank today. And then, tell yourself you want to get 10% more out of that tank. There's nothing like a target to motivate you to really do something. Of course you don't have to do the steps below if you dont want to. You can just get straight to hypermiling today -- but you won't know how much that is actually saving you.

1. Have a small note pad and pencil in your car.
   
2. Reset the trip meter the next time you fill up and leave that trip meter running.
   
3. The next time you fill up again, not down the distance covered and the amount you have to pump in.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3.
   
5. After a while, you'll have an idea how many KMs to a liter you're making. Don't worry about accuracy and the amount your pump. After a few cycles, the figures will average out.
6. Then start hypermiling... and see what works and doesn't work for you and your fuel economy.

I'd encourage your to do more reading about this subject before starting. As a start, you can check out these links:

- Hypermiling FAQ and then, the technique
- 105 tips on eco-driving
- Whys and Hows to Hypermile (forum)


DISCLAIMER: I personally do not agree with nor recommend all the techniques taught by hypermilers. Some 'advanced' techniques (which I didn't want to cover above) can be dangerous although they do yield extra mileage.

e.g. Just so you know what to look out for...

• Drafting -- following very closely to the car in front to piggy-back on the aerodynamic airflow
• Pulse and Glide -- accelerate to a target speed then switching off your engine and gliding on neutral gear (and starting it back on to accelerate again once you've dropped below target)
  
• Significantly over inflating the tires -- not only do you tend to lose too much grip, any bumps and potholes will be bad for your suspension and comfort
  
• Forgetting that you're NOT driving alone -- Hypermiling (usually involves driving slower than others) without regard to the traffic flow can not only be annoying to other drivers, it can also be dangerous (picture yourself doing 70km/h on a 110km/h stretch)

So have fun, drive safe and start saving some $$ :)

How to get more KMs out of your car (Pt 1)

Crude prices have fallen to USD 106 (from US 147 a few months ago), after hurricane Gustav blew over with minimal havoc. While this is a much welcomed reprieve, people around the world are still nervous that the slightest crisis or weather even around the corner will trigger another sharp increase in oil prices.

Fuel economy - its still very much the in-word today. Everybody's talking about how to get their cars to run longer with every small fortune we spend on filling up our tank.

Peddlers touting all manner of fuel saving devices and additives have ramped their sales campaigns and are making a killing. In my previous post on this subject, I'd shown you studies that show that none of these products work anywhere near as claimed. In short, they're all a bunch of crap.

There are, however, real and proven ways you can increase your car's fuel efficiency. Its got to do with the way you drive and the way you maintain your car. The buzzword is hypermiling. The best thing about hypermiling is that, most of the time, practising it does does not require you spending a single cent -- yep, its practically free fuel!

You can use hypermiling techniques on all kinds of vehicles and still see positive results.

Here are some simple tips that anybody can start... all it takes is some practice and a lot of discipline.

These tips below can be practiced quite safely as it does not require any fancy (read: dangerous) jiggling or tampering with the car. However it always pays to be careful when doing anything new. Considering this involves cars, highways and relatively high speeds, please be careful, read and understand, then experiment!

• Tip # 1 - Prep your car -- There are 2 very easy things you can do which are FREE, and another one which is relatively cheap to do.
  

1. Inflate your tire to slightly (10%) above spec. This helps lower rolling resistance and improves fuel economy. Do NOT over inflate as that causes you to lose road grip, and, hard tires can spoil your suspension.
   
   
2. Clear your car off junk. Check your boot... how many things you have in it do you really need? The more non-essential things you get your car to carry, the more fuel it burns. Other things to look out for... that Thule box on top of your MPV; the bicycle rack on top or behind your car; your kangaroo bar; half-used bottles of engine oil; the 'still ok' wipers you refuse to throw away... and the list goes on... you'll be surprised what has accumulated at the back over the years.
   
   
3. Service your car to specs. A poorly maintained engine (engine oil, fuel and air filter, spark plugs, ignition and timing, air-conditioner) can easily cause you an extra 10% to 20% in fuel to run. Changing to a lower viscosity engine oil (e.g. SAE 5 or 10 - 40) helps too.
   
   
   
   

• Tip #2 - Find your car's fuel-economic 'sweetspot' What is the most efficient cruising speed of your car? Consult your car manual (it is typically around 75-95km/h). Drive at that speed as much as practical. When climbing hills, its usually a good idea to ease off the pedal, aim for the RPM 'sweetspot' instead (that's when the engine turns more easily) as this is more efficient going uphill. Once you're up the hill, lift off the pedal and coast down to recover the 'lost' fuel spent in climbing up.
  
  

• Tip #3 - Drive 'gently'; anticipate and respond -- accelerate slowly to your target speed. Hard accelleration only burns up fuel unnecessarily. Hard braking then eliminates all that momentum you burnt so much fuel to get. Look ahead and start easing off the pedal once you know you have to slow down or eventually stop. If your car has a fuel consumption meter (shows km/l consumption), make full use of it. You'll find yourself rewarded with higher fuel economy figures as you start paying attention to this meter and drive less aggressively.

