Champion's wonder test
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THE Champion Spark Plug Company is using a mobile test bench to check out the fuel consumption and exhaust pollution of petrol-engined vehicles throughout Europe this summer.
Starting and ending the tour in Britain, the equipment being used is claimed to be highly sophisticated and very accurate and will show vehicle owners how wasteful their vehicles are.
Designed and built in the USA, the test bench is comprised of five vehicles, with the main test facility composed of three special units.
These are a trailer-mounted chassis dynamometer. a data collection centre to receive and process information from the dynamometer and a mobile support vehicle to control fuelling for the tests as well as tow the dynamometer.
A van containing diagnostic equipment including an oscilloscope and an exhaust gas analyser is used to conduct tests on the diagnostic lane, while the fifth vehicle is a portable generator set to provide the necessary power.
The vehicle to be tested is driven onto the dynamometer rollers where it is held in place by nylon belt straps fastened to each corner of the vehicle.
Tests on the engine are then carried out in two phases. The first phase is a complete diagnostic check and a report is issued, while in the second phase a limited number of vehicles are subjected to more comprehensive checks both before and after the engine has been tuned.
The test centre will be operating throughout Europe at a number of sites and Champion hopes to collect useful information. During the two years of tests the laboratory carried out in the USA and Canada, valuable information was gained, particularly regarding air pollution.