boon's log 1110.03: Ron95 versus Ron97 Challenge

I've been having this hunch for quite sometime and have finally taken the extra step to execute the evaluation to prove to myself (at least) that my hunch was correct...

Most of us (including myself) have been under the impression that the cheaper alternative petrol option - Ron95 - will save us more money as compared to the more expensive, RM2.05, option (Ron97).

I've always wanted to find out, whether it is a psychological effect that makes us think or believe that by paying less per liter means having to pay less overall.

So, off I went experimenting. I used a 11-year-old Japanese model car with fairly new tyres inflated to the suggested amount of air. I've also tried to control the number of passengers to an average of 3 during the entire experiment. All-city driving within Penang Island, no highways; routes used during the experimental time period were standard routes used between work-and-home-and-places-with-food.

Here are the results:


Ron95 versus Ron97

From a mileage standpoint, I am definitely getting more kilometers per liter, running on RON97 - pushing 1.3km/liter more on the RON97.

But in order to prove that my hunch was correct, the RON97 needs to outperform Ron95 from a km/RM standpoint.

And I have to say, though the results show that, mathematically, the RON97 fared better than the 95 variant, but there is no significant differences between the 2 - only by a mere 84meters/RM - a world of a difference, for an ant, maybe (!!!).

Of course this just a rough comparison for inner-city driving - it does not take into account the noise injected into the results due to road level and weather conditions - i.e. it is not a fully controlled experiment - even though we try to minimize the noise as much as possible.

But it does go to show that running on RON97 does get you further per every full tank, but because of the price differences between the 2, will you get more kilometers out of your wallet by using Ron97?

The answer will most probably be a "No!"...

boon out...

boon's log 2009.01: Randoms - Free Gas, Ab's dim sum again, and "amazing" Perak

IL and I were out lunching with our colleagues last week (think it was Tuesday), but the moment we climbed into the car, the "gas indicator light" toggled indicating that we needed gas. But EY suggested that we gas up after we makan. So we met up with the rest of the folks at McD SunShine Square for their lunch promotion.

So, after filing up our stomachs, it was time to fill up the car's "tummy". The nearest option was the Shell down the road. Abandoning the remaining 5 in the car, I went over to the pump. I was about to stick the Bonuslink card into pump register, when I noticed, to my surprise, the LCD screen showing "Lift nozzle and start filling" - I was expecting something like "Insert Bonuslink card or Credit Card". Stunned me for a little bit as I looked around for Candid Camera or You've been Punk'd crews around! I turned to EY who was also shocked. I lifted the pump and shoved it in and started filling (as indicated by the LCD screen). And it was working! At that point of time, being the Asian as I am, I scolded myself for not lifting the V-Power but the normal unleaded instead. But just before that thought left my head, the pump stopped and the digital screen showed 30.00 - it was then I was thankful that I did not lifted that V-Power pump in the first place - ;).

Went back into the car and EY went, "Act normal and let's get out of here!" Haha! The person at the register must have mistakenly keyed in RM30 to that pump and forgotten cancel the transaction. Well, it is not everyday that you can get free gas, right?

So, look at the LCD screen FIRST, the next time you are at the gas station before you stick in your credit card.

Oh, and we (kinda) bumped into Mithz while driving back to work - he was enjoying his sweet juicy papaya at fruit stall by the FTZ guard post.

***

My parents returned from their S. Africa trip on Thursday and were staying over the weekend in Penang. And as usual, it's dim sum for breakie when the grandparents meet grandchild. So, it's Northam Suites for dimsum last weekend. They serve up a pretty nice spread and delicious dim sum. Plus, with a Citibank (or HSBC) credit card, you get a 50% discount off. It was a nice time catching up with my parents on the happenings in Ipoh and also about their trip. Sounded like they really had a good time.


Dim Sum at Northam Suites, Penang


Ab enjoying her egg tart at Northam Suites, Penang

***

By now most of you must have heard about the High Court's ruling that Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin is the legitimate chief minister (menteri besar) or Perak. It is truly refreshing news indeed, especially after what happened in the State Assembly last Thursday - an incident that was reported in many international media/press - imagine, a Malaysian state's assembly making its way into the international media. It is truly "amazing" and somewhat embarassing at the same time.

But the question that still rings in my mind is that we needed to go all the way to the High Court to fully comprehend the Monarch's powers? We need to have a high court judge to clarify what the ruler's real powers are? Did someone also mention that he was Lord President before (1982-1984, according to Wikipedia)? Well, we may never get the answers to these questions, if you know what i mean.

Well, an interesting turn of events indeed. Oh, and SO coincidentally, the Ruler is not in the country, and Mr Nizar will only meet up with the Prince tomorrow. So, looks like there ARE still some signs of democracy in this country and that the judiciary can still be depended on. Let's hope that what happened in the last 3 months will be learnings for our leaders and not to be soon repeated (if not at all). I guess the policital saga in Perak is far from over, but with this ruling, it truly does turn the tables for the National Front.

boon out...

boon's log 1709.02: mpg

I found an old graph stored somewhere in one small archived corner. I used to track the mpg / kmpl for my Nissan, which I purchased back in 1999. Gosh, how time flies, by Q3 this year, the car's gonna turn 10. We've been through a lot and been to a lot of places - even all the way down to Singapore once, with my old college mates for a reunion.

I still remember EC and I took off from Penang and then headed down to KL to pick YW up and then proceeded down to Spore to meet up with IN and DW. Spent the weekend there catching up and shopping. Those were great times.

Anyway, the point of this post was the mpg graph. 2003 - that was the year when gas price was at a low of MYR1.35 / liter. I used to be able to get a full tank of gas with just a little over MYR50. Not anymore.

So in the interest of finding out how the mpg degraded across time, I restarted tracking the mpg again and surprised at what I observed - not surprised that it has indeed degraded, but surprised at the amount - a 4.27mpg degradation (or a 1.82kmpl degradation).

That means for every liter, I get almost 2km's less distance that what I used to get 6 years ago. That's 80km less on every full tank. That's a lot. I used to be able to get like 400km on a full tank, but the latest data point only fetched 313.8km.


mpg

I was discussing with IL that we really need to send the car back to the service center for a "full body checkup" and perhaps even an overhaul. Noises are coming out of places that are not supposed to. We've been sending it to a general mechanic for a while because of convenience - he (the mechanic) comes and collects the car from us for service and then brings it back when he's done. Really convenient. But I guess, it is about time that we send it back to Nissan for a proper and thorough service and check-up.

Hopefully it can hold up until Q3 of 2009 for the service and not die on us before then.... ;)

boon out...