Hey Cool Car Fans,
Happy New Year!
I wanted to take a few minutes to tell you a story about a product that I recently found out about called Ethos and my experience with it. I wanted to take a few minutes to tell you a story about a product that I recently found out about called Ethos and my experience with it. Of course, the experience of others may vary depending on circumstance, driving conditions, etc. However, the following perspective is offered honestly based on my recent personal experience.
About a month ago, I got a call from a client of mine who told me about a company that was purchasing a fuel and oil additive company that had lost millions marketing their product using Network Marketing.
He asked if I wanted to take a look at it since I knew the owner of the MLM company that was purchasing the other company. The new owner Steve Wallach, of Youngevity, is big into cars and has had a nice collection of vehicles in the past, even racing his corvette at top speeds on a race track. I figured Steve wouldn’t buy just any company with a fuel additive, if the product wasn’t good.
I said I would check it out and I was interested in taking a look at their product line, including an emission reducing fuel additive and an oil additive. I said that I would give an endorsement of the product for their company, if the product worked and if they created a compensation plan that made sense for the average consumer to earn some additional income, without the difficult qualifiers of most of these multi-level marketing companies. Millions of people are looking for a way to earn additional income in this economy and many people would like to way to offset some of their fuel and automobile costs, including their car payments. If someone can do this by promoting a fuel and oil additive that works, why not?
I took a look at the company quickly and couldn’t believe how terrible the pay plan was for earning commissions. I commented, “No wonder they lost millions. Who’s going to spend $200 a month on a fuel additive for their vehicle to get better gas mileage and save money, even if it does work?” They’re going to fix that issue was the initial response that I received.
I’m only going to be talking about the fuel additive in this article and saving the oil additive for a future discussion. I hope you enjoy this article and find some of the information I share here about getting better fuel economy and maintaining your vehicles in general of interest.
FUEL ADDITIVES
Many people are skeptical about fuel additives and that includes me as there are plenty of gimmicks out there. Since 1995, the oil companies have been required by the EPA to put fuel additives into the gasoline to keep the carburetor or fuel injectors clean and reduce emissions. However, everyone knows that even oil companies will do the minimum required to comply with the law and keep their profits up and their costs down. It’s just business.
The fact that oil companies are required to put some form of Deposit Control Additives (DCAs) into gasoline already should give us a clue that fuel additives can have some benefit or the EPA wouldn’t require them to do it for reducing emissions and improving fuel economy. Manufacturer’s are also looking for ways to increase fuel economy, but that’s not always done with fuel consumption itself within the engine, unless you want to drive a car that has the horsepower of your riding lawn mower or cruise around town in a Prius, which is always an option.
Making vehicles lighter is one way better fuel economy has been accomplished by the manufacturers. The metal in some vehicles is so thin these days that if you get in a hail storm your vehicle can look like a valet accidentally parked your car on a local golf course for target practice. You definitely want side airbags should you get smacked because there’s just not much between you and that oncoming vehicle on some of these fuel efficient cars anymore.
So let’s look at fuel additives. I liked what Wikipedia had to say about fuel additives…
“Gasoline additives increase gasoline’s octane rating or act as corrosion inhibitors or lubricants, thus allowing the use of higher compression ratios for greater efficiency and power, however some carry heavy environmental risks. Types of additives include metal deactivators, corrosion inhibitors, oxygenates and antioxidants.
The Clean Air Act was put into place in January 1995 as part of the efforts of the Environmental Protection Agency. This act requires Deposit Control Additives (DCAs) be added to all gasoline. This type of additive is a detergent additive that acts as a cleansing agent in small passages in the carburetor or fuel injectors. This in turn serves to ensure a consistent air and fuel mixture that will contribute to better gas mileage.” – source: Wikipedia
CHRISTMAS VACATION
Before leaving for Tucson, AZ on vacation with my family in our Infiniti FX35, I asked the CEO of the new Ecomates company to send me some of their products to test. We drove about 900 miles each way and I used Premium 91 octane fuel the whole way and added the Ethos. I also did the trip in 12:59 minutes on the way back, so I was not driving for the greatest fuel efficiency. How you drive a vehicle has a great deal to do with how you burn fuel, but I wanted to drive like I normally would.
A friend of mine drove a 5.4l V8 Ford Expedition back from Texas recently and averaged 22 mpg, but he’s a cowboy who’s never in a hurry, and he drove 60 – 65 mph the whole way in the right lane, which was ideal for that vehicle. I would go nuts on a long road trip, if I couldn’t do at least 75 mph. Different vehicles get different fuel economy depending on the speed of the driver.
