Before Tim Johnson had Firepower with its magic brown petrol pill, mystery millions and massive sports sponsorship, he had something called Power Plan International nearly 15 years ago with a magic blue pill. And the New Zealand Automobile Association found that it didn’t work.

There’s nothing surprising about that. It’s been impossible to find any evidence that the brown pill works either.

The SMH’s Gerard Ryle continues to unearth angles to this colourful company largely ignored by the rest of Australia’s media, bar Crikey. Today’s contribution is the Kiwi expose that went to the NZ High Court when Power Plan International failed to prevent publication of the test results. Reports Ryle in part:

In a sworn affidavit to the New Zealand High Court in 1992, Mr Johnston said his product had been tested by the Victorian police commissioner and had been endorsed by the New Zealand Commerce Commission. Both statements were revealed to be untrue, the association said.

So, too, according to the association, were verbal statements made by Mr Johnston that the blue pills were about to be recommended by the association’s sister organisations in Australia, the NRMA and the RACV.

Interesting form. And the NRL, WARU, NBL, Peter Holmes a Court, Russell Crowe, various AFL types et al are apparently happy to be associated with it.

The SMH notes Firepower says its pill does not use the same formula as Power Plan International.

Well, it’s brown instead of blue for a start.