Vehicle 'DNA' Signals A Stop To Roadside Breakdowns

Bank Holiday car misery could be a thing of the past with a new vehicle black-box

The Bank Holiday mayhem could be worse than ever this weekend as Brits stay in the country to avoid flight disruptions.

But by the end of the decade the traditional traffic jam and breakdown misery which sends us nuts in May will be a thing of the past – thanks to new technology dubbed ‘Vehicle DNA’. That’s the name being given to this latest innovation which could soon change the way we run and treat our cars.

Trimble MRM, an expert in telematics, has developed the in-vehicle black-box – officially called the TVG660 – and already provides it to some of the UK’s largest fleets.

Andrew Yeoman, Managing Director of Trimble MRM Europe, sees no reason why drivers of private vehicles can’t benefit from ‘Vehicle DNA’ too.

“The technology provides real-time information on vehicle condition as well as fuel efficiency and Co2 emissions,” he says. “This would mean the worry over breakdowns will be a thing of the past.

“We’ve already seen how useful ‘Vehicle DNA’ is to our fleet clients but families could also benefit hugely from having it in their cars.”

The pioneering device sends alerts with information on engine, health, faults and even battery life, improving both fuel economy and of course, the dreaded repair and breakdown costs.

“Taking the family to the coast for a long weekend is always hampered by the stressful car journeys at either end. But Trimble MRM’s latest technology could save time, money and any breakdown possibilities, relieving a great deal of stress and getting the Bank Holiday off to the perfect start,” says Yeoman.

The technology sounds a very welcome accessory for motorists all over the world, it's just a shame it's so far away until we can get our hands on it! Until then, set off early and be prepared for Bank Holiday queues - i've got to travel to Cardiff this Saturday and it's going to be crazy i know it!

Go well.

Lack of fresh air costs UK motorists £440 million a year

Coinciding with our post on '10 Ways To Get More Miles Per Gallon' Drivers in the UK are losing out on more than £440million pounds by driving with under-inflated tyres.

The research*, revealed by Michelin discovered that not only are motorists letting poor tyre pressure affect their bank balance, but more than 370 million litres of fuel are being wasted each year.

Luckily for the UK, Michelin is racing to the rescue of drivers who are in the dark when it comes to tyre pressures.

The Michelin Fill Up With Air team is taking to the road to offer free tyre checks to help improve safety and reduce vehicle CO2 emissions, while also helping motorists save cash.

Michelin’s head of communications, Peter Snelling, said: “Based on the findings of Michelin's 2009 campaign, if all of the cars in the UK were running on correctly inflated tyres then motorists would save more than £440 million and more than 370 million litres of fuel a year. As a result, CO2 emissions would also be reduced by almost 1 million tonnes.

“Michelin’s 2010, Fill Up With Air campaign is going to be the biggest to date with more than 50 locations included in the tour.

“It really is a matter of life and death and people should learn to check their tyres regularly and thoroughly which is what we can help them to do.

“Tyres that are under inflated can cause poor handling on the road and potentially lead to serious accidents and put lives at risk.

“Last year we checked more than 5,000 cars and the results showed that some motorists in this country are simply not taking tyre maintenance seriously. This year the Michelin Fill Up With Air team will be visiting more locations than ever before, so if we’re in your town please take 10 minutes to come in for a free tyre check.”

Michelin is campaigning to make drivers aware that the wrong tyre pressures can mean tyres wear out more quickly as well as increasing the car’s fuel consumption. With fuel prices at an all-time high it is now more important than ever that people set their tyres to the correct pressure.

Peter Snelling added: “It is not only the nation’s purse which is suffering but the environment too. If motorists consume less fuel by having the correct tyre pressure then they produce less Co2 emissions which is much better for the environment.”

The Fill Up with Air Roadshow will be touring the UK and Ireland from May to October.

*Figures are based on a parc of 30.3 m cars driving 12,000 miles pa at 35 mpg, with fuel costing £1.20 per litre.