Here’s something you may find interesting…
“Fuel economy at steady speeds with selected vehicles was studied in 1973, 1984, and 1997. The most recent study indicates greater fuel efficiency at higher speeds than earlier studies; for example, some vehicles achieve better mileage at 65 than at 45 mph (72 km/h), although not their best economy, such as the 1994 Oldsmobile Cutlass, which has its best economy at 55 mph (29.1 mpg), and gets 2 mpg better economy at 65 than at 45 (25 vs 23 mpg)…
There were complaints when the U.S. National 55 mph (89 km/h) speed limit was mandated that it could lower, instead of increase fuel economy. The 1997 Toyota Celica, got 1 mpg better fuel-efficiency at 65 than it did at 55 (43.5 vs 42.5), although almost 5 mpg better at 60 than at 65 (48.4 vs 43.5), and its best economy (52.6 mpg) at only 25 mph (40 km/h). Other vehicles tested had from 1.4 to 20.2% better fuel-efficiency at 55 mph (89 km/h) vs. 65 mph (105 km/h). Their best economy was reached at speeds of 25 to 55 mph (see graph)” - source Wikipedia
We averaged about 18.9 miles per gallon for the trip, with as much as 20 mpg on our way down, while using the Ethos fuel additive. We were getting 17.6 mpg when we were not using the Ethos product and only 16.5 mpg around town, so 17 mpg on average without the fuel additive. I didn’t think it was a huge fuel savings, but keep in mind I was running Premium fuel, driving fast, with a 20 gallon tank and the amount of Ethos I was putting in was designed for a 15 gallon tank and not 20 gallons.
I wrote the results I was getting on my Facebook and Twitter pages for my readers, but I wanted to write the rest of the story with this article. By the way, I’m not being paid a fee by Ecomates to endorse their Ethos product and they did not pay me to write this article. If you decide to join the company and use the product through my link on this page, they may or may not pay me a commission, since it’s a Network Marketing company and I joined as an Independent Distributor for free to buy their products wholesale.
THE PHONE CALL
Before we left for Tucson, I spoke at a Chamber of Commerce meeting in Castle Rock, Colorado and passed out some samples of the Ethos product to some of the members. Earlier today, I had a phone call from a client of mine who was at that meeting and he said, “John, how do I get some more of that Ethos product? I tried it out in my truck and I got 300 miles on 3/4 of a tank of gas and normally I only get 300 on a full tank.” I said, “Really? I didn’t think it worked that great, but I did get about 2 more miles per gallon.” And then I told him my story of driving to Tucson, which I’m sharing with you here.
He said, “It worked great in my truck! My truck is older and I want to try it in my other vehicle now too. I also put the cheapest gas in that I can find and it was a noticeable improvement.” I said, “Go to my site, look for the Ecomates link on the right and sign-up for free as a Distrbutor. You can get it at the wholesale price and you can order it right online and have it shipped direct whenever you want it.” He said he was doing it tomorrow and was glad that I had introduced him to the product. I thought that was pretty darn cool since I wasn’t nearly as excited about it as he was and I had shared with a few people that I didn’t know if it was worth the money, but I didn’t sit down and bang out the numbers since coming back from Tucson.
I have to be honest that I wasn’t overly impressed with the results, but it saved us some money by giving us better fuel economy, even when running Premium octane fuel. As The Cool Car Guy, I know that you never know what you really save or lose on an automobile, until you get out your calculator and do some math because appearances can be deceiving. I have to do this everyday for people and it’s how I earn my living. Do you buy new or used? Should you take the financing or the rebate incentives? Should you lease or buy?
CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS
I had to put a pencil to it and this is what I discovered. In a 20 gallon tank, which is what we were driving to Tucson (the Ethos as individually packaged “shots” is designed for 15 gallon fuel tanks), we got an additional 2 miles per gallon on average from this product. That’s an additional 40 miles (20 gallons x 2 mpg) compared to not using the product. That doesn’t seem like much, but at $2.79 a gallon for Premium fuel, we would need to put in an additional 2.35 gallons (40 miles / 17 mpg) of fuel at 17 miles per gallon or $6.56 to go an additional 40 miles at $2.79 a gallon. When you put it that way and realize you’re paying $6.56 to go just 40 miles it becomes a bit more significant doesn’t it? The cost of the Ethos is about $4 per shot, including shipping, so it’s really like getting another gallon of gas for free per fill-up, by using this product based on my 2,000 mile road test and seven tanks of fuel.
