Educated Eco Driving: EcoDrive Class in Sweden

By Christine Arnefors.

Last week at malls around the world, shop vendors stood outside their shops on the lookout for potential customers. But there were none. Most people today are finding ways to save their money instead of using it. Dispensable expenses, such as that new bag or mobile phone you wanted, are postponed or abstained from. But there are other, more subtle, yet efficient ways of stopping those bills to fly out of your wallet. One example is how changing your driving style can affect your car’s fuel consumption.

EcoDriving is a way of driving that saves money, lives and the environment. Sounds almost too good to be true, so how does it work?

Omed Hamlan is an certificated EcoDriving teacher at the Traffic School of Heden in Gothenburg, Sweden, (and also the man who successfully coached me to a driver’s license this fall) and spoke to GoTryke.com about his experiences and knowledge about the EcoDriving program.

GT: Omed, you teach EcoDriving at your school, could you tell us more about it?

OH: I teach students how to drive in a more economic way, saving both money and time. On average, my students use 13% less fuel after taking the course, and another positive effect is that they drive more safely, and save time, since they learn how to plan and be more conscious about their driving. My average pupil saves around 3-5 minutes when driving for 25 minutes. In my opinion, there are only advantages to EcoDriving: our nature, health and economy are benefiting from it.

GT: What can you do to decrease your fuel consumption?

OH: To decrease their fuel consumption, I teach students not to have unnecessary luggage in the car, or drive with empty roof boxes or roof racks. Everything that creates extra air resistance costs more money. It is also important to be aware of the tire pressure, and of the tires’ condition. Another word of advice is not to wait too long to overhaul the car for scheduled maintenance, because the car will not last as many years and use fuel less efficiently. The block heater is another great invention for saving money and the environment; you can use it until the temperature reaches 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius.) Your car will last longer and a hot engine consumes less fuel than a cold one. Also, back into a parking lot when you know you will leave the car for a couple of hours. When you back in with a cold engine your car uses an extreme amount of fuel, and all the harmful substances go straight into the air since although you might have a catalytic converter, it doesn’t work on a cold engine.

GT: Which cars do you recommend?

OH: It is difficult to say which cars are the best, but most manufacturers are producing more environmentally friendly cars. However, today we have electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles and flex-fuel cars, which use both ethanol and gasoline. Those cars are clearly discharging less greenhouse gas emissions. My car is a flex-fuel car that holds 50 liters. If I use only gas, I can drive 700-800 kilometers ,while if I use ethanol I can drive 500-550 kilometers. Driving on gas is a bit cheaper and the use of ethanol is also a political question partly because of the food versus fuel debate. So it is a difficult question, and a political choice.

GT: Those are useful things to have in mind. So what are the most common mistakes people do when driving?

OH: They drive in a low gear in high speeds. They accelerate too much, although the car can handle a lower gear than they think. The lowest gear is the most expensive and least environmentally friendly gear. Don’t use it for more than 1-2 car lengths. It is also common for people to start their car 5 minutes before leaving in the morning. They think it is better for the car but on the contrary it only wears it out. Just start the car and drive.

In general, following this advice will result in lowered fuel consumption and a car that holds for more miles on the road. That’s a lot of money you can save there.

Thank you Omed for sharing your advices with us. If you want to find out more about EcoDriving, there are useful websites with more tips and information: EcoDriving USA.com
ECODRIVE.org
Driving Change.

Tagged as: Catalytic converter, Electric vehicle, Flexible-fuel vehicle, Fuel efficiency, Gothenburg, Greenhouse gas