Exeter University students battle to become Britain’s greenest drivers

Each team drove a section of the route – while having their eco-driving ability measured by on-board computers - before passing the vehicle on to the next university. The Exeter University driver, MEng student Harry Clegg, set off from the University at 2am on 19th June, and drove the stage to Bristol.

Patrick Kniveton, President of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers – which runs Formula Student – flagged off the event at the Institution’s Westminster headquarters at 11am on the 18th.

From Westminster, the car headed to the first stop – Queen Mary, University of London in Mile End – before the route headed south along the coast and then west towards Swansea.

It then zigzagged across England and Scotland towards the final destination of Aberdeen University where the challenge finished on June 21.

Teams drove a Ford Fiesta, powered by a 1.5-litre TDCi diesel engine, which uses Bosch common rail diesel injectors and a high-pressure Bosch fuel pump. Monitoring equipment analysed the efficiency of each team’s driving.

Three awards were up for grabs, which covered city, rural and highway driving.  

Steve Childe from Exeter University said: “This is our first year in the Formula Student competition, which is about designing a car. The Bosch Eco-Drive adds the dimension of fuel-efficient driving.”

The students, including three from Wales and five from Scotland, were joined in the vehicle by an AA representative, who helped with the route and economical driving tips.

Students that took part are all involved with Formula Student 2013, taking place at Silverstone from 4-7 July. The event challenges universities from across the world to design, build and race a single seat racing car from scratch in one year – before putting it to the test at one of the world’s greatest racetracks.

Jon Hilton, Chairman of Formula Student, said: “This is a fantastic challenge which will certainly prepare all the students for July’s competition.

“It’s the first time we’ve attempted a driving challenge of this scale and I wish all the teams the best of luck.”

Distances between universities ranged from three miles to over 100 miles, but each team was monitored equally. Prizes will be awarded at the Formula Student competition at Silverstone.

Peter Fouquet, president of Bosch UK, said: “With the help of Bosch technologies, the vehicle being used for the Formula Student Diesel Eco Driving Challenge achieves CO2 emissions of just 98g/km. In the near future, Bosch sees the potential across all vehicle segments for even greater CO2 emissions reductions – of up to 20 percent in some cases.”

During the Formula Student Diesel Eco Driving Challenge, drivers used the Bosch Car Multimedia division’s satellite navigation app, as well as a data logger from Bosch’s subsidiary, ETAS. Shell generously supplied FuelSave diesel for this Challenge.