We also used Premium fuel and according to the people at Ecomates, you don’t have to use Premium fuel, if you use the Ethos product. If this is true, I want to confirm this for sure, that’s a $.20 to $.30 savings per gallon depending on where you fill-up or $4 to $6 per tank of fuel for a 20 gallon tank. This means the product pays for itself before any fuel savings, without compromising the engines that recommend Premium fuel by burning at a higher octane rating.
Now I need to address something here because some people may read this and say, “John, you don’t have to run Premium fuel because of knock sensors in modern cars that help the fuel burn, if there is detonation taking place. Don’t you follow the guy’s at Car Talk or other experts like the California Energy Commission on this issue?” Well, there are plenty of disagreement on this issue from “experts” and even the manufacturer’s and oil companies disagree depending on who you believe. If you read the articles I linked above, they’ll tell you about the little “knock sensor” that newer vehicles have.
These sensors allow you to run lower octane fuel instead of the overpriced Premium fuels, but they are a preventative measure put in the vehicles should you have to run a lower octane rated fuel and they are not designed to replace Premium fuel, as many experts would have you believe. They can wear out just like other sensors, especially if they are overburdened or get gummed up like oxygen sensors in the exhaust manifold from excess residue. Having to replace knock sensors, oxygen sensors and exhaust systems can be expensive repairs.
You’ll notice that in most 100,000 mile power-train warranties from the manufacturers, things like the alternator, sensors, other engine electrical, fuel injectors and fuel system, EGR valve, PCV are not covered because they are more likely to fail within that 100,000 mile time frame than other major components. It’s $75 to $120 just to pull codes today when your check engine light comes on, so your fuel savings starts to dwindle quickly. One of the best posts I’ve read on this issue, by a guy who obviously did his homework, can be found in an Acura forum, if you’re interested in reading his thoughts on using Premium fuel on high-compression engines check it out.
What I can tell you is that I spend about $50,000 a year fixing vehicles. That’s more than most “experts” have spent on fixing vehicles in their entire life. I’ve also seen manufacturer’s disallow warranty repairs based on people not properly maintaining their vehicles, according to manufacturer specifications. Don’t change the oil in your vehicle every three thousand miles and keep accurate records, then see what happens when you go to replace the blown head gaskets in your vehicle that is supposedly still under the powertrain warranty.
Even this week, I’m putting $1,300 into repairing just one vehicle that I purchased for a client and that’s at my wholesale cost. I’ve had to replace oxygen sensors and exhaust systems that wear out sooner when they have to work harder and it’s not cheap. Don’t believe the online “experts” when they tell you that you don’t have to spend money to reduce carbon residue, change transmission and other fluids as often as recommended or use better engine oils. It’s usually mechanics telling you how to “save money”, so they can pay for their vacations with the periodic $1,500 repair bills – almost all of which is labor.
CARBON CAN BE A KILLER AND I’M NOT TALKING ABOUT YOUR FOOTPRINT
What’s the big deal about carbon buildup? Carbon is residue from the fuel burning in the engine cylinder. The majority of the carbon residue from burning fuel is expelled through the exhaust valve and out the exhaust system of the vehicle. Over time though, as fuel varnish deposits collect on cylinder walls and on the tops of the pistons, small bits of carbon embed into the varnish. The process continues and major carbon deposits can build over time. Carbon absorbs heat, and some of these deposits get so hot that they act like small spark plugs on their own, prematurely igniting the air and fuel mixture that is injected into the cylinder before the piston reaches it’s ideal position within the engine. Detonation or pre-ignition can cause severe damage to the pistons, valves, spark plugs and cylinder walls and before you know it you’re getting valve job, replacing rings or doing a major rebuild.
If the Ecomates products can help reduce the problem of carbon residue buildup at $4 for a tank of gas, including shipping or using the company’s oil additive for an oil change that can be a huge savings down the road in potential repairs. It’s not all about fuel economy. It’s also about cleaner and more effective fuel burning within the system to prevent potential problems down the road. Especially, with people keeping their vehicles longer. I saw a 2003 Ford Expedition yesterday with 188,000 miles that a client of mine is trading.
