How Much Energy Does a Sony PS3 Use?

It's a huge powerful machine, with a blue-ray disc player, but just how much of the national grid is this chunk of machine pulling.

Vampire Power: 2W
PS3 Menu: 107W
Scanning Disc: 107 - 119W
In Game;
Grand Theft Auto IV: 125 - 130W

Pretty shocking electricity consumption then, especially to the slimline energy consumption of the Wii, and almost four times the energy consumption of the PS2. But what worries me is that people when they are not using the Playstation 3 will leave the device on, on pause and turn the TV off.

Running your PS3 in paused mode, overnight, for say 10 hours will use 1.25kWh, about 15p, but more worryingly there will be those that leave it on 24/7, over a day using 3kWh (36p), and a year 1,095kWh (£131.40). This is also adding up in CO2 emissions, about 1.65kg of CO2/day and, 602kg of CO2/yr.

It appears the PS3 is the Hummer of the console market, and so much so, leaving it on all year would produce 100 times it's own weight in CO2. For those that already know, the PS2 was such a success it sold over 100m units worldwide. So our advice is to anyone using a Playstation 3, is to switch off, anytime your not using it, or else you will have a chunky electricity bill next time around, especially with the increased electricity costs over the last few months.

For information on the electricity consumption of other products check out "How Much Electricity Does a ... Use?"

Please Note the energy use figures are taken from an energy monitor and are not scientifically analysed, therefore the range and margin of error is greater. If you would like a specific product tested let us know and we will endeavour to check it out.

Northern Ireland's First Carbon Neutral Home

Northern Ireland’s first carbon neutral home, has been officially opened by Social Development Minister Margaret Ritchie. The five bedroom, 2,500 sq ft property has been built by Sky Developments, a specialist development company working in the field of low carbon and passive status housing. The building was constructed using Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) and incorporates the latest state of the art technologies to assist energy efficiency.

“I have been most impressed by what I have seen. This building showcases to stunning effect the innovative, energy saving technologies now available. All involved are to be congratulated for bringing such a challenging project to fruition.”
Margaret Ritchie, Social Development Minister

The minister took the opportunity to highlight a number of initiatives already developed by her own department to further increase the sustainability and energy efficiency of social housing.

The New Housing Agenda gives a high priority to the provision of more energy efficient housing. From April this year, a new higher Code for Sustainable Homes has applied to all new social housing, meaning that in effect homes built now are 25% more energy efficient than ever before.

Stephen McCready and Alan Johnston, directors of Sky Developments, say the 2,300sq ft home is so energy efficient that Northern Ireland Electricity will owe the householder £200 at the end of the year because it will produce so much energy it will feed the surplus back into the grid. The house’s carbon-neutral status means it has been granted an A Energy Performance Certificate. The average home in Northern Ireland are rated E.

The “green house” uses four main methods to keep costs at less than zero:

• the roof has been constructed of photovoltaic panels designed to resemble black slate tiles that harness the sun’s rays for electricity;
  
  
• structural insulated panels (SIPS) make up the shell of the house, with their superior heat-retaining ability cutting down on the need for electricity;
  
  
• an air source heat pump uses wind energy to pump out water at 37 degrees;
  
  
• quadruple glazing in each window blocks out the cold.

Sky Developments are about to start building 40 energy-efficient affordable homes in Newtownards using SIPS and the zero-carbon prototype as inspiration.

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Photo: Subway Please Don't Send Your Toys By Air

Subway, the franchised sandwich retailer with the slogan, "Subway, Eat Fresh, Live Green", has come to my attention. Really is there a need to air freight "toys" from Hong Kong (HKG) to the London Heathrow (LHR), via Paris (CDG)? Surely they would be more environmentally sound if they were sent via sea, or not manufactured at all. This isn't the only items that Subway send via air either.