10 Ways To Get More Miles Per Gallon

People are often asking me how to get better fuel economy from their car, however, while there are quite a few people asking this question, there are not nearly enough overall! Most people, believe it or not, just take their cars fuel economy for what it is, be it good or bad there is nearly always room for improvement, be it major things like driving with a lighter foot and cruising in higher gears, to the finer details like maximising your cars aerodynamic properties by keeping it waxed and clean - we'll go into that one later!

So, for those of you looking to squeeze every last drop of fuel out of your tank and increase your miles per pound - take a look over these essential fuel saving tips, use them all together, and you will be surprised at the improvement to your mpg and your wallet!

Tyre Pressures

Tyre pressures really can make a big big difference to your cars efficiency. In a nutshell the flatter your tyre the more friction there is on the road and the more energy is required to move your car along, so making sure your tyre pressures are at the right level is essential for not only fuel consumption but safety too. The optimum pressure for your cars tyres can be found in your vehicles manual, sometimes on the inside of your driver side door, and if not then often your cars tyre pressure information can be found on the side of air pumps at petrol stations too. Once you have the pressures right in all four it is a great start to maximising your tanks potential - this little adjustment can improve fuel economy by 5%!!!

I know we are talking about fuel economy here but while we are on the subject of tyres I cannot stress enough to you just how important it is to get your tyres right for safety reasons too. Tyres are the first and last point of contact with the road, and incorrect pressures, be it too high or too low, will have an effect on handling, breaking, ride quality, can result in uneven tyre wear and compromise overall performance. So please put some time into getting it right, you will have a much better all round driving experience.

Using The Right Oil

An oil change is not something all car owners get carry out for them selves these days as this is often part of a routine service packaged with many cars. However, using the right oil in your car is not only advisable in looking after your engine, but good quality oil will allow the moving parts in your engine to operate more efficiently and with less friction which in turn requires less energy to once again power the car. This is proven to improve fuel economy so make sure your car has an oil change from time to time - if you aren't sure if you need one - contact your local dealer and book one in specifying they replace the old stuff with the best new oil for your car.

Air Filter

Having a clean or uprated air filter allows your car to breathe better making for a better fuel to air mixture which allows the petrol or diesel in your engine to ignite easier, this basically means it will require less petrol to make your car move so for cars over 3 years old it can be worth looking into replacing your air filter.

Combine Trips

Try not to do lots of short trips throughout your day or week, stopping and starting and stopping again, especially with a cold engine is a nightmare for efficiency. The idea is to get your car up to temperature and do the majority of your travelling while your car is warmed up - so try not to nip to the corner shop and then come home only to then go out a little later to town and then come back again. This kind of stop starting with a cold engine and short trips will sap the juice so combine your trips and it will add up to improvement over the week.

Cool It

Having the air conditioning on uses fuel even when the car is stationary and having the windows open increases drag on the car when moving at higher speeds. So, the ideal moment to use air conditioning is motorway driving with the windows up, as energy from the engine is at it's optimum, available to power the air con, and try to have your windows down when moving at slower speeds as to avoid unnecessary drag. Both little details but over journeys can save those precious litres!

Nice and Easy

Possibly the worst thing you can do for your fuel consumption is fast erratic driving, especially heavy acceleration from stand still and slow speeds and last minute heavy breaking. Having a heavy foot (pressing the pedal to the floor) will seriously sap your fuel and by scrubbing off speed quickly and heavily this expels your hard earned momentum that costs in fuel and energy to maintain. In short the biggest contributor to wasting fuel is fast driving, so keep it steady and consistent with moderate acceleration all while changing gear at lower revs and you will notice a world of difference.

Weight

Power to weight is key to both performance and economy, try not to keep heavy loads in your car all the time, extra weight requires more energy to move around and therefore uses more fuel. So keep your car light

High Gears

Driving in high gears is a great way to conserve fuel. Changing into a high gear as soon as possible around town will help increase your MPG but especially once you are up to speed on longer journeys and on Motorways, staying in a high gear allows the car to waft along with less effort therefore less energy is used than it does in lower gears.

