>> People

Clean explosions

>>Positively charged ions the key to a more efficient engine, claims SuperFuelMax salesman

Name: Zouheir Tabbara

Age: 64

Bio: This decidedly straight-shootin’ Plateau resident arrived in Montreal from Lebanon a little over three years ago “because of the situation there” and to be with his children who were studying here. Quickly setting up the E-Media Copy centre in the Place du Parc shopping mall, Zouheir, a mechanical engineer and “expert in the field of fluid dynamics” who spent roughly 40 years of his life developing water treatment systems in the Persian Gulf, decided the time was ripe to start marketing an arguably questionable fuel-saving device called SuperFuelMax, (www.fuelmax.lv/en/video.php), a gizmo which he claims reduced the fuel consumption of his 1998 Ford Taurus by 23 per cent. “I first learned of this technology in Lebanon, where we were trying to treat water without using chemicals. That’s when I realized that magnetism could also be used to treat petrol, and when I started researching it, discovered several American companies were already marketing a device employing this technology.” After purchasing a unit himself, Zouheir was so impressed with the results, he decided to start selling the gizmo out of his copy shop. He claims to have sold several hundred of the devices with nary an unsatisfied customer to date.

How SuperFuelMax is alleged to work: “The main objective is to achieve a better air/fuel mixture so you’ll have better combustion. The better the combustion, the fewer pollutants you emit into the atmosphere, the less carbon residue left in the car, and the better the engine will be. What happens is the magnets resonate the hydrocarbon ions in the fuel while passing from the injection block to the engine, giving these ions a positive charge. This positive charge makes them repel each other, allowing oxygen, which is negatively charged, to penetrate and unite with each ion. This makes for a better, cleaner explosion in your pistons, resulting in more kilometres per litre.”

So couldn’t a person just buy a few magnets at the dollar store, attach them to their fuel line and effectively get the same results? “It’s not quite that simple.”

If this technology is so wonderful, why isn’t it being used by airlines and trucking companies to significantly reduce their operating expenses? “Well, it is used by transportation companies but car manufacturers don’t like the idea because they want everybody to return at certain intervals for maintenance. When you install SuperFuelMax on your car, the result is a reduction of maintenance needed. And this represents big revenue lost for the car companies. But the time will come when they finally accept this technology and introduce it to their systems.”

What the gizmo costs: $99

Will Zouheir do the installation? “No, but I give detailed instructions so you or your mechanic will know exactly what to do, it’s very simple.”

What kind of guarantee comes with the product? None. “But most electrical components for cars aren’t returnable either.”

Does he also sell snake oil that’ll improve your engine’s
performance? No.

Literary preferences: The Gazette, the Daily Mirror.

Musical preferences: Mozart, Beethoven

Words of wisdom: “Treat people as you would like them to treat you.”

Comments? dimwit@hdot.net

MIRROR ARCHIVES » Feb 08-Feb 14: INSIDE - COVER | ARCHIVES INDEX | CURRENT ISSUE