1. 1
Press Information
(Under embargo until 00.01, Tuesday 7th
July 2015)
Honda sets new GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ titlefor fuel efficiency,
averaging 100.31 miles per gallon in8,387 mile drive across 24 EUcountries
Honda hasset a newGUINNESSWORLD RECORDS title for‘Lowestfuel consumption –all 24
contiguousEU countries(all cars)’,recordinganaverage 100.31 milespergallonover8,387 miles,in
a 25 daydrive across all 24 EU contiguouscountries.
Behindthe wheel of aHondaCivicTourer 1.6 i-DTEC forthe entire journey weretwomembersof
Honda’sEuropeanResearch& Development(R&D) team, Fergal McGrathand JulianWarren,who
tookon the challenge tofurtherdemonstrate the impressivereal-worldfuel economyof the Tourer.
The remarkable distance travelledissimilartothe teamdrivingto Australiafromtheirhome inthe
UK, stoppingjustnine timestorefuel. The carachievedan incredible average932 milesoneachtank
of fuel,ata total fuel costfor the whole journeyof just£459*.
The team setout ontheirepicroad tripfrom Aalst,Belgium, onMondayJune 1st
,navigatingthe
continentina clockwise direction.Theyreturned totheirstartpointonThursdayJune 25th
,
recordingthe incrediblefueleconomyfigureswhichexceedthe Tourer’squotedefficiencyof
74.3mpg bymore than25%.
Fergal McGrath comments:“Itwas tough,butwe reallyenjoyedit,andsettingthisnew GUINNESS
WORLD RECORDS title hasmade all of the hard workworthwhile. Thiswasa huge teameffortso I’d
like tothankeveryone involvedforall of their commitmentandsupport.Afterspendingsomuch
time behindthe wheel JulianandIare justhappyto be backbehindourdesksfora while!”
The official GUINNESSWORLDRECORDS title is‘LowestFuel Consumption –all 24 contiguousEU
countries’,measuredinlitresper100kmand milespergalloncalculatedoverthe entirejourney.
Press Information

2. 2
Press Information
Under the rulesthe same twodriversmustbe in the car forthe whole journey,givingFergal and
Julian,HondaR&D colleaguesof some 18yearsand basedinthe UK, the challenge of drivingan
average of approximately380 miles,takingaround7.5 hours,eachday.
Basedon strictand rigorousguidelines,the GUINNESSWORLDRECORDS title attemptrequiredthe
car to entereachof the 24 countriesspecified,collectingarange of evidence includinga
fuel/mileage logbook,GPSreadings,videoandphotographsandindependentwitnesssignaturesto
prove that ithas done so. To ensure accurate monitoringof the route,journeytimeanddistance
driven,the recordcar was fittedwithatrackingdevice,providedbyfleettelematicsandstolen
vehicle recoveryexpert,TRACKER(partof the TantalumCorporation).
Under the rulesof the record title attemptthe car mustbe a standardmodel ineveryrespect,with
no modificationstocreate anadvantage,to replicate ‘real world’conditions. Thiswasjudgedby
independentwitnesses atthe beginningandendof the attempt. Fuellingwascarriedoutatregular
fillingstations, withthe tankfilledtothe maximumateachstopto ensure noweightadvantage.
Additionally,tyres were inflatedtothe recommendedpressures andthe wheelalignmentsetto
factoryspecificationtorepresentthe experience of the regularcustomer.
The team, both amateurdrivers, were alsokeentoshow thatthroughadoptingsome simple but
veryeffectivedrivingtechniques,anybodycouldachievesuchremarkable fuel economy. Theysimply
usedsome verylogical methodsincludingcareful andsensibleroute planning,drivingsmoothlyand
consistentlywithoutharshaccelerationorbraking,anticipatingthe roadconditionsahead,carrying
no unnecessaryweight,andensuringthatthe car was correctlymaintainedatall times.Driving
speedwasalwayswithinthe lawandkeepingupwith trafficconditions.
LeonBrannan,Head of Cars forHonda (UK) comments:"Thisisan incredible achievementandthe
teamshouldall be veryproudof the effortsthattheyhave put into setthisnew GUINNESSWORLD
RECORD. Drivingthe equivalentdistance fromtheirhome inthe UKto Australia injust25 daysis a
huge challenge veryfew wouldtake on.The fuel economyfiguresare remarkable –particularly
whenyouconsiderthatthisisnot a small car,but an estate withclass-leadingloadspace andvast
practicality.”
ENDS
*Calculated on average UK diesel priceduringJune 2015,from www.fleetworld.co.uk.