Information from Traxon Europe (Air France Cargo Freight Status Information Service)

Pieces: 1

Airline: AFR
Weight: 2818 K
from: HKG
to: LHR
1 piece(s) 2818 K booked on flight AF6799/01OCT from HKG to CDG
Scheduled Time of Flight-Departure : 07:50
Scheduled Time of Flight-Arrival : 16:45
1 piece(s) 2818 K booked on flight AF932D/02OCT from CDG to LHR
1 piece(s) 2818 K received from shipper in HKG on 01 OCT at 06:08
1 piece(s) 2818 K departed on flight AF6799/01OCT from HKG to CDG
Actual Time of Flight-Departure : 08:06
Actual Time of Flight-Arrival : 16:54
1 piece(s) 2818 K departed on flight AF396D/01OCT from CDG to LHR
1 piece(s) 2818 K arrived in LHR from flight AF396D
Scheduled arrival : 02 OCT
Goods checked in at : 12:02
1 piece(s) 2818 K delivered on 03 OCT at 22:27 in LHR

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Government U-Turn on Aviation and Shipping Emissions

The Government has made a U-Turn on the exclusion of aviation and shipping carbon emissions after 50 Labour MPs pressed for the sectors to be included in the Climate Change Bill, which sets a target to cut carbon emissions by 80% by 2050, which was announced earlier this month.

The government agreed to redraft its bill, which was given a third reading by 463 votes to three - a majority of 460 - in the Commons. It accepted an amendment requiring ministers to take into account projected emissions from the sectors when setting future budgets that will cap emissions.

The government has resisted calls in the past to include aviation and shipping, saying it would be nearly impossible to allocate responsibility for international emissions to individual countries.

The government's advisory committee on climate change, headed by Lord Turner, recommended last month that the sectors must figure in climate change targets while arguing that they would not be able to meet the 80% target by 2050.

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Mini E To Be On Roads By 2009

The BMW Group will be the world’s first manufacturer of premium automobiles to deploy a fleet of up to 500 all-electric vehicles for private use in daily traffic. The MINI E will be powered by a 150 kW (204 hp) electric motor fed by a high-performance rechargeable lithium-ion battery, transferring its power to the front wheels via a single-stage helical gearbox nearly without a sound and entirely free of emissions. Specially engineered for automobile use, the battery technology will have a range of more than 240 kilometers, or 150 miles. The MINI E will initially be made available in the US to select private and corporate customers as part of a pilot project in limited geographical areas in the US states of California, New York and New Jersey. The possibility of offering the MINI E in Europe as well is currently being considered. The MINI E will give its world premiere at the Los Angeles Auto Show on November 19 and 20, 2008.

The MINI E’s electric drive train produces a peak torque of 220 Newton meters, delivering seamless acceleration to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 8.5 seconds. Top speed is electronically limited to 152 km/h (95 mph). Featuring a suspension system tuned to match its weight distribution, the MINI E sports the brand’s hallmark agility and outstanding handling.

By introducing the MINI E, the BMW Group is underscoring the resolve with which it works towards reducing energy consumption and emissions in road traffic. The BMW Group is drawing on its unique technological expertise in the field of drive systems to develop a vehicle concept enabling zero emissions without renouncing the joy of driving. Putting some 500 cars on the road under real daily traffic conditions will make it possible to gain widely applicable hands-on experience. Evaluating these findings will generate valuable know-how, which will be factored into the engineering of mass- produced vehicles. The BMW Group aims to start series production of all-electric vehicles over the medium term as part of its Number ONE strategy. The development of innovative concepts for mobility in urban areas within the scope of “project i” has a similar thrust, as its objective also includes making use of an all-electric power train.

Based on the current MINI, the car will initially be available as a two-seater. The space taken up by back-seat passengers in the series model has been reserved for the lithium-ion battery. A full recharge draws a maximum of 28 kilowatt hours of electricity from the grid. Based on the car’s range, a kilowatt hour translates into 5.4 miles. Besides the benefit of zero-emissions driving, the MINI E thus offers significant economic advantages over a vehicle powered by a conventional internal combustion engine as well.

The MINI E has already gone through the major phases of product development for mass-produced vehicles and passed numerous crash tests on the way. Aspects investigated besides passenger protection were the impact of collision forces on the lithium-ion battery and finding a non-hazardous location for it in the car. The MINI E’s energy storage unit emerged completely unscathed from all of the crash tests mandated by US standards, which are especially high.

Production of the approximately 500 cars will take place at the company’s Oxford and Munich sites and is scheduled for completion before the end of 2008. MINI’s UK plant will be responsible for manufacturing the entire vehicle with the exception of the drive components and the lithium-ion battery, with the brand’s series models rolling off its assembly lines concurrently. The units will then be transferred to a specially equipped manufacturing complex situated on BMW plant premises where the electric motor, battery units, performance electronics and transmission will be integrated.

