Fuel saver, if it sounds too good to be true, it is….
E. Ablorh-Odjidja, Ghanadot

There is a new gadget in town purported to increase gas mileage. It is being touted with a high sounding scientific name, “BIOPRO QX-3.” But the wonder is how all of a sudden this technologically advanced and important gadget shows up in a Ghanaian market, at a press conference, when it is not so visible in the US?

It is advertised as the new fuel saver software chip, also known as “ECO fuel saver chip.” It promises to reduce vehicle emissions and add more mileage to a gallon of fuel consumed by engines powered by petrol or diesel fuel.

It gets somehow murky when news report touts “BIOPRO QX-3” as a device that could influence “fuel molecules in the fuel tank” by deceiving them to accept or hold more oxygen and thereby allow a vehicle to go farther on a tank of gas.

And the savings in fuel cost it promises is stupendous – 30% on a tank of fuel while reducing “emissions by up to 80 per cent.” As a bonus, engine performance of that fortunate vehicle would be enhanced too!

Forgive me if at this point I grow skeptical. The potential for this device sounds too good to be true. “BIOPRO QX-3” may be another name for a snake oil!

Do we need energy saving devices in Ghana? Yes we do. Is it necessary to have a clean air and help cool the environment in an age when Global warming is the scare? By, all means we should do all in our powers to help the earth protect herself against this threat, but a computer chip that stretches gas mileage for mostly over aged cars in a Third World country?

Every snake oil ever sold had its marketing assumptions rooted in some facts and “BIOPRO QX-3” has several: The energy crisis for one. Environmental concerns are another. And then there is the fact that the Third World is full of aging cars that by the very state of their longevity are no longer fuel efficient. Add an environment full of gullible and desperate buyers and you have a perfect market for the snake oil salesman.

What makes a snake oil a true one is that its promise for cure usually has nothing to do with its real performance. In case you are doubtful, here is what the US Federal Trade Commission has to say about gas saving devices:

“Gas prices are up, and so is the volume of advertising for "gas-saving" products. When gasoline prices rise, consumers often look for ways to improve fuel efficiency. Although there are practical steps you can take to increase gas mileage, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns you to be wary of any gas-saving claims for automotive devices or oil and gas additives. Even for the few gas-saving products that have been found to work, the savings have been small.”

This warning is coming from a bureau set up by the most technologically advanced nation in the world to protect her citizens.

The technologically advanced nations, with the best of computer programmers, are pushing fuel cell technology and or ethanol manufacturing as their answer to a more energy efficient automobile. In other words, they are aiming to produce a newer form of juice that goes into the plant that produces the power to propel the vehicle. They are at the same time working on engines that can be more ethanol or fuel cell friendly.

The one type of auto that seems to have caught the imagination of the car world is one called the “FlexFuel” vehicle. This type of vehicle has been in production for about a decade now and is capable of using two types of fuel; E85 ethanol or regular gasoline

The E85 ethanol is a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% regular gasoline or petrol. Ethanol is produced from plants that contain sugar. The production is agricultural based, which means it is within our technological grasp.

Brazil, at the top of the Third World nations, is a leader in ethanol manufacturing. Almost 70% of cars produced in Brazil today can run on some form of ethanol, meaning their vehicles are “flex.” cars.

Brazil makes her ethanol from sugarcane, which she has plenty of. Her energy source, therefore, is renewable. Ethanol manufacturing in Brazil has grown to such a proportion that spill-over or waste from the manufacturing process is used in other areas. The waste left from mashing the sugar cane is burned to generate power for some factories and excess power from ethanol plants are now being targeted to light up homes in some rural areas in Brazil.

Obviously, Brazil doesn’t need “BIOPRO QX-3” or a computer chip in her automobiles to convince “fuel molecules in the fuel tank” to hold more oxygen.
In America, where there are also some old automobiles, no one is rushing to his mechanic to install a $100.00 chip that will make his old car more fuel efficient. In fact most car manufacturers are very wary of these after market products and will caution owners against them.

I am not one to kick against innovative ideas, but the question to ask is whether any scientific body in Ghana has tested this chip yet? A savings of 30% in fuel cost alone seems to be enough reason for a government agency to test this chip. If found bogus a charge of false representation should be appropriate.


E. Ablorh-Odjidja, Washington, D.C, August 3, 2007