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Shell FuelSave Blogger Challenge 2014: Busting fuel-saving myths

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 03 Jun 2014   Posted by Cheryl Tay


High fuel prices lead to aggressive fuel-saving campaigns that aim to educate drivers about fuel efficiency, so that they can get the most mileage out of their vehicles. Shell, for example, has been running annual fuel-saving initiatives since they launched their FuelSave products. This year, I’m part of their Shell FuelSave Blogger Challenge where we are to track our own fuel economy for four weeks by adopting the tips they gave while using their fuel.

For the past two weeks, I was on Shell FuelSave 95 for my Mits Lancer and I achieved an average of 10.7km/L, which is a slight improvement over the stated 10km/L on paper. You can grab a log card at any Shell station and then proceed to record the number of litres of fuel you pump each time, as well as the numbers on your mileage counter. Let’s see if I can improve on this at the end of the next  two weeks!

Shell has a list of fuel-saving tips (see end of article) which I tried and some worked better for me than others. It depends a lot on the driver’s style and behaviour, as well as the driver’s commitment to taking care of the vehicle. For instance, if you are very aggressive on the roads or you are lazy and often take your time to bring your vehicle for servicing, then the fuel economy of your car wouldn’t be very spectacular.

I will share my recommended five tips on fuel saving in a later post; meanwhile, I just wanted to bust some long-held myths about fuel economy. These measures may have worked with cars of yesteryears, but modern technologies have eliminated the need for them. Here are some of the myths that you should debunk:

1) Warm up the engine for a few minutes before moving off each morning

In the past, it was advised that you should turn on your engine and let it idle for a few minutes in the morning when it is still cold. You don’t need to do that with modern engines now. In fact, driving will warm the engine faster up.

2) Do not fill past full tank

The pump automatically shuts off once the tank is full, but sometimes the pump attendant will top up a few more litres to round up the numbers. It is not recommended to continue topping up past full because it doesn’t give you any extra, but it’s not gonna wreck your wallet or purse with that bit more. If you are that concerned, pump the fuel yourself.

3) Do not leave tank too empty in case of evaporation

Making sure you have enough fuel in the tank to last the journey, but otherwise it’s ok to travel with a fuel tank that’s nearly empty. In the past, fuel may have evaporated inside the tank if it’s left too empty and escaped into the air. But modern fuel systems now have vapour recovery systems and even alert functions to inform you if the fuel cap is loose or if the fuel door is not shut tight.

4) Pump fuel at cooler temperatures

People used to believe that if you top your car up during cooler parts of the day — such as early in the morning or at night — you will get more fuel at the same cost because cooler liquid is denser. Theoretically not wrong, but now, fuel is usually pumped from underground storage tanks that are naturally insulated and thus protected from temperature variations.

5) Switch to neutral gear or turn off the engine at stop lights 

The fuel-injection systems in cars today are able to detect if the engine is revving above idle when you lift your foot off the accelerator, thus shutting off the fuel injectors and not injecting gas into the engine even if still in gear.

An idling engine will use up more fuel than stopping and starting a vehicle. That’s why there are automatic start-stop engine functions in modern cars, where the engine is shut off when the vehicle is stationary at a traffic light and restarts when the foot lifts off the brake pedal or pushes on the accelerator.

6) Use cruise control wherever possible

The objective of cruise control is to help drivers maintain a constant speed, which comes in useful on long roads or on highways. However, if you use cruise control in city traffic, the system may apply sudden acceleration when going upslope and you are better off controlling that yourself. Also, you might have to suddenly brake to stop the cruise control if you spot an obstacle ahead. All these abrupt actions waste fuel.

7) Smaller cars have better fuel efficiency.

It’s not about the size, but what’s under the hood, what material are used in the construction of the car and also the design of the body. For example, vehicles these days have advanced technologies such as hybrid drivetrains, diesel engines, turbochargers and low-rolling resistance tyres.