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Are You in "Green Place Poverty"?

A quarter of people living in towns and cities suffer from "green place poverty", with easy access to fewer than three parks or countryside areas, according to the National Trust.

The National Trust said many members of the public were missing out on access to the natural world, despite its importance to people's quality of life. Coastlines and beaches, parks and wild open spaces are all highly valued for fresh air and space, relaxation and to see wildlife.

A poll of 1,000 people by Opinion Leader for the Trust found that across England, Wales and Northern Ireland one in eight said they had access to two or fewer green spaces. In urban areas the number rose to one in four, and among black and ethnic minority groups the figure was one in three.

Online surveys of 1,200 people on the National Trust website found 98% of people thought having green spaces near them was important to their quality of life.

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Green Electricity Suppliers

They’re all doing it, draping themselves in images of windmills and claiming green credentials – but how green are the UK’s electricity companies really?

How much of what you see is spin and how much is real? That’s a question we’ve asked ourselves often enough. And lately, with the ‘Big Six’ spending £millions on slick TV ads - this seems a more pressing question than ever. Is there a way to judge who's really green and who’s only saying they are? Actually it’s quite simple.

Just look at how much each electricity company spends building new sources of green electricity each year – New energy. The only green electricity that does anything to reduce CO2 emissions and our dependence on fossil fuels is the new green energy, the stuff that gets built today and tomorrow. If you’re not building you’re not actually achieving anything green at all. It’s just marketing and spin.

Ecotricity produced a measure for spending on New Energy called it ‘pounds per customer’ – it shows how much each electricity company actually spends, for each of it’s customers on the new green stuff. It’s a number that cuts through the fog of marketing and to the heart of the issue, irrespective of company size.

Some energy companies are bigger than others of course, so the total they spend on building new green electricity sources is useful to know, but is not the whole story. For example in 2004, npower spent £40m on new green energy, Ecotricity just £5m. But Ecotricity had just 5000 customers compared to npowers 5m customers.

To get meaningful comparisons you need to simply see how much is spent per customer. This shows you how much of your electricity bill actually gets spent each year, building new sources of green. And how much of a difference you make by being with your supplier. It's that simple - and called pounds per customer. It's the acid test of green commitment. It's simple enough maths too - Just take the total number of customers each supplier has and divide that by their total spend on new green electricity sources in any given year.

These are the figures for 2007. Prepare to be surprised.

Supplier	2007 spend per customer
Ecotricity	£555.36
Powergen	£17.28
Centrica	£7.12
npower	£3.89
EDF Energy	£3.55
Scottish Power	£2.63
Green Energy UK	£0.00
Good Energy	£0.00
Scottish & Southern Energy	£0.00

Ecotricity now offers two types of tariff, these are considered to be the greenest tariffs in the UK;

• New Energy
  
  All the Green energy in this tariff comes from Ecotricities own wind turbines, this year it’s just over 30% ­ and rising currently at almost 10% per year. The balance is ’Brown’ electricity bought in the market ­ and that reduces each year as the green increases. But the key part is this - for every £ customers spend through their electricity bills Ecotricity spend another £ building new sources of Green energy. And they price match each regional supplier so New Energy has no premium attached to it ­ - customers get ’Green for the price of Brown’.
  
  No wonder this is considered by people like the Soil Association, WWF and Oxfam to be the best green tariff in the UK, bar none.
  
  
• New Energy Plus
  
  For those that understand the need to build new sources to actually impact climate change ­ but who want a 100% tariff in the mean time. It’s New Energy (30% Green from Ecotricity turbines this year and rising fast), topped up with green electricity from existing renewable sources (instead of Brown) ­ making this a 100% Green tariff. You get the same total commitment to build, spend one £ on renewables for every one £ customers spend, ­ but it’s 100% green now. It’s a mixture of Old and New green energy in fact (New Energy Plus Old). It isn’t any better than New Energy, but some people just want 100%, so they offer it.
  
  The existing (Old) green energy they top up with is a scarce resource though, so there’s a small premium of 0.5p per unit, which works out at about £20 a year for a typical household - over and above the price of Brown electricity from each regional supplier.

For more information on Energy Suppliers by CO2 emissions and their "energy make up" visit our CO2/kWh table. The Ecologist magazine published an article on this same topic in June 2005 (pdf).


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Should the Government Spend on Renewables to Beat the Recession?

