In this instalment of John Murdoch's Drive Time, John looks at how Mazda is looking to the future by switching its heritage vehicle fleet to run on sustainable petrol and why this will offer comfort to all classic car owners.
Mazda is leading the way for classic car owners by switching its Heritage Fleet in the UK to run on sustainable petrol.
To spotlight the role sustainable fuel can play in de-carbonising classic cars, the Mazda UK Heritage Fleet will be filled with Sustain Classic Super 80 supplied by Coryton each time the cars are driven or loaned out.
The good news is that none of the cars required modification to run on the petrol, which can also be used by any standard petrol-fuelled vehicle.
Developed by UK firm Coryton, Super 80 is a second generation bio-fuel created using 80 per cent agricultural waste, such as straw, by-products and waste from crops which wouldn’t be used for animal or human consumption.
The fuel offers a reduction of at least 65 per cent in greenhouse gas emissions when compared to fossil fuels.
Last November Mazda drove a 2.0-litre MX-5 for 1,000-miles around the UK, lapping a circuit in each home nation all powered by sustainable fuel from Coryton - underlining the potential sustainable fuels have for decarbonising motorsport and the many millions of combustion engine cars that will remain on our roads for decades.
The switch to fuel the heritage fleet in the same way further highlights how sustainable fuel is a real and credible player in efforts towards net zero, while at the same time allowing the continued enjoyment and preservation of classic vehicles.
David Richardson, director at Coryton, said: “We’re delighted that Mazda has decided to place its trust in SUSTAIN Classic to fuel its important fleet of heritage vehicles.
"We believe that SUSTAIN Classic is the world’s first ever publicly available sustainable fuel catering for classic vehicles and we hope that these fuels will give classic car owners confidence that there are options for them to continue running their vehicles in a sustainable way in the years to come.
"Now is a vital time to start proving that sustainable fuels can have a real future fuelling our transportation - past and present.
"While other technologies are given the necessary time to develop, sustainable fuels are here and ready to go to help tackle emissions from the existing fleet of classic and modern cars on our roads - and can be scaled up relatively quickly if needed.
"Every kilogram of CO2 we avoid adding to our atmosphere, by replacing fossil fuel with sustainable fuel, is a win.
"We don’t instantly have to go for the full switch to start making a genuine impact.
"As more feedstocks become available, these fuels will start to contain even higher levels of traceable sustainable elements.”
Commenting on the switch to Sustain Classic by Coryton, Jeremy Thomson, managing director, Mazda Motors UK, added: “Our heritage fleet highlights Mazda’s long tradition of engineering ingenuity and stand out design.
"Mazda’s ‘never stop challenging’ approach can be seen throughout our heritage, so it’s great that we can highlight the potential sustainable fuels can play in the future as part of a multi-solution approach to CO2 reduction.
“While our new car range will feature ever more electrification as part of this multi-solution approach, using a sustainable petrol in our heritage cars is a great way to highlight the role these fuels can have in reducing the environmental impact of the combustion engine cars that will remain on our roads for decades to come.”
Moving on to other motoring news, the popular Range Rover Evoque is about to get even more attractive to buyers thanks to styling updates to the exterior and significant upgrades to onboard technology and interior trim.
A new floating 11.4-inch curved glass touchscreen replaces the previous set-up and offers full digital control over key vehicle functions, powered by Land Rover’s latest Pivi Pro infotainment system which features built-in Amazon Alexa voice control.
There’s also a new grille and a slimmer headlight design which uses Pixel LED lighting as part of the company’s reductive design philosophy.
Other changes see advanced cabin air purification and the use of non-leather materials in the seats, although leather upholstery still remains available.
The new Evoque is due to be on the road later in the year and will be priced from £40,080 for the front-wheel-drive diesel D165 model.
Other engines are the D200 diesel and the P200 and P250 petrols, all of which are mild-hybrids. The P300e plug-in hybrid also stays in the line-up and can now manage up to 39 miles of emission-free driving.
Technology such as the 3D Surround View camera system, the Clearsight Ground View set up and the rear view camera display in the interior mirror are carried forward while the new lighting system will be standard on Dynamic HSE and Autobiography trim levels.
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