With families across the UK feeling the financial squeeze in almost all areas of their daily life, a new car has just been launched which will save its owner £500 per year – or the equivalent of almost three months food shopping .

In addition to the annual savings, the Proton GEN-2 ecoLogic instantly saves drivers money as it is already fitted with an LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) conversion, which currently costs approximately £2,000 for other cars. The new dual fuel vehicle will enable drivers to fill up at a fraction of the cost of either petrol or diesel, thanks to LPG costing on average only 58.6p a litre . What’s more, neither car will cost any more to buy than their standard specification, unconverted counterparts.

Simon Park from Proton Cars UK commented: “Soaring food and utility bills are crippling many families and our dual fuel car provides a genuine solution for long-term savings at the pump.

“Although there are more than 1,400 LPG filling stations in the UK, drivers can opt to fill up with unleaded and switch at any point in their journey thanks to the car’s dual-fuel system.”

In 2000 Autogas Limited, a joint venture between Calor (for more on Calor LPG please visit www.calor.co.uk) and Shell, was set up with the sole aim of making automotive LPG more readily available. Chris Taylor from Autogas said: “In the UK, LPG costs around half the price of petrol and diesel, usually resulting in annual savings of around 40 per cent in fuel costs. Recent independent tests have also shown that out of the three fuels, LPG has the best environmental record.”

Converted and fully warranted by Proton Cars the GEN-2 ecoLogic has a 1.6 litre engine, Lotus design ride and handling and is available in a 5-door hatchback or 4-door saloon – costing £10,995 and £10,795 respectively

For more information visit www.protonecologic.co.uk.