Rescuing ailing banks is only one half of the solution to the current global economic turmoil. The other is to keep spending buoyant to prevent a slide into recession.

But how to do that? With worries about ballooning personal debt, falling house prices and rising unemployment, many people are cutting back on spending. Christmas will probably not be enough to revive fortunes on the high street.

One answer lies with the ideas of John Maynard Keynes, the most influential economist of the 20th Century. It was his proposals that helped the world recover from the Great Depression of the 1930s. With unemployment in the UK, the US and many other countries reaching 20% or more in the early 30s, the task was massive. Whole economies were grinding to a halt.

Keynes' solution was simple. Governments needed to spend more. Spending on roads, hospitals and schools would have to offset the lack of private spending.

So should the government start spending on renewable energy?, introducing new grants could be one way to increase consumer spending into renewables, paired with the current high prices of energy, this could be a winner.

Spending further revenue on large scale projects, for schools, hospitals and government buildings to increase their energy efficiency, focusing on those with poor performances, from results of Display Energy Certificates.

Further investment of revenue into macro scale national projects could set the UK on track for energy security for the next few years, and a low carbon economy for the future.

This is pretty much what Chancellor Alistair Darling is arguing. If private spending is slowing, then the government needs to take up the slack by bringing forward billions of pounds of expenditure on construction projects. If government borrowing must rise, then so be it. However, annual borrowing in the UK is one of the highest in the world as a percentage of GDP. And it's rising fast.

One way to increase consumer spending is to use monetary policy. This involves altering interest rates. If recession is looming, central banks could as expected they will cut interest rates - as many did, by half a percentage point, on 8 October.

Even if customer rates are cut, borrowing and spending may hardly increase. With impending recession, people may try to cut back on their debts rather than spend, and businesses may be reluctant to invest.

The alternative to monetary policy is fiscal policy. This involves changes in taxes and/or government expenditure. If taxes fall and/or government expenditure rises, this should stimulate the economy. As long as we are not afraid to spend that is.

Keeping expenditure up is vital and increased government expenditure is probably the best way of achieving this. But another crucial factor is confidence.

If people believe the policy will work, it probably will. Firms will start investing more and consumers will start buying more. The vicious circle of recession could become the virtuous circle of recovery.

But creating confidence depends on politics as much as economics. If people see world leaders mean business and that they won't let recession take hold, then it won't.

If, however, politicians vacillate or there's no international harmonisation of policies, then any remaining confidence may evaporate and we could suffer from prolonged recession similar to that in Japan in the 1990s and early 2000s.

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Lessons for Lunch

One of the biggest issues facing us, as well as climate change is obesity and dietary related illness which is grinding our health service to a slow and abrupt stop. In the UK we have Jamie Oliver trying to change the nation. In the US they have Ann Cooper.

Ann Cooper has a frontline view of the daily battle to keep kids healthy -- and of the enemy, the processed-foods industries that, it sometimes seems, want to wrap every single thing that children eat in a fried coating and then a plastic bag. As the director of nutrition services for the Berkeley (California) Unified School District, she's an outspoken activist for serving fresh, sustainable food to kids. Her lively website, Lunch Lessons, rounds up recipes, links, and resources for food activism.

Cooper's influential program in Berkeley involves kids in every stage of the food they eat, from growing to disposing of it. And along the way, eating some delicious cafeteria lunches.

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Keep it Cool!

Most clothes will come out of the wash just as clean if you turn down the temperature dial by a few degrees. There are also some washing detergents that are specially designed work more effectively at lower temperatures. Low temperature washes require less energy to heat the water.

CO2/kWh

Supplier	Coal	Natural Gas	Nuclear	Renewable	Other	CO2	Nuclear Waste	Disclosure Year
British Gas	18.0	56.0	20.0	4.0	2.0	0.382	0.0022	2007
Ecotricity	23.8	22.8	25.9	24.1	3.3	0.316	0.0029	2007
EDF Energy	47.0	29.0	17.0	5.0	2.0	0.540	0.0018	2007
Good Energy	0.0	0.0	0.0	100.0	0.0	0.000	0.0000	2007
Green Energy	0.0	68.0	0.0	32.0	0.0	0.136	0.0000	2007
npower/RWE	44.0	37.0	13.0	3.0	3.0	0.543	0.0015	2007
Powergen	42.0	36.7	14.2	3.6	3.5	0.530	0.0020	2007
Scottish & Southern Energy	30.6	57.8	0.8	10.2	0.6	0.489	0.0001	2007
ScottishPower	55.2	36.7	1.0	6.8	0.3	0.630	0.0001	2007
Utilita	33.0	39.0	21.0	4.0	3.0	0.460	0.0025	2006
UK average	35.8	38.8	18.6	4.7	2.1	0.461	0.0025	2007

CO2 in Kg/kWh

Energy Saving Week

"Before I put my heating on I check that all the windows in the house are closed. Heating a house while its windows are open is like lighting a fire with £5 notes!"

