New Ford Fiesta Will Travel The Length Of Britain In Student ECO Challenge

BRENTWOOD, UNITED KINGDOM – June 19, 2013: Teams from universities across England, Scotland and Wales are competing in the 1,701-mile “Formula Student Diesel Eco Driving Challenge” in the UK’s most popular car, the Ford Fiesta. Engineering students will drive the length of Britain in a bid to be crowned the nation’s most economical drivers.

The inaugural competition is jointly run by Formula Student and Bosch, and will involve 46 UK universities during the three day competition.

Skills Minister, Matthew Hancock, started the event yesterday at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ in Westminster, London. The route zigzags across England, Wales, and Scotland towards the final destination of Aberdeen University on 21 June.

The students are driving a Ford Fiesta, powered by a 1.5-litre TDCi diesel engine built at Dagenham, which uses Bosch common rail diesel injectors and a high-pressure fuel pump. Monitoring equipment will analyse the efficiency of each team’s driving, with three awards for city, rural and motorway driving.

Distances between universities range from three miles to over 100 miles, but each team will be monitored equally. Lewis Morgan, the Southampton University representative, will be embarking on the longest stretch from the Southampton campus to Exeter University.

Lewis is also a Ford Blue Oval Scholar, one of a hundred UK students benefitting from a Ford scholarship for the duration of his studies. He said:

“I had the pleasure of meeting some of the engineering team behind Ford’s diesel engine range at its Dunton R&D Centre in May – so I am really looking forward to competing in the Ford Fiesta.”

Students taking part are all involved with Formula Student 2013, taking place at Silverstone from 4-7 July.