There's this guy who says he is 'as one' with his car... he drives with his bare right foot so he can feel every slightest presser on the pedal. He also 'knows' from the engine sound and vibration when the engine is running optimally or is under too much exertion (i.e. not running efficiently). As a result, he is actually able to beat the fuel consumption figures published in his car manual! And he is not alone...

• Tip #3 - 'Upgrade' your care wisely - Some folks love spending money on their cars. There are those who spend on performance, and others who spend on 'looking like there is performance'. Forget all those performance enhancements if you are looking for fuel economy.
  

1. If you want more power (think: re-chipping, turbo, spark plugs, manifolds and extractors etc), you will get it, but by burning a lot more fuel.
   
   
2. If you want better tire grip, you get it by having expensive softer and wider tires which again burn more fuel, and wear out faster. Having harder suspension and better brakes don't burn more fuel by themselves ... but they do encourage you to drive a lot more aggressively.... which then burns more fuel
   
   
3. If you want more down-force, the well-tuned fairings, side skirts all help at that...and again you burn more fuel.
   
   
4. The fake performance parts are even worse... they cost you money, do nothing for performance and *still* causes you to burn more fuel... go figure!

If you must spend on your car, consider putting on a good tinting film. Choosing the right film is good investment as it has a 3-fold effect:

(a) Rejects heat and helps lower your cooling cost (save fuel)

(b) blocks out UV rays to slow down the fading and damage to your dashboard and everything else in the car (increase 2nd hand care value)

(c) gives some level of safety and security -- the lamination prevents shattered glass from flying all over; and protects you to a degree if there is impact.

Continued tomorrow - another 4 fuel saving tips in Pt 2

Are your kids safe in your car?

I have been meaning to write about hypermiling since my last post about fuel saving devices. And wanted to do so today. But what I saw this morning made me change my mind and switch to this topic instead.

There seems to be a lot of ignorant or utterly stupid Malaysian drivers around. No, I'm not referring to the those who hog lanes or tailgate or any other kinds of inconsiderate drivers ... for them, I'll probably reserve a whole future post!!

I'm referring to the loving and obliging parents who are either too clueless or thoughtless about child-safety in cars. These are the people who allow their kids to stand or climb around in the front passenger seat or sit in the driver's lap, while the car moves along at full speed.


Haven't they heard of this thing called inertia?

• The kid is standing on the passenger seat one minute, the car hits another car, and in the next split-second, the kid smashes through the windscreen to who-knows-what beyond that.

Haven't they heard of these things called airbags?

Don't be misled by movies or TV shows
which always seem to show airbags as gentle, pillowy,
rubber balloons that perfectly protects the driver
and doesn't even mess up your hairdo!

• In an accident, an airbag deploys at the speed of 320kmh ... and 'deploy' means the tough nylon bag smacks into your face and chest faster than you can blink!

• The airbag has to deploy with sufficient force to prevent the body from hitting against the steering or dashboard.... i.e. has to hit you hard and fast enough so you will not travel more than a few inches forward
  

• Old airbags have only one setting -- they fully deploy when triggered -- regardless of whether you're at 25kmh or 60kmh

• New airbags have a 2-stage mode -- they fully deployment at high speed crashes; partially at lower speeds

• Airbags are built for adults.... they are extremely harmful or even deadly for children below 12

• If a child seat / bassinet is placed with the child facing the airbag -- if deployed, the airbag will likely kill the child

• If the same seat is placed facing backwards (away) from the airbag -- the bag is strong enough to smash through the seat, killing the child by inflicting massive head injuries; or it could push the seat backwards and crush the child against the seat

• Airbags are a form of SRS (supplementary restraint system) and WILL ONLY WORK properly when used together with seat belts. If you think the airbag alone will safe your skin, YOU'RE WRONG

• If you must have your child sit in front, look up the manual on how to disable the passenger-side airbag

Haven't they heard of rear passenger seat belts -- tie those little squirts up in the back!

• Allowing the children to roam about freely at the back is also rarely a good a really bad idea

• Don't wait until the law is enforced.... Singapore has enforced it, Australia has enforced it.... do you think just because Malaysia has deferred the enforcement by 6 months, the laws of physics will also not apply for 6 months?

• Use a booster seat to make sure the child is brought up to sufficient height for the seat belt to work properly

The technologies in modern cars are lightyears better than those of 25 years ago. You now have the ABS, EBD, Airbags, pre-tensioner seat belts, vastly better tyres, slip and skid control, impact crumple zones, more rigid passenger area.... the list goes on.

But wonderful as these safety innovations are, they come to nothing, if we do not heed safetly practices and put our own children in harm's way.

Sorry if I've been preachy .... have a good drive, and may you and your family arrive safely!


Read more about airbag safety here and here.

Running on fumes

You've probably seen this Hollywood cliche in a million times ...

