A BOUQUET FOR BROQUET

The Broquet Fuel Catalyst has been in town for less than a year, but has been around since 1941. Back then, it was developed by a top Royal Air Force engineer, Henry Broquet, for the RAF Hurricane aircraft based in Russia to fight the Germans. The fighter's engine was designed for higher-octane fuel which was not available in Russia at all. Henry Broquet thus worked with Russian scientists and developed a metal-based fuel catalyst that could get the Hurricanes flying using lower-quality fuel. Since then, Broquet Fuel Catalyst has been further refined for today's petrol-powered vehicles. In 1988, Henry Broquet was awarded the USSR Peace Medal for his war effort. For those who do not know, Broquet Fuel Catalyst consists of a combination of metals - mainly platinum and tin - specially processed and casted into 22mm domes that look like metallic M&M chocolates. One set of six "chocolate" pellets - all wrapped in a mild steel gauze - is introduced via the car's fuel office or placed directly into the fuel line. Er, do they melt in your tank, not in your hands?

Broquet is said to serve as an oxidation catalyst on all hydrocarbon fuels which does not change its own form when combustion takes place. By definition, a "catalyst" will not leave residue or dissolve away under any circumstances. In this case, with the Broquet metallic pellets added, what actually happens is that the fuel is chemically altered to a state where combustion is vastly stimulated. Unleaded petrol will burn more completely and at lower temperatures too, thus preventing microwelding between valve and valve seats. According to the Broquet brochure, "In a nutshell, Broquet is a very powerful fuel catalyst that acts like a permanent octane booster in the tank, a combustion enhancer and combustion deposit cleaner."

So much for the claims. Over two months ago, we asked Singapore's authorized distributor for Broquet Fuel Catalyst - Universal Consultants - to provide two sample packs for a real-life road test. We found two volunteer motorists to be our guinea pigs - Mr Gerard Soh, driving a '96 three-door Civic SiR, and Mr Herman Ho who owns an '81 Mercedes-Benz 200. The reason for choosing these two very different cars was to find out the effectiveness of Broquet in both new and old vehicles.

Firstly, we sent the old Mercedes (which lacks a catalytic converter) for a CO check before dropping Broquet into its fuel tank. A short while after the probe was inserted in the exhaust pipe, the CO meter overshot its 7% limit! Apparently the mechanics were less than amused because all that filthy black carbon caused the sensor filter to choke up and it had to be replaced. After this rather embarrassing episode, the Broquet pellets were put into both cars and we told the testers to drive normally and to take note of fuel consumption and performance. After one month, Herman reported that his car felt smoother and more torquey, especially in the mid-range. He was quite content with the discernible performance difference, but said that it would have been more satisfactory if fuel consumption had improved as well. In contrast, things went quite differently for Gerard. He told us that the Broquet had no effect on his VTEC Civic at all, with both fuel usage and engine output perceived to be exactly like before. We related this to the Broquet distributor, who suggested that the product needs time to deliver effective results. We therefore extended the Broquet road test schedule by another month.

At the end of the project, everybody involved - Broquet managers and technical staff, the two test subjects and ourselves - gathered for a debrief. Herman seemed delighted. "This thing works! What they claimed about giving it more time was true. Now my fuel consumption has improved." He said that $20 of 98-octane petrol now lasted three days instead of two, with his daily traveling distances being unchanged. Moreover, when the Mercedes was tested for its CO emission again, the reading was an amazing 2.5%! Summing up, Herman's post-Broquet car now runs smoother, drinks less and has far cleaner combustion too. Gerard revealed that his Civic now feels marginally more lively, but improved fuel economy wasn't realized. Then he remembered that he had inadvertently switched to a more expensive petrol during the test period, which meant that he was getting less liters for his usual $40 refill. After some number crunching, Gerard reckoned that his average fuel use after fitting Broquet had been reduced by about 8 percent.

Judging by our volunteers' reports, it appears that Broquet works. But it may be wise to remember that it is not a miracle cure for major mechanical problems; neither will it make Ferraris out of Fiats. The Broquet Fuel Catalyst simply does what it is claimed to do - and we have two happy motorists out there willing to vouch for this.