Fiat has teamed up with the AA motoring organisation to show how the company’s new eco:Drive system really can help motorists save fuel and lessen their impact on the environment.

Edmund King, president of the AA, entered a Fiat 500 1.3 16v MultiJet into last week’s 2008 MPG Marathon, a road rally from Bristol to Macclesfield and back. The aim of the competition is to drive economically, and the winners are the teams who record the highest overall Miles per gallon, and the greatest increase in Miles per gallon compared with the manufacturers’ official figures.

Edmund had some practice beforehand, completing the AA’s Eco-Driver Training course, but he had another advantage over fellow competitors – his Fiat 500 1.3 MultiJet was fitted with Fiat’s new eco:Drive technology.

Launched by Fiat last week at the 2008 Paris Motor Show, eco:Drive is a free-of-charge tool that helps drivers understand the impact of their driving style on their fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. Using a USB stick plugged into the car’s dashboard, eco:Drive records detailed information about the vehicle and how it is driven, which can then be uploaded on to a computer.

eco:Drive then gives drivers a detailed analysis of their performance, along with suggestions on how to improve efficiency further. It shows users exactly how much they can reduce CO2 and the money they can save by improving their driving style. Fiat drivers can download eco:Drive free of charge at http://www.fiat.co.uk/ecodrive

For Edmund, this meant that he was able to upload information about how he drove on Day 1 of the Marathon (Wednesday) to discover tips on ways to improve his driving for the return leg on Thursday.  The eco:Drive system was so successful that he achieved a staggering 13 per cent improvement on the second day, compared with Day 1’s result.  For a typical Fiat 500 driver, this would mean savings of up to £130 per annum in fuel.

Overall, Edmund, with co-driver, BBC transport correspondent Tom Symonds, achieved 73.3mpg over 403.4 miles, which meant a nine per cent improvement over the Fiat’s 67.3mpg official figure.

“We were very pleased with the result as we were driving a standard car in a normal, if economical, fashion. We also had to stop several times to film the car or conduct interviews with the media,” says Edmund. “At the end of the first day we were able to get a few tips from eco:Drive on how to improve for Day 2, such as use of brakes, accelerator and clutch.

“In our view, eco:Drive is an aid to economical driving because motorists can set themselves challenges and try to achieve them. Drivers need to have a target to save fuel and eco:Drive gives them this. That’s where it will work well.”

“eco:Drive is a fascinating piece of technology which we really believe will change people’s driving habits for the better,” says Andrew Humberstone, managing director, Fiat Group Automobiles UK. “I am delighted that Edmund King had a successful MPG Marathon and that eco:Drive was able to help him on the event.”

To learn more about Fiat eco:Drive please visit: http://www.fiat.co.uk/ecodrive/
To learn more about economical driving please visit: www.theaa.com/motoring-advice