Imagine this is just 5 minutes before the movie ends:

The hero is trying to escape via a plane/car/bike/truck/boat after successfully completing a death-defying mission. The unrelenting (but typically stupid) bad guys are hot on the protagonist's trail. But it looks like the hero will make it to safety after all...

Then, the twist comes... and quite often, fuel (or the lack of it) becomes an issue. Some lucky cock-eyed baddie somehow manages a fluke shot that hits the escape vehicle. That usually means hitting the fuel tank. Makes one imagine that Hollywood vehicles are made with fuel tanks covering the entire surface!

One time, the hero wasn't so lucky...

So anyway, the fuel starts flowing profusely, the low-fuel light starts blinking ominously. The fuel may even catch fire (but rarely explode) if the director sees the need for added drama. The hero's sidekick (or the hero himself, if its a low budget flick) then earnestly taps on the fuel gauge, somehow hoping that the needle would miraculously jump back up to 'Full'.

Then hero mutters something that always seem to have the phrase "we're running on fumes".

It is usually around this time that I lose interest in the movie. My mind then goes off on a tangent, and starts wishing if only it *were* really possible for my car to "run on fumes". Aaah, wouldn't that be a thing of beauty?


At the time of writing this, crude oil price dropped 3.7% to USD 127.19 a barrel, but the 1-year forecast still hangs at a stratospheric USD 165.35 per barrel. In Malaysia, we're still reeling from the 41% jump in petrol pricing. People outside of here would tell us to quit whining as our fuel price is still relatively low. But that's another debate.

It has finally happened!

One thing's for sure though: Every time the fuel price goes up, so does my interest in fuel-saving devices. The idea of spending a couple of hundred bucks in return for the promise of saving between 10% to 25% in fuel costs never fails to get my attention.

In my moments of weakness and desperation, I'd actually bought a few of these items. One of which was a fuel magnetizer. Another was a some fuel additive. The list goes on... and consistently, I came up with one result. None of them lived up to their promises!

Do these things work? Put quite simply, there are 3 views floating around:

1) Ya, they work. Yeah, the cheque's in the mail. Yeah, Santa will be with you in a moment.

2) They don't really cost that much... and some people are swearing by its effectiveness... so what's the harm of trying it? There are lots of anecdotal accounts too.

3) None of them seem to be built on any sound scientific principles. And even if some products may claim to have discovered and exploited some yet-unexplored scientific anomaly... none of the products have gone through a proper, controlled test without failing miserably

To put it even simpler -- these things don't work as advertised! And if you're not careful, some products may actually make things worse for your car!

Some new miracle fuel additive?

I'll save you the trouble (and money) by listing some of studies performed, and the conclusions, in the links at the end of this post.

Some marketeers, anticipating consumer skepticism have resorted to conspiracy theories. The favourite one is about the unholy alliance between petrol companies and car makers. The story, it seems, is that the Exxons of the world have partnered/cajoled/threatened the Toyotas of the world into hiding from the rest of the world, the secrets to vastly better fuel economy!

Everybody loves a good conspiracy theory! But think about it. If there really are fuel saving technologies that will give you quantum leaps in efficiencies, won't you find:

• Hummers suddenly giving the Prius a run for the money?
• Korean cars finally making fuel efficient cars like the Japanese?
• Proton Savvy not having to resort to cheap tricks to get itself into the Malaysian Book of (questionable) records?

AHA, some smart guy retorts: How do I know that Toyota *hasn't* in fact already made a pack... and they are hoarding all the fuel-thingigamajigs to themselves?? huh? huh?

Like I said, everybody loves a good conspiracy theory.

The ultimate fuel-saving gadget...?

So, enough of my gab. Here's what some of the the pros have to say:

1) Popular Mechanics actually did a controlled test on 7 fuel saving 'technologies'

2) Vincent T. Ciulla writes a 4-pager detailing the groups of devices and common brand-names of those devices which the US Environment protection agency tested -- and found none of the products worked as advertised, or, hear it straight from the Federal Trade Commission, who sound like they've had enough with the false advertising that comes with these products.

3) Lastly, my hats of to Tony. This guy is really, really passionate about fuel saving gadgets. His very comprehensive site all you need to know about all manner of products. Read and learn. Will save you a few bucks!

While researching this topic, I stumbled on this highly informative site about cars. If you want to know what's under the hood, but never got around asking, check out carbibles.com. The author painstakingly put together 3 massive pages of practically anything and everything cool you ought to know about your ride. Go through this and you'd have picked up a few things to impress the guys (or the girls - some do care!) with your motoring know-how!

Have fun!


Still not happy? You really still want to save fuel?
Here are a few things you can consider:

• Read it up: Hypermiling -- or if you care to wait, I intend to write something about this one day!
• Re-chip for better efficiency (as opposed to better power)
• Buy a more fuel-efficient car (duh!) :)
  
• Lobby the gov for ULSD (ultra-low sulfer diesel) and when successful (don't hold your breath!), change to a car with Euro-4 specs, like the ones powered by diesel common rail technology
  
• Do public transport, cycle, walk, call in sick