In a challenge to test the new Toyota Avensis diesel’s fuel economy, two journalists drove a 2.0-litre D-4D Tourer version of the car across the length of the Britain using just one tank of fuel.
That is a journey of 905 miles from Lands End to John o’Groats, which, given the 60-litre tank, means the car averaged 71.5mpg.
The car was driven by journalists Joe Clifford and Andrew Biddle for Banzai magazine, whose eco-conscious driving style, along with the engine’s high fuel efficiency and six-speed manual gearbox, contributed greatly to the achieved numbers.
Under the real world driving condition you might not arrive at the same figures. But even if you can get like 800 miles from each tank of fuel, that is still plenty.
At the beginning of their three-day journey, the duo brimmed the Avensis’s 60-litre tank and programmed their route on the car’s Touch & Go navigation system. The on-board computer calculated a driving range of just 580 miles, but that limit was comprehensively smashed: the car covered more than 170 miles on the last bar of the fuel gauge alone, in spite of having to tackle mountain climbs, pouring rain and high winds