VW’s eco runs highlight cars’ superb fuel efficiency

MANILA, Philippines–At the conclusion of Volkswagen Philippines’ first fuel economy run held last October, three of the German automaker’s featured vehicles posted superb fuel-efficiency mark: a manual Jetta sedan, powered by a 2-liter turbodiesel engine, got a 29.7-kilometer-per-liter efficiency while an automatic, 2-liter turbodiesel powered Tiguan SUV got a 27.39-kpl efficiency. Meanwhile, a manual, 1.6-liter turbodiesel powered Polo sedan posted an 18.39-kpl efficiency.

A month later, during the second leg of the same event, a Polo sedan posted a phenomenal 30.48-kpl efficiency while an automatic, 2-liter turbodiesel powered Touran MPV posted a 21.94-kpl efficiency.
An automatic Beetle hatch, the only one in the group powered by a twin-charged gasoline engine, finished with a 16.32-kpl efficiency.

Indeed, whether its a turbodiesel or a twin-charged gasoline, a Volkswagen engine is proving to be an excellent performer in the categories of fuel economy, refined power delivery as well as cleaner emissions.

This was again proven in the recent third leg (held on Feb. 18), which was again organized together with its partner, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum.

For the third leg, Volkswagen Philippines headed northward—previous runs went southward to Cintai by Corito’s Garden in Lipa City—and featured the Polo, Touran and Tiguan. With the participants starting their drive from Volkswagen Quezon Avenue, the fuel top-up was held at Shell Balintawak (Shell V-Power Nitro+ Diesel was the event’s official fuel) and went north to Abe’s Farm, a nature-themed resort located at the foot of Mt. Arayat in Magalang, Pampanga. In the afternoon, the participants headed back to Volkswagen Quezon Avenue but not before making a short stopover at Shell of Asia located along North Luzon Expressway for the fuel efficiency measurement.

Just like the previous two legs, three teams competed in each category (this time, its the Polo, Touran and Tiguan). After covering the distance of 145 km, the winners were the Polo assigned to the pair of Wee
Gamboa and Raul Promeda that posted 26.54-kpl efficiency (using just 5.498 liters), the Touran assigned to the pair of Steven Yu and Jerel Fajardo that posted 22.85 kpl (consuming just 6.373 liters), and the Tiguan assigned to the pair of Brent Co and Martin Aguilar that posted 17.86 kpl (consuming just 8.109 liters).

The results were observed and verified by Mark Ponce, communications officer of Clean Air Asia, a nongovernment organization committed to promote better air-quality management.

“Similar to the results posted during the first and second legs of Eco Fun Run, Volkswagen Philippines has proven once more that fuel efficiency is a key development priority of every Volkswagen vehicle. Whether it’s the TDI for diesel or the turbocharged stratified injection  for gasoline, they all represent our company’s continued commitment to building vehicles that exceed both customer and government demands for ever-higher fuel economy and performance,” said John Philip  Orbeta, president and CEO of Volkswagen Philippines.

He added that the plan was basically to wring maximum fuel economy out of the Volkswagen vehicles while reminding the eco run participants to drive in a normal manner—not dogging it or hypermiling.

“The idea is less about coming up with a ‘winner’ and more about highlighting the latest fuel-saving and engineering features of these Volkswagen models so we made sure the air-conditioners were on and even set them to No. 2. Pushing of the vehicle while approaching the toll gate and underspeeding were prohibited,” explained Volkswagen Philippines marketing director Arnel Doria.

Orbeta added that the Volkswagen Eco Fun Run will culminate in the upcoming “Battle of Champions” event wherein winners of the previous legs will pit against one another to find out who among them really drive most efficiently.