Behind the wheel of a Renault Traffic SL27 Energy Dci 120 Sport and alongside regular co-driver Ray Penford, the van specialist recorded a hugely impressive overall mpg of 57.65.
This was a 20.35% improvement over the manufacturer’s stated fuel consumption figures of 47.90mpg on the combined cycle, and gave the pair a comfortable overall win, to go with the first place they achieved in the light commercial vehicle category in last year’s event.
In second place was another van specialist, Neil McIntee, who was driving a Citroen Berlingo Blue HDi 100 S/S in conjunction with co-driver Peter Thompson. The duo achieved an overall mpg of 68.64, some 1.98% better than the manufacturer’s stated figures of 67.30mpg to claim the runners-up spot.
In third place was RAC ‘Patrol of the Year’ Ben Wilson, who was valiantly taking part in the Mercedes Vito van that he uses every day in the course of his patrol duties, including a full load of 500 parts and tools.
Alongside co-driver, Zainab Rahman, PR executive at the RAC, Wilson drove his Vito 116 Long Diesel 116CDi Bluetec model, which bears the personalised registration plate, P1 RAC, to an overall mpg of 47.57mpg.
This was almost identical to the manufacturer’s stated figures of 47.10mpg on the combined cycle, and was just 1.01% better than the official figures.
Event organiser and Fleet World publishing director, Jerry Ramsdale, said: “Congratulations to all the contestants in the light commercial vehicle category in this year’s MPG Marathon. Their performances show that it isn’t just the latest cars which have made great strides in overall economy and fuel efficiency.
“The latest light commercial vehicles are now more fuel-efficient and more environmentally friendly than ever before, and their achievements this year are a great tribute to the advances made by the participating motor manufacturers,” he said.
The overall winner of this year’s MPG Marathon, the 15th to date, was former professional motorsport manager and rally driver Mick Linford, now an automotive events specialist, who clocked up an astonishing 104.50 mpg overall in a Peugeot 208 Active Blue HDi.
Driver alongside part-time rally co-driver Jemma Champion, Linford, who had previously won the event three times before, from 2009 to 2011, said he was “over the moon” with the performance which was the highest mpg he had recorded so far.
Special mention must also be made this year of the event’s two youngest-ever entrants, Eloise Peabody-Rolf and Rory Carmichael, both just 17. Driving a Honda Civic 1.6 i-DTEC SE, they recorded a highly creditable overall mpg of 93.81 at their first attempt – and only weeks after passing their driving tests.
For sponsors Barclaycard, Account Development Director, John Bostock, said: “We’re passionate about helping consumers and fleet managers understand how they can save money on their fuel bills, so sponsoring this year’s MPG Marathon celebrating eco-friendly driving was the perfect partnership for us.
“We know that the potential environmental and financial impact of efficient driving is huge, with recent Barclaycard research showing that motorists in the UK waste around £700 million a year simply through eco-unfriendly driving habits. Nobody wants to be spending more than they need to on fuel, so we can certainly all learn from the impressive efforts of this year’s competitors when it comes to finding ways to drive as economically as possible.”
Paul Jackson, managing director of The Miles Consultancy, who took part this year in an Audi TT Sport Ultra, added: “It’s genuinely amazing the difference that eco-driving techniques can make. There is huge potential for fleets to save costs on fuel by putting in place the right tools and incentives for driving up fuel economy."
This year’s MPG Marathon comprised a combined total of approximately 380 miles across the Oxfordshire/Wiltshire/Hampshire countryside. Contestants were free to plan their own routes, provided they included a number of pre-agreed, fixed points, which made keen navigational skills essential.
All participating vehicles were again fitted with TRACKER tracking equipment so that event organisers knew exactly where each car was and how far it had travelled.
Behind the scenes, RAC Business kept the MPG Marathon on the move, overseeing fuelling at the start of the event and refuelling at the end, utilising specialised equipment to ensure that the fuel tanks were filled to exactly the same level as before.
For more details of the MPG Marathonplease visit the event website at http://www.thempgmarathon.co.uk/
