With the volatility of oil prices, consumers have added fuel efficiency to their list of requirements when shopping for a new car. To persuade the local market from using their fuel, oil companies have been putting one over the other by coming up with advanced fuel technology that promotes fuel efficiency.
One of the oil firms Petron Corporation joined forces with the Department of Energy to stage a fuel economy run with the help of 21 car companies which fielded 70 different variants for the DOE Euro 4 Fuel Economy Run. The event also highlighted Petron’s TriActiv performance advantages such as (1) better engine protection for longer engine life; (2) better mileage for longer drives; and (3) better power.
Capping the fuel economy run which was held early this month, the DOE and Petron issued Fuel Economy Rating certificates to the participating automotive manufacturers, which participated in the pioneering event that aims to provide vital information on the fuel economy performance of vehicles and raise public awareness on the use of cleaner and more efficient Euro 4 fuels.
The certificates were given during a presentation ceremony at the Makati Diamond Residences. Twenty-one car companies in the Philippine market fielded a total of 70 models of various body types and engine displacements last May 27 to mark the 12th Fuel Economy Run led by the DOE. They traversed a preset route of 280-kilometers starting from Petron Clark station in Angeles City, Pampanga, through SCTEX (Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway), TPLEX (Tarlac-Pangasinan-La Union Expressway), and back, in a controlled run to approximate standard driving conditions.
Fueled by Petron XCS (95-RON), 27 out of 38 gasoline vehicles, or a significant 71% of the entries, produced fuel economy ratings exceeding 20 kilometers for every liter. For vehicles powered by Petron Turbo Diesel, 21 out of 32 participants (66%) achieved over 20 km/l. The best performances were registered by a Suzuki Celerio with 29.14 km/L using Petron XCS, and an Isuzu D-Max getting 38.46 km/L on Petron Turbo Diesel. The fuel economy ratings obtained in the run serve to expand the Philippine Energy Standards and Labeling Program (PESLP) of the DOE.
The car companies that received Fuel Economy Ratings include: Asianbrands Motors Corporation (Mahindra), Automobile Central Enterprise Inc. (Volkswagen), Bayan Automotive Industries Corporation (BAIC), Berjaya Auto Philippines (Mazda), British United Automobiles Inc., Columbian Autocar Corporation (Kia), Eurobrands Distributor Inc. (Peugeot), Ford Group Philippines, Foton Motor Philippines Inc., Honda Cars Philippines Inc., Hyundai Asia Resources Inc., Isuzu Philippines Corporation, Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corporation, Motor Image Pilipinas Inc. (Subaru), Nissan Philippines Inc., PGA Cars Inc. (Audi / Porsche), Pilipinas Taj Autogroup Inc. (Tata Motors), Suzuki Philippines Inc., The Covenant Car Company Inc. (Chevrolet), Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation, and Volvo Philippines.
The DOE Euro 4 Fuel Economy Run, the first in the country, forms part of DOE’s efforts to promote judicious utilization of energy. Results of the run also aim to guide consumers buying vehicles by highlighting the importance of fuel economy rating aside from performance, quality, and safety. In addition, the DOE also wishes to promote the use of Euro 4 fuels, which it mandated in January this year. Euro 4 fuels are more environment-friendly, as they contain significantly lesser amount of sulfur and benzene.
On the part of Petron, the results confirm the TriActiv performance advantages of their specially-formulated Euro 4 fuels, including: (1) better engine protection for longer engine life; (2) better mileage for longer drives; and (3) better power. The excellent fuel economy ratings achieved by a majority of the participating vehicles also serve to reaffirm Petron’s massive US $2-billion investment to upgrade its Bataan Refinery. Petron is now the only oil company capable of locally producing environment-friendly and premium fuels while assuring reliable supply of fuel variants that meet the needs of Filipino motorists. Photo by megabytes.com