Idling

If you are waiting somewhere or stuck in traffic for a longer than normal period of time, it is worth turning off your engine because idling not only uses petrol but you aren't even making any progress!

Wax On Wax Off

This is a funny one I came across once. Waxing your cars bodywork can make it more aerodynamic by filling in minute imperfections which in turn helps to reduce it's drag coefficient. Really this is down to a scientific level but every little helps!

Fair Fuel Stabiliser - What Is It Exactly?

So, what is this new fuel pricing regime the government has come up with? Well here it is in a nutshell...

Under a Fair Fuel Stabiliser, when fuel prices go up, fuel duty would fall. And when fuel prices go down, fuel duty would rise.

This is a new way of setting fuel duty that will strengthen environmental signals when oil prices fall, and cushion the blow when fuel costs rise. Government will be sharing the pain when prices rise and sharing the gain when they fall.

If, for example, a Fair Fuel Stabiliser had been introduced at the 2008 Budget:

 Fuel would be 5p per litre cheaper.

 This would save up to £3.50 on each tank of fuel for a Ford Mondeo, or £2.60 for a Vauxhall Astra.

 If, instead of rising, oil prices had fallen below the $84 forecast in the Budget, then fuel duty would have risen. In either case forecast government revenues would have been unchanged.

If a Fair Fuel Stabiliser had been in operation over the last year:

 The average household would have saved more than £90 in fuel costs.

 Instead of being 3.3%, official CPI inflation would now be below 3%.

The Proposal

Under a Fair Fuel Stabiliser, when fuel prices go up, fuel duty would fall. And when fuel prices go down, fuel duty would rise. Government would save in the good times in order to help in the bad times. It’s a classic example of fixing the roof when the sun is shining.

The Fair Fuel Stabiliser would bring three key benefits as outlined in the Conservatives manifesto:

"1. It would increase the stability of family finances. Government would be helping when the cost of living was rising sharply, by setting aside money in good times to help in difficult times.

2. It would enhance economic stability by reducing the sensitivity of the public finances and inflation to unpredictable changes in oil prices.

3. It would provide greater certainty about the price of carbon, consistent with the principles outlined in the Stern Review."

So what do you think fo the proposed Fair Fuel Stabiliser?

Conservatives New Plans For Modern Motoring

Below is a list of promises the Conservatives made as part of their "Vote For Change" campaign regarding their proposed action on fixed speed cameras...

"We will stop central funding for new fixed speed cameras and focus on better ways to make our roads safe, including authorising 'drugalyser' testing technology.

"Road users have had a raw deal under Labour, so we will:

• Crack down on rogue clampers.
• Consult on our Fair Fuel Stabiliser.
• Give more powers to local councils to get traffic moving.
• Introduce a lorry road user charge, so foreign lorries pay their fair share of tax.
• Facilitate the switch to green cars by creating a national car recharging network.
• Crack down on road works, introducing lane rental for some of our busiest roads.

"We will free local transport funding from the requirement to introduce congestion charging and create a Transport Carbon Reduction Fund to support green projects such as initiatives to encourage walking, cycling and bus use or measures to help reduce the need for work-related travel - supported by our roll-out of fast broadband..."

If all of the above points were to be introduced today the future of motoring in Britain dosen't look so bad after all, however, the implementation of such things as we all know takes so long to actually do it'll be a wonder if we see a couple of these new schemes in place within the next few years.

Of all of the above pointers, one of the more likely to be carried out sooner than later, surprisingly, is the introduction of a national car recharging network. Due to the EU commission clamping down on emissions from all major manufacturers, by 2013 we are going to see the introduction of millions of electric cars on our roads whether the government likes it or not and so a stable recharging infrastructure is going to need to be in place sooner than later to both support the citizens driving the cars and the manufacturers making them.

