Article on Fuel Efficiency - Part I

With fuel prices going up, one of the major concerns in life is, how to maximize on fuel efficiency. To be honest, most of us do not have the luxury of choosing exactly what we drive. Even if it were possible to do so, there is no one perfect vehicle that exceeds all our requirements on fuel efficiency, performance, handling, comfort, storage / carrying capacity, etc.. So, if you're considering to purchase a new vehicle, here are 5 pointers to consider:-

1. Manual vs Automatic transmission
As far as current consumer technology is concerned, manual transmission is still more efficient that automatic transmission. The convenience of not having to play with the clutch in an automatic is due to the device known as the torque converter, which, unfortunately, acts like some form of viscous coupling between the engine and the wheels. Although some newer models have lock-up converters, these only lock up under steady state conditions. In real life, you don't only drive at a fixed speed. The converter never locks up while accelerating and decelerating. Though the automatic is more convenient, in the long run, the slightly poorer fuel consumption may add up to a significant figure.

2. Larger vs smaller engine
Usually, cars are available with several engine sizes. Now, unless the technology is different, the smaller engine will nearly always be the most fuel efficient. Car manufacturers know this, so sometimes to even up the market, they beef up the package for the larger engined versions, so that some of the options are not available for the smaller engine version. Example, the HID headlamps and paddle shifters are only available on the 2.0 liter version of the Honda Civic, but not on the 1.8 (this applies specifically to those sold in Malaysia, though).

3. Larger (Heavier) vs Smaller (Lighter) body
It takes more energy to move a heavier mass. Hence a lighter car will usually be more fuel efficient. However, sometimes lighter cars compromise on certain areas of comfort, noise insulation and, ahem, safety, so you need to be well aware of what you are getting and what you are NOT getting. Consider that if you are going to be sitting alone most of the time, a large MPV / Minivan won't be of much use to you. However, for large families, the objectives and emphasis might just skew towards a larger vehicle with a more generous seating capacity.

4. Technology
Nowadays, major car manufacturers and their cars are associated with 3 ~ 5 letter acronyms (VVTI, I-VTEC, MIVEC) and so forth. These just go to show how much engine technology has advanced since the birth of the first internal combustion engines. Not all of these are optimized for fuel efficiency, so you've got to do some homework. For example, the I-VTEC for the 1.8 FD1 Civic emphasizes on fuel economy, but the I-VTEC for the 2.0 FD2 Civic is more power oriented. In this case, Honda collectively lumped both engines under the I-VTEC badge, even though they are using different mechanisms to achieve different design goals!
Another emerging trend is the advent of the hybrid vehicle, which so far, includes the Honda Civic Hybrid and Toyota Prius (just to name a few). Hybrid vehicles are have dual power sources, commonly a normal internal combustion engine with an electric motor. Currently, all that technology comes at a higher price (but then, with not many hybrid models available here, those that are imported may be higher priced as a result of the tax structure rather than actual cost).

5. Do your homework (research)
Information is readily available if you are willing to put in some effort. Reviews are aplenty on the world wide web, as are first hand accounts from owners on forums such. If you are lucky, you may just find someone who owns the exact car model in your office, your local downtown bar or your church. When researching, you should take reviews with a pinch of salt, and do not base your conclusion on a single source. Usually, if several independent sources cite a common fact, you can be sure that it's almost certainly true. Note that first hand reviews are only noteworthy if they come from the owner or driver of the vehicle, and not from accounts based on theories and hearing what others have to say. For instance, anyone can quote what the fuel consumption is for a given vehicle (which is usually based on tests conducted in controlled or simulated environments), but only one who drives it daily can feedback on the actual true figure.

I hope that the information here will be useful to those of you who consider fuel efficiency as one of the major deciding factors in purchasing a motor vehicle. My next article will be on some things that can be done to improve on fuel efficiency, before you get out on the open road.