Monday, May 22, 2006  Slow is smart  A burning issue: As road
vehicle fuel costs climb, visits to fuel stations are a quick
way to burn money. I've been aware for some time of the
relationship between speed and fuel consumption and now, this is
dramatically confirmed by carefully-conducted tests of various
models of cars. It doesn't matter whether it's petrol or diesel,
gas-guzzling SUV or hybrid, fuel consumption soars as your
driving speed goes up.  Steer us to diesels: That was the title
of a piece I wrote for the Telegraph Magazine many years ago. It
made the still-valid point that, mile for mile and size for
size, diesel cars are up to 30% more efficient than petrol. Even
the so-called 'economical' hybrids still can't touch the best
small diesels. I have just about the most economical car on the
road - Ford's best kept secret - a diesel Fusion. (See what
Green Consumer guide says about its fuel consumption.) Its CO2
emissions are just 116grams per kilometre and I find that it
averages around 65mpg/3.6 li