New Government To Introduce Car Charging Network

Interesting news! Our new Con-Lib government is said to have identified the importance of introducing a nation-wide network of charging points for electric and plug-in hybrid cars.

In a joint statement the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats said:

"The parties agree to implement a full programme of measures to fulfil our joint ambitions for a low carbon and eco-friendly economy, including the establishment of a smart grid and the roll-out of smart meters."

Prior to the general election last week the Conservatives promised to create a national car recharging network, while the Liberal Democrats promised a 'zero-carbon Britain.' It is now a priority of the new government.

Our Holding Page Is Live!

Development of the actual site is progressing really well now, so we thought it's about time to make our holding page live so people can get a little more insight into what we are all about until the big day.

The temporary page features links to all of our social networks, including our facebook and twitter page and even a place to sign up for the exciting launch day announcement, you could be some of the first to join us!

Please feel free to have a poke around and we would love to hear your feedback, thanks!

James Walker

Founder

EcoForecourt.com

Eco Baby! Our Sandwich Man Has A Baby Girl

Matt, our sandwich man, has been delivering our lunch to us every day for the past 9 months, and every day when we walk out to collect our hot jacket potatoes or tuna sandwiches, we have a bite-size update on the baby progress.

Is it a boy is it a girl? What colour should he paint the walls in the new bedroom and will the little one need a little pink dress or mini dude dungarees!? As time progressed they discovered it was a girl and so the updates changed from speculation to progress and understandably a little stress too!

Well today we are happy to announce that Matt and his girlfriend Liane have given birth to 8lb,6oz baby Ashli. Congratulations you two!

Updates are surely to follow when Matt returns to bringing us our awesome sandwiches...which better not be long!

BMW Secret Megacity Eco Car

BMW have recently released more confirming statements that they are working on an all electric, zero emissions, city car called the Megacity. The Megacity is said to be just the first in a line of many new technically innovative and efficiency orientated vehicles that BMW are planning on launching in the future.

With an estimated launch date within the next 3 years the Megacity is positioned to take on the likes of Audi's plug in electric A1 e-tron, which is with no surprise, also scheduled to launch within the same time frame of BMW's Megacity. Among other competitors from the likes of Ford and Infinity to name but a few.

Teaming with carbon-fibre specialist SGL, BMW is making use of carbon-fibre reinforced plastics for the vehicles body panels, clearly indicating a focus on light weight components which will greatly aid in the performance and agility of an electric car and especially the battery range which in early electric cars are often criticised.

At the Detroit motor show this year, BMW displayed an all electric 1 Series to demonstrate its innovation on electric drivetrains. Although it’s not certain if the final Megacity car will share any components with the 1 Series, the Bavarian manufacturer is displaying an early foothold in the soon to boom electric car market.

As part of their Project-i development program, there has been rumors that BMW might be adding another brand to their range in order to sell these new types of vehicles under. But there is no evidence of this just yet.

Dr. Norbert Reithofer, BMW's Chairman of the Board of Management said: "This vehicle will be the first of a range of near-zero emission vehicles. Customers will have the choice between a fully electric drive and a high-efficiency combustion engine. Large-scale production could start in the first half of the next decade. With the Megacity Vehicle, we are also pursuing a radical approach toward establishing a truly sustainable value chain from development to production and sales."

With many key manufacturers planning and announcing production of eco and electric cars within the next few years, it is no surprise that BMW are planning on throwing a lot of resources and investment into this compulsory future technology and by the looks of the concept picture we can expect some pretty cool cars ahead.

Ferrari Trying To Hold On To V12

As rumors of the next Ferrari Enzo heat up there is speculation and even some concern over what engine is going to make it into the final version of Ferrari's next hypercar.