This week is energy saving week, and this year's theme is 'Green/Life Balance' - the fact is we are getting busier, working harder and have less time to do the things we want to do. An EST survey found that half of us say we would be greener if we had more time, and a third of us say our job is the main reason we don't have time to be green.

The aim of Energy Saving Week is simple: to help consumers learn how they can reduce their carbon footprint and show how significant savings can be made in money, energy and time by making a difference.

One of the ways in which you can join in the fun is with the new Energy Saving Trust blog / social network, "Britain Unplugged", where you can throw your ideas into the pot and find new ways to reduce energy, save money and save the planet, in the "What's green and takes 60 seconds? Challenge".

According to the EST, Digital Marketing Manager, Jasper Bell, who is the first editor of BU, the project is a slow burner which hopes to bring people together with a view to sharing ideas and promoting the benefits of reducing energy consumption. You should be seeing and hearing more of the project in the media in the future.

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Video: What's Wrong With What We Eat

What's wrong with our Western style diet, in a fiery and funny talk, New York Times food writer Mark Bittman weighs in on what's wrong with the way we eat now (too much meat, too few plants; too much fast food, too little home cooking), and why it's putting the entire planet at risk.

My diet has long perturbed me, and from this excellent Ted Talk, with Mark Bittman, it does put it into perspective how much meat I (and probably the rest of the world) eat. Not only is it beneficial for our bodies and the environment but no doubt for the health service of the nation who as even Jamie Oliver has said is crippling under the pressure of dietary related illness (or something similar to these words.

I'm going to attempt to change my diet, over the next few weeks and months which in itself is pretty difficult, as I work in the food industry, where there is an abundance of meat related products. My attempt is to reduce meat consumption to half a pound a week. Wish me luck.

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Alternative Christmas Presents

It's that time of the year again when we are all thinking of Christmas, not least so because of the current financial crisis. I was in town this week and already the operation of installing decorations has begun, with ten weeks til the big day there are some ethical Christmas presents from charitable organisations.

Oxfam and Christain Aid however this year has also launch with this presents for the eco-warrior. These include Bicycles (£30), Solar Panels (£35), Organic Cotton (£29), Baby Buffalos (£93), and Protecting Forest (£45).

If your pondering what to buy your friends, mother, brother, auntie, granny or colleague for Christmas but fear you will be amongst the £2.3 billion spent on unwanted Christmas gifts or the three-quarters of us who spend £50 on tat, you could spare a thought for those less fortunate and give two gifts in one, or three;

• A real gift for someone or community in a developing country
• This gift can be given as a gift to your friends or family
• The gift of not having to find a space for the initial gift to gather dust (38.7% of unwanted presents meet this end) or touted on eBay (27.5%)

Many charities including World Vision, Christain Aid and Oxfam have launched this year their alternative Christmas gift shops, and by asking communities what they want, they really hope to not just help people but improve the lives of many people for the future to come. Asking an 11-year old girl what they want for Christmas would most likely end with a discussion about the High School Musical 3 Dance Mat, ask a child in Bolivia, it might be a birth certificate (£6), or in Sri Lanka, might be 20 chicks (£14).

Whilst World Vision pledge each gift you buy will go towards the scheme involved, however if a gift is oversubscribed funds may be allocated to a different project to ensure that funds are used where appropriate and needed most. Oxfam also suggest that gifts are symbolic and funds are used where appropriate to ensure maximum value for donations. In a small way I feel cheated, that funds from buying 20 chicks may actually buy a goat. Imagine if you asked Santa for 20 chicks but got a goat, you'd be pretty disappointed, not to mention you can't even sell goats on eBay. In reality, each gift was requested by the communities so no matter where the money goes it will benefit the community as a whole, giving chickens to every person in town would do little if no good to a community, in a similar way to giving them all cows or goats.

