I was in a very good position to test this product as I regularly travelled to Bundaberg from Townsville which is in excess of 1000Km each way. The packaging claimed less friction, better fuel economy and will last up to 80,000 Km. My vehicle at the time was a VT Commodore wgn with about 100,000 on the clock. My driving style is very consistent on long trips. I use cruise control set at the speed limits of the area at the time and always filled the tank to the brim at the start of my journey at the same servo. How far I could get was the challenge. On every trip, the Shell servo just past the 110 zone, 80 Km short of Rockhampton was as far as I could travel. My trip computer on each occasion indicated that I could only travel approx 30 to 60 Km furthewr before an empty tank. Each trip was a little different depending on roadworks & weather conditions but was always between the two figures. In my opinion that is fairly consistent and only represents less than 4% variation.
After doing this trip for a year and a half, I decided to look around for a friction reducing product. I came across this Nulon product and chose it over any other because of the claim to last up to 80,000 km before having to use it again. So I serviced the engine with a filter and oil change a few weeks before my next trip and added a bottle of E30 to my engine oil. On my very first trip, my trip computer read 105Km to empty when I arrived at my usual petrol station. I obviously did not stop to refill and continued on to the other side of Rockhampton before refilling. I would have gone further but the next servo at Marmor was another 40Km away. I did not want to press my luck as the trip meter said there was only another 20Km left in the tank. On successive trips I managed to make it that extra 40Km to Marmor but not on every occassion. The best result on the trip meter at my old usual servo stop was 125Km. Needless to say, I did not need to stop at the Shell servo ever again, for petrol anyway.
Statistically speaking, I increased the range of my car by 65 Km. On a 70L tank, I got almost an extra 1Km travel from each litre of fuel compared to not using the product. That's approx an 8% increase in economy. I had travelled just over 50,000Km on this product and was still getting the same results. I think I can say without question that this product is worth the investment. I have only tested this product for mileage improvements but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to work out how this better fuel economy is achieved and how there are other offspin benefits to be obtained.
So what's the technical side of it all. Friction and its reduction is the secret to getting better mileage. Less friction in an engine relates to less fuel consumed to power the engine. One of the additives used in the formula to accomplish this is PTFE (Polytetrafluoroethylene). Quite a mouthful. I think I'll stick with the abbreviation. PTFE has the lowest coefficient of friction known to science according to Nulon.
The other benefits that E30 gives may not be so obvious. These are:
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Less engine wear due to better protection between parts which increases engine life.
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Cold start protection until oil pressure is reached - this is where most engine wear occurs.
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Can help to quieten engine and promote smoother idle
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less friction less heat, means the cooling system doesn't have to work as hard to keep the engine cool and finally a bit more power.
The product has been renamed and re-packaged. They have also changed the description of its use.
LTAWEP is the same as E30, you can redose every 40,000Km or once a year is the reply from Nulon when I enquired about the change. I have written a new review on this product and is in the Product Reviews tab.
Here is a quick test that you can employ if you add this product to an old engine not controlled by an engine management system. Connect a tachometer to the engine and observe the idle speed. Add the E30 to the engine and wait for about 10 or so minutes. The idle speed will increase slightly after the product has circulated through the engine. You will then need to re-adjust the carburettor as required to bring it back to specifications.
For a modern EFI engine the duty cycle/frequency of the Idle Air Control Valve (IACV) motor can be measured. The idle speed will not increase because the ECM will control it to specification, however you can simply measure the duty cycle/frequency as the product circulates and you will see that the measurement will change slightly as the management system re-adjusts the idle speed.
Both these tests will undoubtedly prove that PTFE is a slippery product. I did this test on my XE falcon 20 years ago using a PTFE product of the time. My idle increased from 750rpm to 790rpm, a 40RPM increase.
This product works & in this day and age of high technology, close tolerances in the engine and heat generated by friction and leaner mixtures you need to protect your engine from pre-mature wear due to the factors I just mentioned. I think a must have product and it is available from Cheaper Autospares Supercheap Auto, AutoBarn and similar businesses.
With regular servicing, a FILTERMAG fitted (see FILTERMAG article) and Nulon E30 added to the engine oil , you will extend the life of your engine considerably. Please read my new review on the re-named item LTAWEP
