AUTO INDUSTRY

A Porsche Panamera has set a new South African benchmark for how far a diesel-powered vehicle can travel on one tank of fuel, while Volkswagen’s new Passat has done the same for petrol-powered vehicles.

With the backing of Continental Tyre, Porsche South Africa, Volkswagen South Africa, Total and Car Magazine, the objective of two teams of economy aces was to surpass the existing South African one-tank distance of 1 941 km, set in 2011 with a Volkswagen Golf Bluemotion 1.6 TDI diesel model.

The teams comprised Malcolm Kinsey, Con Engelbrecht, Schalk van Heerden, Huibert Phielix, Ken Sink and Rod Kinsey.

Under close scrutiny of Total Economy Run veteran and motorsport Clerk of the Course Cobus Grobelaar, the crews began at the South African border with Zimbabwe at Beitbridge on Friday, July 22, driving a Porsche Panamera 3.0 V6 diesel and a Volkswagen Passat 1.4 TSI petrol model.

The two overfilled vehicles set off along the N1, travelling via Pretoria and Bloemfontein to Cape Town, before heading up the West Coast.

Six drivers were used, with drivers working in two-hour shifts.

In order to ensure the validity of the record attempt, the drivers were required to stick to all the normal rules of the road, albeit travelling at a fuel-saving average speed of around 69 km/h in the Volkswagen Passat, and around 80 km/h in the longer-geared Porsche Panamera.

After two-and-a-half days of driving, excluding the obligatory overnight stops, the Passat ran out of fuel on the N7 approaching Morreesburg. It had traveled 2 029 km, translating into an average fuel consumption of 4.1 ℓ/100 km.

The Panamera soldiered on for another four hours, eventually clocking 2 201 km, at an average of 4.9 ℓ/100 km.