Aftermarket Auto Technology Passes Fuel Economy Testing
Independent lab test results, released recently, show that a new environmental technology, Blade, reduces carbon dioxide emissions from automotive tailpipes by up to 12 percent and improves gas mileage by up to 12 percent.
These results suggest that if every car and light-duty truck in the United States were equipped with Blade, the emissions reduction would be equivalent to removing approximately 15.5 million cars from the road.
Developed by Sabertec, Blade affixes to the tailpipe of any car, SUV, light-duty truck, or hybrid. It works by reducing the duration of a vehicle's cold start operation and by improving the volumetric efficiency of the engine.
Tests were performed at the nation's premier emissions testing lab, Automotive Testing and Development Services, Inc., the same lab used by top vehicle manufacturers for fuel economy and emissions testing, including Honda, Toyota, GM, Ford, Nissan, Mazda, Mitsubishi, and Volvo. ATDS is accepted by EPA and licensed by the California Air Resources Board.
"This is a significant achievement in comparison to other fuel saving devices that promise large fuel savings but have not shown any repeatable positive benefit in controlled testing," said Linwood E. Farmer Jr., vice president, ATDS. "Automotive manufacturers expend considerable effort to make improvements in fleet fuel economy in this range and the ability of Blade to provide this level of improvement in an aftermarket, consumer-installable device is remarkable."
The EPA 511 Protocol is the most rigorous test procedure in existence and the only one that the EPA considers statistically valid. The laboratory tested Blade on a fleet of vehicles – consisting of 4-cylinder, 6-cylinder, and 8-cylinder passenger cars, an 8-cylinder van, and a 4-cylinder hybrid vehicle – a combination of foreign and domestic. The results demonstrate verifiable and repeatable carbon dioxide reduction and increased fuel economy.
Based on Sabertec's diesel emissions reduction technology, Impact Diesel Particulate Filter (IDPF), in use for years in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Blade was designed to filter harmful particulate material that is linked to a host of health effects and even death. However, early testing indicated dramatic reductions in greenhouse gases, leading to this new, extensive round of testing