Still, I was pretty hard on this product when I was on my road trip because my expectations were higher for the fuel economy, like most people. It was really easy to use too and took just a minute to crack open the seal and pour it into the gas tank. It’s like an energy drink for your car when you’re filling up the tank. It gave us a savings too, but how much of a savings is a free gallon of gas for each tank of fuel?
Becky and I drive a ton, this year we both drove over 31,500 miles for our vehicles. It’s New Years Eve, so I went and looked to see what we did for the year since I track it for my business and I drove 31,584 miles so far this year, I need to drive to the Denver Auto Auction again today and Becky drove 31,582, including the trip to Tucson. Most of my clients around Denver drive about 16,000 miles a year and they drive all sorts of vehicles, from newer cars and SUV’s to older vehicles. Let’s just assume that most people get about 20 mpg, so they buy 800 gallons of fuel per year and the majority have a 15 gallon tank that goes about 300 miles per tank on average or 53.3 fill-ups during the year, about once a week. This includes cars and SUV’s when you average it out.
In 2005, the average miles per gallon for the U.S. fleet was 19.8 mpg. As you will recall, President Obama and the Congress are trying to get our fuel economy up to 35.5 mpg by 2016. We’ll all be driving 1.2 liter, 75hp Fiat 500’s and have doors made out of carbon fiber instead of steel soon. If you get a free gallon of gas for each fill-up using Ethos, at $2.79 a gallon you save about $148 a year (53.3 fill-ups x $2.79 a gallon savings). If you drive more, like me, you’ll save even more and at $7.25 an hour, the current U.S. minimum wage, many people would have to work 20 hours to make up the savings from using this product at just 2 miles more per gallon or almost three extra days a year. If you drive a vehicle that gets 3 or 4 miles per gallon better using this product, the savings will be even greater because each vehicle is different in how it will perform, as you can see from information in this article. When gasoline jumps back up to $4 a gallon, which I believe it will, the savings will be much larger.
Is it enough of a savings to make you want to use the product? You need to decide that for yourself, but I’m going to do it because I think there are benefits beyond just the fuel economy and it’s a big enough savings at $148 a year in fuel costs. That’s enough fuel savings at the pump to pay for most people’s oil changes for the year (5 a year x $30 per oil change) from using this one fuel additive, but for us the numbers are much better because of the amount that we drive. For my Mazda Speed6 that I currently get 25 mpg consistently, if I can get 27 mpg I will save $265 a year based on the amount of miles I drive, again using Premium fuel and getting just one gallon of gas free for each fill-up – 84 times a year. Becky will fill-up 93 times this year and save $259.15 a year by just a 2 mpg increase for her Infiniti FX35. That’s over $524 a year savings by using this product based on the amount of miles we have to drive for my business and living in Denver.
COMMISSIONS
Ecomates is marketing their product using a Network Marketing structure, using word-of-mouth advertising, which means they will pay commissions to Independent Distributors who tell others about this product, just like I told the client who called me today how to order it from the company.
This means that if you refer a few people, as few as two people, you can start getting paid as others use this product for their vehicles. Before you know it, you could be using it for free by introducing it to just a few other people and then your savings goes up exponentially as your costs for the product reduce. I don’t know about you, but I like that idea.
They are having a big announcement today about their compensation plan. See the graphic at the top of this page to call into the company hotline and listen to their conference call. I’m anxious to see what the requirements are to get paid and see if it makes sense economically to actively promote the Ecomates products or just be a wholesale user of the product by being a Distributor.
I hope you found this article informative and you learned something that you didn’t know before. You can always reach me using the contact link on the top right hand side of this page. If you want to get involved in EcoMates, just click on the link at the top right side of this page under links or the one that I highlighted.
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Auto Consultant – John Boyd: The Cool Car Guy
John is an auto consultant with his license at a car dealership in Denver, Colorado. He can help you save time and money on any make or model, new or used, lease or purchase – nationwide! Call or email John about your next vehicle! jboyd@coolcarguy.com or Twitter @coolcarguy
Last week, I moved my license as an Automotive Consultant to EMI Automotive Group and setup my new office in Lone Tree, Colorado to service my existing and future clients. I have some great new tools and services that I’m excited about being able to offer.
Many people contact me each month to help them locate a new or pre-owned vehicle at the right price. All too often, people will tell me that they have to own a Toyota or Honda instead of some of the other brands in the marketplace because of the perception that they are better vehicles. Sometimes they are better vehicles and I do like the Honda and Toyota brands.
Hey Cool Car Fans,
Hey Cool Car Fans,