Daihatsu comprehensively stamped its authority on the 34th Total Economy Run, winning the three classes in which it competed and taking home the trophy for the least amount of petrol consumed by any competitor during the 1 100km event.
The Japanese brand’s Charade, Sirion and Terios 4x4 finished first in the classes in which they contested, the Charade also winning the trophy for the lowest fuel consumption achieved in the petrol category – 4.596 litres per 100km over the three-day rally.
The four-wheel-drive Terios – competing in Class O for petrol fuelled SUVs – won with an average fuel consumption figure of 7.247 litres per 100km, while in Class C, representing vehicles with engine displacements between 1 351cc and 1 500cc, the Sirion 1.5 notched up first place with 5.728 litres per 100km against entries from Mazda, Ford, Alfa Romeo, GWM and Geely.
The Charade’s remarkable economy figure – the model beat Toyota’s hybrid Prius for overall lowest consumption in the petrol category – won the trophy in Class A, where it triumphed over Citroen’s C1 and Toyota’s Yaris T1 for vehicles with engines that displace 1 100cc or less. Over the distance, the Charade used 0.079 litres per 100km less than the C1.
The Total Economy Run – claimed by the organisers to be the only legitimate and unbiased barometer of fuel efficiency relating to passenger vehicles in South Africa – took the form of a regularity rally on public roads, following a route that included town and country driving. Forty-three vehicles participated, each carrying a crew of three – driver, navigator and observer. The event was based at the former Thaba ’Nchu Sun, now the Black Mountain Leisure and Conference Hotel, near Bloemfontein, and included stages to Free State landmarks such as Bethlehem, Clocolan, Fouriesburg, Clarens, Ladybrand, Marquard and Excelsior.
The Run was managed by Total South Africa and sanctioned by Motorsport South Africa, It was designed to reveal the fuel economy capabilities of well-maintained and well-driven modern passenger vehicles in varying weather conditions over a representative selection of South Africa’s tarred roads.
The Daihatsu team was made up of a number of motoring journalists, including Pritesh Ruthun and Reuben van Niekerk (Terios), Stuart Williams and Lauren Smit (Sirion) and Wynter Murdoch and Leon Schnell (Charade).
STORY BY DAIHATSU
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