With skyrocketing fuel prices these days, many people have had to adjust their budgets to make room to spend more on gasoline. However, by applying a few gas-saving tips, you can keep your expenses within a reasonable range and help save the environment at the same time.
1. Maintain your vehicle. A smooth running vehicle uses less gas than one that is poorly maintained. Regular oil changes, air filter and other recommended maintenance will help provide you with a fuel efficient vehicle.
2. Keep your tires inflated. Actually, studies have shown that the gas savings aren’t huge, but it does make a small difference to keep your tires inflated to the recommended pressure. More importantly, this is also safer and makes your tires last longer.
3. Don’t drive during rush hour. Go to work and come home from work, earlier or later if possible, to avoid rush hour. Getting stuck in a traffic jam and stop-and-go driving is one of the worst ways to waste gas.
4. Teleworking. Working from home can save tons of gas, not to mention give you more time, productivity, and happiness. If you can telecommute even one or two days a week, this can be a substantial savings.
5. Lose weight. Driving with more people and more stuff in your car drags the car and requires more fuel. Lighten your load by removing excess cargo.
6. Minimize idling. One of the worst offenders in reducing your gas mileage, idling gives you zero mpg. If you’re going to be idling for a minute or less, leave the car running, but if it’s going to be much longer than a minute, you should turn the car off.
7. Drive slower. Driving at the speed limit is more fuel efficient than speeding.
8. Accelerate and stop easier. Driving too aggressively, especially when starting and braking quickly, is bad for fuel economy. Accelerate smoothly and try to minimize the use of the brakes, if possible.
9. Use higher gears. Driving fast in low gears is also bad for fuel economy. Drive in the highest gear possible, unless you are downshifting to slow or control speed.
10. Buy a fuel-efficient car. This is actually the most important tip on this list. A car wastes heavy gasoline. Get a lighter car, especially one with a fuel-efficient engine and design. Check out the federal government’s article on choosing a more efficient vehicle.
11. Roll up your windows on the highway. While many people think they are saving money by turning off the air conditioning, it actually creates strong drag if you drive fast with the windows down, and it’s worse for fuel economy. If you drive slowly through the city, turn off the air conditioning and roll down the windows. Roll ’em up on the road.
12. Do not finish off. Refilling while you’re filling your tank is a waste of gas, as any gas you refill will spill or go to waste.
13. Park in the shade. A hot car evaporates the gas. If it’s a hot day, park in the shade and use your garage.14. Walk. Driving less is a great way to save gas. If you have to make a trip of just a few blocks, try walking instead. You will burn fat instead of gas.
15. Cycle. Many people live close enough to work to be able to commute by bike. It’s not hard, and you get exercise while saving money.
16. Live closer to work. Of course, you probably won’t be able to implement this tip today, but the next time you’re considering where to live, try to find a place near where you work, or try to find a job closer to home. It will save a lot of driving time.
17. Group errands. Instead of running one or two errands a day, try packing them all into one day and plan an efficient route to cut down on driving.
18. Carpool. It’s usually not hard to find friends, family, or neighbors who live in your area and work near you. Take turns driving each other to save gas for all of you.
19. Use the cruise control. In fact, this method has been shown to save a great deal of gas by reducing hard acceleration and heavy braking. A constant driving speed will improve fuel economy.
20. Don’t buy hot gas. Buy gas during the morning or evening hours when it’s cold, or you’ll be buying gas at a time when it expands (and therefore gets less).