FORD is using cutting edge technology to provide drivers with advice of how to save fuel.
The new service, called Econo Check, works via a small electronic data-logger which records driving behaviour.
According to the latest research, British drivers are concerned over fuel prices but confused over how to ease the pressure on their finances.
Some 93 per cent of drivers interviewed for Ford by YouGov expressed concern over rising fuel prices, particularly with a VAT increase and fuel duty rise planned for next January.
This concern is most acute among drivers in Wales, where the figure rises to 97 per cent, and among 45-54 year olds.
AA president Edmund King said: “We estimate that motorists will, by January, be paying 4.63p a litre more for petrol and 4.68p a litre more for diesel than they are now.”
Yet there is confusion over how to make motoring money go further: 16 per cent have ‘down-sized’ to smaller cars to save fuel, while 21 per cent have switched to diesel cars.
At the same time, 15 per cent have postponed servicing their current car and five per cent have removed roof or bike racks. Some even admitted to excluding passengers to reduce weight.
But only half have considered modifying their own driving style to improve their car’s fuel consumption.
Ford’s own tests have shown that economical driving and good maintenance can reduce fuel bills by up to 25 per cent, or £470 a year.
Now customers with most Ford vehicles registered after 1998 can sign up for a 35-point Econo Check inspection and have their driving monitored for one week, after which their data is downloaded and fuel saving recommendations made.
The Econo Check costs £29.99 with £15 refundable against the next scheduled service.
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