8) Replacing the air filter very often

If your vehicle has an old engine with a carburettor, then replacing the air filter frequently will help. However, modern, fuel-injected engines are designed to deliver better fuel economy and lower emissions, offering regulated air-to-fuel ratio. That doesn’t mean you don’t have to replace the air filter; just change it according to your vehicle’s maintenance schedule.

9) Manual transmissions have better fuel economy

Last time, manual gearboxes had more gear ratios than the automatic ones. But now, automatic transmissions are so advanced, with up to eight gear ratios. Also, not every driver knows how to shift right with a stick, hence not optimising fuel consumption.

Now that I have busted those myths, what are some fuel-saving tips? Shell has been encouraging drivers to practise good habits that will help them to improve their fuel economy. Here’s a look at the expert advice they have:

shell fuelsave tips (1) (600x347)

shell fuelsave tips (2) (600x344)

shell fuelsave tips (3) (600x245)

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  • About Cheryl Tay

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    First establishing herself in the world of cars and motorsports, Cheryl Tay is a sports and fitness blogger who advocates living an active and healthy lifestyle. Founder of body image movement Rock The Naked Truth, Cheryl overcame over a decade of eating disorders and is now passionate about helping people with similar struggles. She also has a running club ROCKrunners and a tri-enthusiast club ROCKtri.

    Rock The Naked Truth encourages others to be comfortable in their own skin and to learn that there is more to life than just being a slave to the numbers on your scale. Truly, life has more meaning than just forcing yourself to look good - it's most important to be happy and feel good about yourself!

    Previously...
    > Fitness columnist for Yahoo! Sports
    > Founder of ELITE (fitness competition)
    > Motoring writer for TODAY
    > Columnist for Rev / Run magazines
    > Official photographer for ONE Championship
    > Media manager for Formula Drift Asia
    > PR manager for PETRONAS Syntium Team
    > Business development for Kartright Speedway
    > F1 youth speaker for Singapore GP
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    Got to hang with @sweetvarnvarn this week! She is Got to hang with @sweetvarnvarn this week! She is really fun, friendly and I wish we had more time to go out and play. Next time! Perhaps I need to go to Thailand hmmm...
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This is super exciting, after all the hurdles we have had to overcome. From being turned away by venues, to not being able to do a wedding because it has to be ROM registered due to COVID-19 restrictions, to finally, finally being able to hold our wedding because private events are now allowed.

YAYYYYYY!!!

Our union may not be legally recognised in Singapore, but we still want to get our nearest and dearest together in the name of love. Can't wait to celebrate our love and share this special occasion with y'all!

P.S. for those asking, we will get our paperwork done somewhere overseas at some point.

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Gown: @thegownwarehouse
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Swipe to see all the nonsense we were up to!
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These have a three-step coating so it has maximum crispiness, meat-like texture made from plants so they feel like your usual nuggets and they have 0% trans fat. You won't even realise they are made from plants honestly. In addition, they make for a good source of protein and fibre.

Available at FairPrice, CS Fresh, Giant and RedMart, these are going at a promo price of $6.95 per packet (from 12 – 25 May). More details at @firstpridesg!

#FIRSTPRIDESG #SOOOGOOD
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But I've already come so far, so I just sucked it up and somehow managed to make it to the end.

Really happy with my time - my fastest HM ever I think. Woohoo! Thank you to the organisers for the effort and to the volunteers who made this event run so smoothly.

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144 days to Berlin Marathon.

#roadtoberlinmarathon #bmwxcheryltay #halfmarathon
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1 hair stylist, 2 make up artists, 2 stylists, 1 photographer + assistant, and of course the client team and the agency team. Totally made me feel like a superstar for a day!

You know what? The younger me would have killed for this opportunity.  I suffered from various eating disorders so I could become skinny and I really, really wanted to become a model.

