Tips to improve gas mileage

Improve your gas mileage and save hundreds of dollars. Gas prices have reached an all time high and our wallets are feeling the burn. The average cost of gas is well over $3.60 and it seems like everyday the signs change a few cents. It’s almost obvious that a gallon of gas will reach $4.00 in the next few months. How can you help negate the rising cost of fuel? There are some obvious answers many of which include improving your miles per gallon.

Here are x tips to save a few extra dollars on your fuel budget.

1. Drive the speed limits and not aggressive. Don’t worry about people making fun of you for driving 55. You will still get to your destination on time if you leave a few minutes early. Also don’t drive aggressively, there is no need to be the first off the line at a stop light or don’t speed up only to slam the break at a stop sign or stop light.
2. Keep your car in top shape. Follow the maintenance schedule in your drivers manual and you can greatly improve your gas mileage. It may seem like a lot of money up front, but it will save you in the long run, not only on fuel but also with other problems.
3. Plan ahead and cut out unnecessary trips. If you drive by the store on the way home from work then bring your store list with you. Don’t drive home then back a while later. A little planning will save you a lot of cash.
4. If it’s time to trade in that old clunker of a car then think about buying a more fuel efficient vehicle. Don’t waste money on an SUV or heavy duty truck that you don’t need. They usually cost extra money and have very poor gas mileage. Try to find something that will meet your needs and get 30 miles per gallon.
5. Buy the gasoline that your automobile manual recommends. If your manual tells you that you only need an octane level of 89 then use 89. There is no need to spend the extra $0.10 or $0.20 per gallon for fuel that you don’t need.
6. When driving on the freeway use cruise control. Sure, it’s possible to get better fuel efficiency without using cruise control, but the average person will save 7% by using it.
7. Avoid Excessive Idling, it may seem obvious but many times you do this without realizing it. I know I’m bad about dropping my wife off at the door to go shopping while I wait in the car. I’m bad about leaving the car and air conditioner running the entire time she is in there… bad idea…..

There are some crazy excessive tips that only the competitive gas savers would try, but just for fun I’m going to list them.

1. Strip off all the unnecessary items on the car, including the, power steering pump, mirrors, etc. (don’t try this at home.) The lighter your vehicle the more fuel efficient it will be.
2. Don’t carry around stuff in the car you don’t really need. You don’t really need those books and magazines in the back seat, golf clubs, baseball gloves and bats, etc. Again the lighter you are the better mileage you will get.
3. If you have a standard car you can turn off your engine while going downhill. Start it back when you get back to the bottom.
4. Don’t raise your RPM levels in your car, similar to using cruise control, but when you use cruise control going uphill, many times it will raise your RPM level to maintain a constant speed. If you do it yourself you can maintain a constant RPM level but lower your speed. This will save you some fuel.
5. You could draft behind large trucks on the interstate similar to what race car drivers attempt to do, dangerous but a little more fuel efficient.
6. Start slowing down for stop lights way before you get to them. Try to time it to where you never have to come to a complete stop. When you come to a complete stop it takes more fuel to get you started back again.
7. If you idle for more than 15 seconds turn your engine off. I guess this would work for really long traffic lights as well.

That’s about all I can think of for now. Hope that helps you save some money at the fuel pump!

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