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CanadianDriver 50 Litre Challenge

Discussion in 'Other Cars' started by Tideland Prius, Aug 15, 2005.

  1. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
    Staff Member

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    How far can we go?

    The idea was simple. Put 50 litres of fuel in 10 compact cars that cost less than $20,000 new, and drive them on a scenic route through southern Quebec and eastern Ontario until their tanks ran dry. Then, see which one lasted the longest.

    It was CanadianDriver's 50-litre Challenge!

    ...

    Our journalist colleagues from the Ottawa Citizen and Essai-Auto in Quebec helped with driving and logistics, and the event received terrific support from Canadian Tire, which supplied maps, walkie-talkies, portable gas tanks and Canadian Tire gift cards for fuel and incidentals (they even let us store the vehicles overnight). The CAA helped with emergency kits and safety cones and triangles. The car manufacturers generously delivered their vehicles to Ottawa for the event.

    Ten drivers, two helpers, ten vehicles and a support Chevrolet HHR with driver met at the Merivale Canadian Tire store in Ottawa at 7:30 am on July 30, 2005. The pre-planned route was divided into several sections to permit vehicle swaps while underway

    The contenders were the Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla, Ford Focus, Nissan Sentra, Mazda3, Saturn Ion, Chevrolet Cobalt, Volkswagen Golf, Suzuki Aerio and Kia Spectra. Although not all of the vehicles supplied could be purchased for less than the $20,000 cut off we set, all could be bought for less than $20,000 in a different trim level (see price chart).

    Full Article

    Some key points:
    "It was a hot day, and all the drivers used air conditioning."

    "speeds ranging from 80-115 km/h on secondary roads and expressways" (in addition to the usual main road speed)

    "We drove the vehicles normally. We accelerated briskly and passed when required"