Swipe to see my journal entry where I talked about how badly I wanted to be one and get in print ads and do TVCs, how I still felt I wasn't skinny enough, and how insecure I felt about myself. It's crazy!

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BONUS - swipe to see some of my photos from my modelling days back then. WHO IS DIZ?! I did get some jobs here and there, but they weren't big jobs. @thehuangergames had a good laugh at these pics, but hey we were all young once ok!

#rockthenakedtruth #loveyourself #bodypositivity #selfworth #theyoungerme #throwback
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But now I'm proud of these legs. They can do so many things and right now they are training for a marathon, on top of achieving many other things that I like to do like cycling and swimming and wakesurfing and taking long walks.

So don't hate your legs or any part of your body. It's yours!! It doesn't have to look a certain way because who gets to decide how it should look?!

#thiccplease #rockthenakedtruth #nothighgap
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Swipe to see what I'm talking about.

Still, always happy for time spent with these siao zhabors!

#beachday #bikinigirls #sunsandsea #blueskies #fitgirls #bikinitime
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This hair colour formula is developed for Asian hair and has COLOR-in-CORE Technology that locks the colour into the core, so it really brings out the shade you want. I also like how my hair does not feel dry at all, which is a big thing for me when I colour my hair.

I get that some people cannot be too wild with their hair because of work, but a shade like that is not too loud and probably more palatable for the office? So, go on and get creative with the new trend shades from ULTIST - and ask for a split colour like mine!

#ShiseidoProfessionalSG #PRIMIENCE #ULTIST #BeautyStreamSS2022 #SpectralAllure 
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One thing that stood out is its 1.5-litre turbocharged engine that is now the only engine variant that the Civic is available in, in Singapore. Mine is the 1.6-litre naturally aspirated engine, so I’ve really missed driving a turbo with its quick pick-up.

But I feel the biggest thing to note about this 11th-gen Civic is the range of safety tech features. It has adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist to prevent you from veering out of your lane, collision mitigation braking that alerts when you get too close to the vehicle ahead, and something called the LaneWatch system which essentially is a camera under the mirror of the passenger door that shows you what is in your blind spot when you are turning left. With all of these, you have less excuse for bad driving behaviour.

I definitely enjoyed this zippy drive and I had a lot of fun!

Engine: 1,498cc turbocharged inline 4
Power: 129PS at 5500-6000rpm
Torque: 180Nm at 1700-4500rpm
Transmission: Continuously Variable
0-100km/h: 10.5 seconds
Price: S$143,999 with COE*

*A low downpayment option is available, starting from only S$14,400. You may leave your details at https://bit.ly/11-CivicSG to find out more.

#HondaCivic #Civic #Builtaroundyou #KahMotor @honda_sg
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🙌🙌🙌

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It's gonna be an exciting year, I can feel it!!

Come on, do it with me and make this year YOUR year as well. Time to set some goals!

Shot by @jerrytangcl
Edited by @thehuangergames

#berlinmarathon #bmwgroupasia
    Back with my wakesurf gurls today! Why do we alway Back with my wakesurf gurls today! Why do we always get the gloomy weather? Zzzzzz!

In the past when I was training for a race, I would be so focused on it that I didn't allow myself to have much fun, or anything that might potentially distract me from the goal.

But now I'm learning to find that balance! Yes, I wanna do decent in the race but I also don't want to give away too much of my life. You get what I mean?

#findthatbalance
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There's the berry spritzer (with blueberries, cranberries, acai, maqui and goji berries) that I absolutely love with sparkling water over ice and a lime wedge.

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What I like is how these tonics, filled with bio-active nutrients that have healing properties, 
can be easily added to my day, at any time, with or without food.

All you do is just take a tablespoon of it, neat, or mixed with water.

One 500ml bottle can last for a month! 

#goodguthealth #akesiwellness #probiotics #biofermented #foodasmedicine #antioxidants #polyphenols #assistdigestion #immuneboost #sp
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