So if your thinking what to get someone, and feel it may become a tatty mistake, or are really busy and short for time, these gifts provide a one-stop shop for Christmas buying. You don't even have to leave the office to fight amongst 500 other people to end up with another lamp with incandescent bulb that doesn't fit in with their decor.

All in all a feel good Christmas gift. Remember however goats are for life, not just for Christmas. And don't try to do a DIY version by sending 20 chicks Air Mail via Royal Mail to Sri Lanka, the postage is too high, and Royal Mail don't accept chicks (I've already checked), and of course it's just wrong.

Don't forget if you are a UK tax payer you can Gift Aid your gift, so that means you can give an extra 5.6 chicks, 0.28 of a goat or 19.6 meals.

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Reducing Energy Costs The Green Way

In recent years householders have seen the cost of energy rise sharply and therefore more and more people have been turning to more energy efficient methods. One such noticeable area for improving home efficiency has been in home heating. Householders are looking to cut heating bills by installing more resistant and efficient wall and roofing insulation. The trend of rising home insulation use is plain to see these days as big companies such as Tesco have entered the market place. The government is also doing its bit by setting up a £3bn fund to help householders insulate their homes. This is part of their much wider green campaign which aims to reduce emissions by 2015.

Although there are many home insulation products on the market there are very few that actually make use of an environmentally friendly product. This is where a company like Sprayseal differentiates itself. Sprayseal is a specialist insulation company that uses a unique brand of spray foam insulation that is completely environmentally friendly. What’s more is that the Sprayseal formula contains no toxic fibres or materials and can be used in almost any environment.

Sprayseal itself feels that offering a green alternative is extremely important in today’s climate because environmental change is very much at the forefront of people’s agenda. Pushing people towards greener products can only be a good thing.

Sprayseal’s commitment to the environment has essentially changed with the times as the family run business started out in 1987 and originally made use of more traditional insulation methods. When the opportunity arose to using a new modern and more efficient product came along the directors jumped at the chance. The pair was initially impressed by the products ability to reduce heat loss by up to 80% but on further use they found it was ideal for installing insulation quickly and easily.

Sprayseal as a company has also been growing as a result of it’s environmentally ways and has recently launched a new website. The interest stemming from the product means that they now operate home insulation services across the country and have a growing workforce. In the future it will be interesting to see how insulation and other energy saving methods will evolve.

Sprayseal also is a unique product in that it can be adaptable to any situation, and must be the sure choice of industry, where large scale projects can be carried out with the minimum of disruption. Their previous clients include some prestigious companies, including Endemol, creators of, Big Brother, who had the house insulated, the Tate Gallery, and many local councils and health authorities.

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Brown Calls for Cut in Petrol Prices

Gordon Brown today called on petrol retailers to cut fuel to under £1 a litre, stating that there is too much variation in fuel prices across the country. With prices as low as 99p and as high as £1.20 per litre, with Asda and Morrisons announcing they are dropping the price of unleaded petrol to 99.9p a litre.

Petrol prices have fallen to a twelve month low following sharp falls in the price of oil over the last few months.

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Petrol Consumption Reduction Tips

Changing your car to a new environmentally friendly model may not be easy for us all. But there are some ways you can reduce your fuel consumption, save money and help the environment too. The following simple tips could save the average driver £120 a year and reduce your CO2 emissions by 200kg per year. According to the organisers of the 2008 MPG Marathon, if we all were to implement these methods into our driving we could collectively save £8.2 billion per year in fuel costs, and significantly reduce the 91m tonnes of CO2 currently emitted in the UK annually .

• Gear Changes
  Change up before 2,500rpm (petrol) and 2,000rpm (diesel).
  
  
• Plan Ahead
  Anticipate road conditions and drive smoothly, avoiding sharp acceleration and heavy braking. This saves fuel and reduces accident rates.
  
  
• Air Con
  Use air conditioning sparingly as it significantly increases fuel consumption.
  
  
• Kill Your Speed
  The most efficient speed depends upon the car in question but is typically around 55 - 65mph. Faster speed will greatly increase your fuel consumption.
  
  
• Don't Wait Around
  Drive away immediately when starting from cold - idling to heat the engine wastes fuel and causes rapid engine wear.
  
