Fuel-sipping at the 2012 Shell Eco-Marathon

MANILA, Philippines - Now on its third consecutive year, the 2012 Shell Eco-Marathon Asia was once again held at the Sepang Circuit in Malaysia last July 5-7. The annual event is a gathering of the brightest young minds in Asia, challenging students to design experimental cars that can run the farthest distance on the least amount of fuel. A total of 119 student-teams registered to participate this year, coming from 18 countries, namely: Brunei, China, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Lebanon, the U.A.E., South Korea, Qatar, and of course the Philippines. A globally celebrated event, the European leg of the Shell Eco-Marathon has been running since 1985.

“It is inspiring to see so many Asian youths come together to take part in the Shell Eco-Marathon,” said Mavis Kuek, General Manager of the Shell Eco-Marathon Asia. “The Shell Eco-Marathon is more than just a student competition; it is about putting ideas into reality, and by giving them this platform, we hope these students will be further encouraged to find creative and smarter mobility solutions to meet the world’s energy challenge,” he added.

A solar-powered prototype takes to the track

By the year 2050, the world’s population is expected to swell to 9 billion, and about three quarters of the people are expected to live in cities. These trends are fuelling unprecedented demand for energy and mobility, and the pressure to find solutions for cleaner transport in the world’s growing urban areas, is exponentially increasing.

Hence, the Shell Eco-Marathon Asia was not only a competition for students to rise up to the smarter mobility challenge, but was also simultaneously a venue for pocket events that all campaigned for smart driving solutions and fuel efficiency.

It was here that Shell introduced its Target One Million campaign to the Asian market – a Shell FuelSave crusade that aims to teach 1 million drivers across the world, tips on how to save fuel. Specifically, Shell has developed a series of online mini-games for people to complete at www.shell.com/targetonemillion. Through these mini-games, people learn how choosing the right fuel and changing some of their driving habits can help them save fuel, and reduce their own carbon footprint.

The author in one of Shell’s prototype cars

Alongside this, there were also media activities such as the Shell FuelSave Driving Challenge that pitted media participants against one another in a competition to register the most economical fuel consumption while driving Shell’s FuelSave car in a special course inside Sepang. Participants were guided by the world-record holders for fuel efficiency, John and Helen Taylor.

Additionally, adventurous media participants were also given the unique opportunity to test-drive one of Shell’s very own, fuel-sipping prototype cars and log-in their best fuel consumption. This was the highlight of my Eco-Marathon experience as I got to suit up, lie on my back, and experience driving an ultra-light experimental vehicle that looked like it came straight out of a sci-fi film. Oh, and it was fast!

As for the main event, the Shell Eco-Marathon had two main categories: Prototype Vehicles and Urban Concepts. The Prototypes are the streamlined, futuristic-looking cars, while the Urban Concept entries are the more ‘roadworthy’ fuel-efficient vehicles.

The Philippine teams that participated this year were De La Salle University, TIP Manila, TIP Quezon City, University of San Carlos Cebu, and the University of the Philippines (Diliman). Two off-track awards were brought home by the Philippine contingent – The Technical Innovation Award, by Team Proto of DLSU; and The Best Team Spirit Award, by Team Mileage of TIP.

Students from Thailand’s Team Luk Jao Mae Khlong of Dhurakij Pubdit University emerged with the highest mileage for this year’s event—a total of 2,903 km/L for their prototype car running on pure ethanol (E100). They remain the undefeated champion, and even broke their own record from last year’s event.

TIP representives at the flagoff

In the Urban Concept category, Team Cikal Cakrasvarna from Indonesia achieved the highest mileage of 196.3km/L for their vehicle running on gasoline.

Finally, against the backdrop of the prototype cars, media eco-driving challenges, fuel scientist demos and the future energy forums, Mark Gainsborough, Executive Vice-President of Global Commercial, Royal Dutch Shell highlighted that “There is no single solution to the energy challenge. However, with commitment from the energy industry, transport companies, customers, governments and policymakers alike, we will have taken the important first steps towards finding a truly sustainable and viable solution.”

Congratulations to the Philippine teams for showcasing Filipino brilliance and making our country proud!