Thai Team sets fuel save record at Shell Eco-marathon Asia 2010

Pissawan Achanapornkul, country chairperson of Shell Company of Thailand was happy to state that Thailand’s Army Transportation Engineering School (ATE-1) won in the first Shell Eco-marathon in Asia during the July 8-10, 2010 at Sepang F1 circuit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and that Shell was delighted to see the winning record in the Prototype Category of 1,521 kilometre/litre which is the same distance as from Bangkok to KL. The runner up was Hyogo Prefectural Tajima Technical Institute with 1,235.1 kilometres/litre and the third placed team was Tongji University with 940.9 kilometres/litre.

Pissawan Achanapornkul added, “We have seen many great ideas and clever vehicle designs, innovative use of energy types, good fuels and smart driving. Some of the vehicles look like capsules or pencils, with sleek lines for minimal resistance and drag. Moreover, our Thai youth also completed the safety measurements and the track with 9 of the 13 Thai teams making it on the score list, which results in many Thai flags on the scoreboard. Not only did we see the excitement of the competition, we also saw the spirit among the students, attentiveness, intention to join in activities, sharing and exchanging knowledge among different institutions and countries. The stage is open wide for new experiences.”

Kittiwong Kaewbumrung, driver of Thailand’s ATE-1 Team said, “during the competition, our car broke down throughout the initial phase but we did not give up and our team did everything to fix the car. I also applied a new driving strategy and minimized the time to turn on the engine and eventually we stood in the winning position with the best distance”.

The winner of the Urban Concept category, where teams entered more "roadworthy" fuel-efficient vehicles, came from the National University of Singapore using hydrogen fuel, which was top with a distance of 612.4 kilometres/litre.

Apart from the Prototype and Urban Concept Vehicles Award, Shell Eco-marathon Asia also presented off track awards for Safety, Technical Innovation, Communications and Marketing. For the Safety Award and Technical Innovation Award, first place was given to the team from the National University of Singapore. While Autodesk Zeal Eco-Power of Tongji University won the Communications and Marketing Award.

About Shell Eco-marathon Asia

Shell Eco-marathon Award is presented to a vehicle that can travel the furthest distance on the least amount of fuel.

Shell Eco-marathon has been running in Europe since 1985 and the United States since 2007. This year, Asia is honoured to held the competition for the first time

Shell Eco-marathon 2010 is classified into 2 categories namely Prototype and Urban Concept categories. For the Prototype category, the vehicles will be focused on maximizing fuel efficiency through innovative design elements, such as drag reduction.

For the Urban Concept category, the design will be entered more "roadworthy" fuel-efficient vehicles. Aimed at meeting the real-life needs of drivers, these vehicles are closer in appearance to the cars seen on roads today. For both categories, competitors can use any conventionally available energy source – including fuels such as diesel, gasoline and liquid petroleum gas (LPG), as well as alternative fuels such as hydrogen, biomass and solar.