To coincide with last week’s Earth Day, Ford has highlighted its specially developed Eco-Driving programme which is run in Germany.

To date, more than 10,000 drivers have benefited from the Ford Eco-Driving programme which has been running since 2000.

For the average driver this can mean a yearly saving of approximately €300 and a saving of 500 kilos in emissions.

Among the techniques taught to participants in the Ford Eco-Driving programme are the following:

• Drive in a smooth, relaxed style, at an even speed and leave sufficient distance between you and the car in front to minimise the need for sudden braking e.g. approx. 3 seconds distance – that’s approx. 40m at 50km/h.
• Change lanes early – before encountering any obstacles; that will save you from braking unnecessarily or accelerating to get into the desired lane.
• Belt up, switch on ignition and set out immediately: don’t warm up the engine
• Keep the revs down: with modern engines you should be able to keep between 1500-2500 revs. 10 –15 years ago this would have been 2500-4000rpm. Low revs also reduce noise – one car at 4000rpm is equivalent to 32 cars at 2000 revs
• Guide to using gears: From 30kmh – 3rd gear; From 40 kmh - 4th gear; From 50kmh - 5th gear

• At a steady 50km, you use 17% more fuel in 4th than in 5th. Overall advice for gear changes: “move up the gears quickly, down the gears slowly”
• In stop-start traffic, avoid sudden acceleration and braking; release foot from accelerator early; move into neutral and let car roll forward to a stop
• If you’re stopped for more than 20 seconds (e.g. loading, at a level crossing or in a traffic jam etc.) you can save energy by switching off the ignition: you use the same fuel stopped for three minutes with the engine running as you do travelling for one km at 50kmh.
• Most cars are on underinflated tyres – this wastes fuel. Even 0.2 bar underinflation increases rolling resistance by up to 10%. Check your pressures regularly.
• Use air conditioning only when needed and turn off heated windscreen and rear window as soon as they are clear
• Make sure your car is serviced as prescribed
• Avoid short journeys – they use most fuel and cause most wear on a car.

“With the increased focus on the environmental impact of motoring, Ford, like other manufacturers, is striving to produce more environmentally-friendly vehicles”, said Eddie Murphy, Chairman and Managing Director of Ford Ireland. “But no matter what car you drive, the Ford Eco-Driving programme shows that by simply adopting different driving techniques, drivers can make a huge contribution to saving fuel and lessening the environmental impact of their driving”.

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