Björn Alfredsson has seen it all.
The Swedish-born, Lindsay, Ont.-based furniture manufacturer has travelled millions of miles around the world to find the best prices for the high-quality materials he needs. To maintain his competitive edge, he's been to places like China, Vietnam, Serbia and Bulgaria, and he's learned a lot about local cultures and habits.
One primary difference he's seen between most of the rest of the world and North America is how different people can be when it comes to saving energy. "People in Bucharest used to steal the manhole covers off the streets because they would stay warm all night long and give off a nice even heat," he said. "The downside to this was that some cars ended up with broken front axles."
Europeans are also very creative when it comes to saving fuel in their cars. They have to be — most Europeans earn less disposable income than Canadians do, and fuel is much more expensive. According to the World Bank's World Development Indicators, when gas is 95 cents a litre in Canada, it's $1.49 in Germany, $1.59 in Italy, $1.62 in France, $1.69 in Holland and $1.92 in Britain.
The most obvious difference on European streets is the size of the cars. Small cars are abundant, while large sedans, SUVs and minivans are rare.
What Transport Canada and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency classes as a "mid-size car," the European New Car Assessment Program — a multi-governmental consumer protection agency — calls a "large family car."
And while Canadians can buy just one "city car" — vehicles under 3.6 metres in length and intended primarily for urban use — in the Smart fortwo, Europeans have dozens to choose from, including top sellers like the Ford Ka and Renault Twingo.
Volkswagen, which makes two cars — the Fox and the Polo — smaller than the Golf (the smallest car it currently sells in North America) may change that. "There are no firm plans to bring smaller cars to Canada yet," said Patrick Saint-Pierre, public relations manager for Volkswagen Canada. "But it's something we're definitely considering."
Another big difference is the proliferation of diesels in Europe. According to the British Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, 45.3 per cent of all passenger cars sold in the U.K. in 2007 were diesels. Currently, only Mercedes-Benz offers diesel-powered passenger cars in Canada, and they account for a trickle of total sales.
According to Rise and Fall of Diesel Cars: A Consumer Choice Analysis, a book by Kenneth S. Kurani and Daniel Sperling, North Americans associate "noise, fumes, mechanical problems, sluggish performance and poor ignition during cold weather" with diesels.
Chris Satchwell, founder of Save-Petrol.co.uk, an online fuel conservation advocacy group, says that's not true any more, and that "aside from being a little bit louder," there are no real perceptible differences between gas and diesel cars any more from behind the wheel. While the option of a diesel car may not enter many Canadians' minds, "for the majority of Brits it is a complete no-brainer," according to Satchwell.
Volkswagen, which sold diesel cars in North America from 1977 to 2006, pulled them out of showrooms after the U.S. toughened its emission standards and switched to low-sulphur diesel. It will, however, introduce a new diesel Jetta at the end of the summer as a 2009 model. According to early media tests, it consumes less fuel than a Toyota Prius, and accelerates much more quickly.
Hybrids aren't unknown across the Atlantic, but they are rare. "Some celebrities have them," said Satchwell. "[But] I've only ever seen one hybrid car actually out on our roads." His opinion is that many Europeans view them as overly complicated and expensive for the fuel economy payoff.
Traditionally, Europeans buy a much higher proportion of manual transmissions than North Americans do, but that's changing, Satchwell says, as European manufacturers make more efficient automatic and semi-automatic transmissions.
According to Satchwell, in much of Europe, stoplights often last up to four minutes and waits at train crossings are frequently even longer. Because of this, many Europeans simply turn their cars off at stoplights and other waits, rather than let their car idle.
The habit is so popular, in fact, that many models are available with sensors that shut off the engine after a certain length of idle and the engine starts again when the driver pushes the accelerator.
While the feature is growing in popularity in Europe, it isn't available here. VW's Saint-Pierre says that's because of consumer perception. "We're big air conditioning users and there's a belief such a system would cut the A/C in and out," he says.
Satchwell adds that all that restarting isn't very good for the life of batteries, which would be even more noticeable in Canadian winters.
And because the cars are smaller, but the loads aren't, roof racks are commonplace. But unlike North Americans, who prefer fixed roof racks, virtually all roof racks in Europe, Satchwell says, are removable, which saves weight and cuts air resistance when not in use.
Satchwell also points out that Europeans do many of the other things Canadians do to save fuel, including regular tune-ups and oil changes, checking tire inflation pressures and avoiding sudden acceleration. But he also points out that they may be more likely to be diligent, as every bit of wasted fuel costs them about twice as much.
