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May 3, 2010
www.usedcarnews.com
Fuel Options Abound at Fleet Show By Ted Craig
DETROIT – This year’s NAFA Fleet Lease Management conference had a green aura to it. The expo hall was filled with vendors promoting vehicles running on every flavor of fuel, from electric to propane. Many fleets face alternate fuel mandates. That means they’ll send a variety of powertrains to the wholesale market in the near future. The demand for these vehicles could increase by then, as oil prices are headed toward $100 a barrel again. “We’re bullish on alternative fuels,” said Paul Jontig, national fleet sales manager for Toyota Motor Sales USA. The problem is there’s no clear winner for the fuel of the future. “What we need is for technologies to become mainstream,” said Donald Hillebrand, director of the Center for Transportation Research at Argonne
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National Laboratory. Hybrids get the most attention for improving fuel economy. Hillebrand said hybrids now make up 3 percent of total vehicle sales, although other measures put them closer to 1 percent. There are questions about how much more these markets can grow, however. The Toyota Prius celebrates its 10-year anniversary in the U.S. market this year. The Honda Insight came to market about the same time with much less success. Other fuels face constraints from a lack of infrastructure. The Energy Department sees few short-term prospects for hydrogen fuel cells, for example, because of a lack of fueling stations. Jontig said Toyota still plans on investing heavily in this area. Practical concerns hold back other alternatives. Ethanol harms the engines of many vehicles. It also “works pathetically in the cold,” Hillebrand said. Brazil uses higher levels of ethanol than the U.S. in part because of the warmer weather and also because the country uses sugar-based ethanol. Hillebrand said corn-based ethanol, used in the United States, requires a lot of land dedicated to fuel production. Natural gas is another common fuel in Brazil, but that country has more bi-fuel vehicles that have both natural gas and gasoline tanks. This allows for greater range.
Photo by Jeffrey Bellant SMALLER IS SMARTER: Smart Cars mix in with the other options for fleet administrators at their recent conference. Lightening vehicles is one way to increase fuel efficiency.
Products Fall Short of Promises By Jeffrey Bellant
DETROIT – Long-held beliefs about car maintenance products were put to the test and the results are worthy of the television show “Mythbusters.” A Canadian police officer released test results on several products from a fuel additive to air filters and found that many just don’t live up to the hype when it comes to fuel economy. Windsor Police Service’s Sgt. Bill Hunt Jr., who manages the department’s automotive fleet and logistics, presented his team’s findings here at the NAFA Fleet Management annual conference. Hunt said he was surprised by many of the results which came out of the two-year study, which included 60,000- miles of test drives and 1,200 hours of testing, research, analyzing and calculating data. The products tested, included Mobile One Synthetic Oil, zMAX Micro-lubricant fuel additive, K&N Air Filtersand Fitch Fuel Catalyst. The study also looked at replacing proper air filters, spark plugs and tire pressure. Continued on page 7
IN THIS ISSUE • Auction prices moderate, but remain high. – Page 3
• National Alliance of Buy-Here, PayHere Dealers plan confab. – Page 8
• Payment device service continues despite changes. – Page 5
• Dealer foregoes franchise to sell used cars exclusively. – Page 10
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