This year’s MPG Marathon saw new records being set across all categories, with the overall event won by a 2017 1.5TDCi diesel Ford Fiesta.
The Fiesta managed a record-breaking 122mpg on a route through middle England of more than 350 miles, with each team behind the wheel having to work out the most economic route between waypoints set in five counties.
Ford also won the petrol category with another Fiesta, with the 1.0-litre Ecoboost-powered model achieving 97.1mpg – beating the previous petrol record of 91.7mpg by a large margin.
The MPG Marathon is an event organised by Fleet World magazine and is designed to find just how efficient vehicles can be and how much better they can do than the miles per gallon quoted by their manufacturers. It also gives a good idea of how technology is advancing in making cars greener and friendlier for the environment.
In the ‘Most Improved’ section a 1.3-litre Honda Jazz i-VTEC petrol model achieved an impressive 88.7mpg, which was a 60 per cent improvement over the car’s quoted range of 55.4mpg.
But it wasn’t just conventionally powered vehicles that did well – electric cars were also successful. A Hyundai Ioniq Electric achieved 6.2 miles per kilowatt-hour, which is a 15 per cent increase over the quoted figures and equates to more than 200 miles of range.
Another EV that did well was the Renault Kangoo Z.E. returning a range of close to 200 miles and an improved figure of 4.5 miles per kilowatt-hour of power.
Editor of Fleet World Alex Grant said: “For the first time ever, every single vehicle in the MPG Marathon beat its official figure, which suggests that manufacturers have really got their house in order over fuel economy claims.
“All the winners achieved record-breaking figures, with even small, highly-efficient cars beating brochure figures by wide margins, showing engine technology is moving on rapidly in all its forms, which is great news for consumers.
“The drivers of these cars also prove that technique and skill are also vital in fuel economy. Understanding the technology and how it is best utilised can bring huge savings in fuel costs.”