  
• Aerodynamics
  Roof racks, bike carriers, and roof boxes significantly affect your car's aerodynamics and reduce fuel efficiency, so remember to remove them when not in use.
  
  
• Avoid Short Distances
  A cold engine uses almost twice as much fuel and catalytic converters can take five miles to become effective. Walking or bikes can be a great alternative to short journeys.
  
  
• Plan Your Route
  Plan your journeys to avoid congestion, road works and getting lost. Sat Nav and online map services such as Google Maps can help you find the way.
  
  
• Tyre Pressure
  Under-inflated tyres are dangerous and can increase fuel consumption by up to 3%.
  
  
• Switch Off
  Stuck in a jam, switch the engine off if you expect to be there for more than a minute or two. Cutting the engine will save fuel and reduce emissions.
  

MPG Marathon 2008

The real benefits of ‘smarter’ motoring came into sharp focus this week when competitors in the 2008 MPG Marathon proved beyond doubt that skilful eco-driving can dramatically reduce the cost of motoring and cut the amount of CO2 emissions produced by Britain's 30 million motorists.

The 40 teams taking part achieved an average improvement of 23 per cent over the manufacturer’s official combined figures and, if replicated by all of Britain’s car and commercial vehicle drivers, would save a total of £8.2 billion per year in fuel costs.

Eighty drivers and navigators took part in this national initiative, a round trip between ALD Automotive’s headquarters in Fishponds, Bristol and Shrigley Hall, Macclesfield to establish whether eco-driving can squeeze more miles per gallon (mpg) out of their vehicles than conventional motoring. The objective was to ‘save pounds and the planet’ as the drivers put the manufacturer’s own estimates of fuel consumption to the test – and won.

The achievement was all the more impressive as the drivers had to deal with the glare of publicity and congested roads during the two-day endurance trial. Twenty two manufacturers agreed to publicly have a variety of their hatchbacks, saloons and commercial vehicles put through their paces by automotive journalists, 'green' organisations and motoring safety bodies, including the AA, over this gruelling 400-mile round trip.

While seven vehicles achieved more than 70 miles per gallon, eight amazingly secured more than 80 miles per gallon, a record for the event which is in its sixth year, but the overall winning position went to the Toyota Yaris driven by Andrew Andersz which achieved a staggering 84.66mpg.

Second place went to Sue and Joanne Cooke in the Mazda2 1.4 Diesel with 84.58mpg. James Sutherland and navigator Richard Hill, who have won the last two MPG Marathons, failed to achieve their ‘hat trick’ in the Toyota Aygo Blue although it came in fifth place with 82.39mpg, a 34.18 per cent improvement over the manufacturer’s combined cycle figures, and using just 22.71 litres of petrol. This was the best figure achieved by a petrol-engined car in the event.

The MPG Marathon also sought out the drivers most capable of improving on the fuel consumption figures claimed by the manufacturer.

A Chevrolet Corvette Z06 with a manufacturer’s combined mpg of 19.2, managed to achieve 30.96mpg, an improvement of 61.26 per cent, despite its massive seven-litre engine. Driver and navigator Richard Hammond and Carla McAlpine proved that even so-called ‘gas guzzler’ sports cars can be driven more economically.

Second place in the percentage improvement class went to Christophe Duprat from ALD Automotive International and French motoring journalist Emilie Eyzat in a Honda Accord, with an MPG of 73.98, an improvement of 49.16 per cent.

Another entry of note was the Ford Focus driven and navigated by Devon and Cornwall police officers Martin Davis and Malcolm Curnow who achieved a fuel consumption of 62.43mpg against the manufacturer’s figure of 54.2mpg, an improvement of 15.18 per cent on the standard Focus, although more significant because the vehicle would be heavier with additional equipment. The force is attempting to cut its £2.3 million annual fuel bill because, with a fleet of 1200 vehicles, officers drive an amazing 29 million miles per year as a result of there being more miles of roads in the two counties than in the whole of Belgium. AA president Edmund King, sharing the driving with BBC Transport correspondent Tom Symonds, achieved 73mpg in a new Fiat 500, an improvement of 9.01 per cent.

It’s not what you drive, but how you drive that makes the difference and once again the combined efforts of all the participants and sponsors delivered a first class, educational event which has proved, if proof was needed, that skilled driving techniques work and can make a dramatic impact upon miles per gallon.

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