The V12 has always been an iconic engine for Ferrari, for both it's performance and it's sound, and as much as the signature tone of Ferrari's flat plane V8's are music to your ears, there is nothing quite like a high revving V12. However, as the government is clamping down on all manufacturers emissions, both big and small, and eco credentials are becoming more important than ever, Ferrari are having to fall in line and reconsider the viability of putting a V12 in the next Enzo.

The boss at Ferrari, Amedeo Felisa, has hinted that the new Ferrari Enzo will be powered by a direct-injection twin-turbo V8 when it is launched in 2012.

Reports have long suggested that the new Enzo would be powered by either a V8 or a twin-turbo V6. However, Felisa has ruled out a six-cylinder engine, which i think we are all happy to hear!

“There are no plans for a six-cylinder engine,” Felisa said. “Ferrari will not build a six-cylinder engine until customer attitudes towards smaller engines change".

“The perception today is that the number of cylinders equates to the possibilities of the car. That is why we are developing hybrid technology that can be applied to our V8 and V10 cars. Hybrid means we can protect the V12.

The governmental rulings over emissions states that a portion of a companies emissions must be reduced in order to bring down the overall emissions of each car the manufacturer churns out, or else big fines are heading their way. These rules are of course important for the car giants such as Volkswagen and Fiat who are churning out millions of cars each year with a whacking great C02 contribution, however, Ferrari produce so little cars in comparison and so little miles are driven in a Ferrari compared with normal cars that these emissions policies may come across as unfair in the eyes of the niche manufacturer.

"The issue of emissions for Ferrari is more a political one than a real one. Lowering emissions of every Ferrari will not save the planet, but it will cost us a lot of money" said Felisa.

New Audi A2 On It's Way By 2012

Audi today has revealed some details that it intends on producing an all new version of their late model A2. Doing away with the traditional space-frame construction of it's predecessor the new A2 is taking a leaf out of the A1's book and utilising it's steel monocoque which saves both weight and cost.

In a move to obtain some of the market share in front wheel drive eco cars from the likes of BMW and Mercedes the new A2 is rumored to be sold at an ultra competitive price with a strong focus on economy. The original A2 which was discontinued in August of 2005 was the first five door car in Europe that averaged a fuel consumption of less than 3 litres per 100km, thats 94.2 mpg! Today the importance of eco credentials is even more important resulting in Audi chairman Rupert Stadler saying that electric drive will be a priority of the A2 and acknowledges that the range extender technology in the A1 e-tron is a likely possibility for the new A2. Of course conventional petrol and diesel engines will also be on offer, likely in the 4 cylinder variety derived from the A1

At this stage the majority of the news is acknowledgment and confirmation from Audi, but the styling is likely to reflect that of the previous A2, featuring a taller box (smooth box) like construction with a relatively narrow track pitching it as a great city car.

Stay tuned for further info

New All Electric VW Golf Announced

Set to go on sale in 2013 Volkswagen have announced it will be producing an all electric plug in version of the hugely popular Golf. Called the Golf Blue-e-Motion the new EV features a zero emission drive train powered by increasingly popular lithium ion batteries.

The Golf is to make up just one segment of the intended broad spectrum of electric vehicles to be added to Volkwagens range by 2013, including an electric Jetta and Lavida - focused on the chinese market.

Until multiple electric vehicle models hit Volkswagen showrooms in the future, the car giant plans to launch its electric car range with the introduction of the first Blue-e-Motion vehicle, the 'Up'. This is a car described by VW as a “city specialist” and was previewed in concept form at last year’s Frankfurt motor show.

Unveiled by German chancellor, Angela Merkel, the launch model is based on the 6th generation Golf, however, the showroom version of the Blue-e-Motion is planned to form part of the seventh generation Golf range that will begin heading into UK showrooms in the same year.

The 115bhp electric motor sits up front in the space normally occupied by the Golf’s petrol or diesel engines, develops 113bhp and 199lb ft of torque demonstrating once again the torque benefits of electric motors. This all drives the front wheels through a new single gear gearbox developed by Volkswagen called the "MQ210".

