AN inventor from South Australia thinks his recent visit to Bendigo could see his fuel-saving invention take off in Victoria.
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Here for the City of Greater Bendigo's inventor awards last week, Gawler resident Wayne Obst was awarded a manufacturing encouragement award for his Obst Design Fuel Saver.
As well as the encouragement award, Mr Obst said he also walked away from the night with a couple of sales and a potential local motor mechanic lined up to talk up his product to customers.
"It's alright talking about it, but when people put money on the table and say I want one, that gives you an idea that they're serious," he said.
Mr Obst said he was particularly pleased to find a Bendigo mechanic interested in his product, especially given his plans to expand to Victoria and the fact mechanics were the main way he marketed his device.
"I've been selling through motor mechanics, they fit it in their own vehicle and, from there, if they believe it works, they can onsell it," he said.
"It’s not trying to push something that doesn't work. Everything's by demonstration and recommendation."
Mr Obst claims his device can help drivers save 10 to 30 per cent in fuel costs by helping the car to use less.
Having patented the device in 2009, Mr Obst has sold more than 3000 units in South Australia.
Mr Obst said his design was simple and the device easy to install.
"It fits straight after the air-cleaner in the pipe that runs down to the engine," he said.
"It's just a matter of doing one clamp fitting and then putting it back together again. You don't modify the car."
Mr Obst said his fuel-saving device was easy for non-mechanically minded drivers to understand.
"In fitting the unit, the first thing I say to people is take it for a drive, and they find they don’t have to put their foot down as hard to do the same job," he said.
"So you don’t have to understand the science of it, you know if you put your foot down you will use more fuel."
He was inspired to create the device after seeing petrol prices sky rocket in recent years.
"What motivated me was when everybody started grizzling about fuel prices," Mr Obst said.
"I looked at what was on the market, wasn't overly impressed and started developing my own ideas.
"It’s evolved to a very good product."
Despite his plans to expand Australia wide, Mr Obst said he had no plans to take on international fuel corporations.
"Once you start to deal with big companies it becomes very complicated, and they've got all these rules and regulations about how they’re going to do business with you," he said.
"It’s not as simple as saying we can save fuel."