The lithium-ion battery pack mounted within the middle tunnel of the floorpan sits under the rear seat and in the floor of the boot, this makes a welcoming change to how Mini have replaced their back seats in place of the battery. The pack is said to allow for a range of 93miles and in an effort to reduce mechanical drag, it uses a separate clutch that automatically decouples its electric motor on a trailing throttle to provide what Volkswagen describes as “sailing effect”.

At 1545kg, the electric Golf weighs in as a chunky little devil at more than 305kg than the existing Golf 1.6 TDI BlueMotion. As a result Volkswagen says it hits 62mph from standstill in 11.8sec and reaches a top speed that, in the interests of retaining battery charge, is limited to 87mph. Not the most performance orientated vehicle to then but nonetheless the purpose of the new electric Golf is to make city driving more eco friendly.

Electric Mercedes SLS AMG On It's Way

Mercedes had recently announced it's plans to produce an all electric version of it's flagship SLS AMG by 2015. However, it has just been confirmed that Mercedes are now brining forward the launch of said electric supercar to as early as 2013, 2 years earlier than planned presumably to get a better foothold in the race for the electric car market. AMG managing director Volker Mornhinweg says he has already driven the prototype cars and promises they will be as exciting as the petrol powered SLS AMG they are based on. "I can tell you that it is an amazing kind of experience" he said.

Of course, Volker being slightly biased one might expect his praises of the car, but the figures might suggest that he's right. The car is to feature 4 motors at each wheel with a combined output of 400 kilowatts equating to 536bhp, no spring chicken then! And due to the inherent nature of electric motors the available torque is staggering at 649ft/lb, thats 170ft/lb more than the existing petrol version, pretty awesome I think you will agree. As an added bonus, with their being a motor at each wheel the electric SLS will of course be all wheel drive, allowing all of that power to be put down with brilliant potency as we are seeing from the likes of the 'un-driftable' Murcielago SV.

“We can remove the combustion engine and transaxle and make no changes to the body, and we can put in two motors with the gearbox in the rear, two motors and the gearbox in the front and we can take the center console as a battery place – it looks like a T and it is perfect,” said Volker.

The car is said to have fantastic handling too because the motors are able to adjust the power going to each wheel and now the traditional coilovers have been beefed up with a pushrod actuated system that also removes the need for double wishbones found on the petrol models front suspension.

However, while all this new tech is fantastic stuff, it does carry a weight penalty, and at just over 4,600 pounds it weighs nearly a 1000 pounds more than the current SLS AMG. Ouch.

Though despite this extra weight Obias Moeres, AMG’s head of vehicle development, says it “covers its weight very easily,” Once more that is what you would expect any self respecting head of AMG development to say, but, with all that torque Moeres goes on to say it's 0-60 time is under 4 seconds and a top speed of 118mph (limited to maximise range) putting it in the same league as the Tesla Roadster, which, in comparison is a matchbox with a lego technic motor in it. so well done AMG.

Now, the setback with every electric car at the moment is the notorious battery charging time, and a good comparison to this is always the Tesla Roadster as from 'empty' to 'ready' it can take 16 hours fora full charge. I know i know it still pains me each time i write it. Despite all the above fantastic performance figures then you would expect the electric iteration of the SLS to be around the same time or even worse due to it needing extra power to pull the giant mass that it is along. But you would be wrong. Using the same lithium-ion batteries as found in all current and future production electric cars, the electric SL AMG can reach an 80% charge in... wait for it... 20 minutes! Now this has to be based on input from a Level 3 440 volt charger, but nonetheless this is incredible stuff. And by the time this thing is in showrooms in 2013 Level 3 chargers will be more accessible and probably be an optional extra with the car!

So all this leaves us to one last thing. The price. After reading back through this post the electric SLS AMG is about the first electric car that really does sound desirable and there is a reason for that, because all of that fantastic technology and performance figures is expected to cost you over a quarter of a million pounds. I think i'll leave it there for now then.

Go well.