IMPROVING YOUR GAS MILEAGE
Times are getting tough as fuel prices are skyrocketing. As a result, many of us have stopped traveling as often as we would like and only get out of the house to work or school. It is almost time for Spring Break, and vacation season will soon follow, so here are a few tips that can help extend your gas budget.
Perform routine maintenance
Your vehicle will often come with a manual describing how best to maintain it. Each one will have spark plugs, sensors, filters, and connections that could affect your fuel efficiency. However, regularly maintaining your vehicle will also reduce emissions, so it's a better decision for the environment and your budget. If this is something that you aren't comfortable doing yourself, ask your mechanic next time you are there to check them for you.
Check your tire pressure and alignment.
Under-inflated tires or ones that are not adequately balanced can result in your car's poor fuel economy. These factors are vital for the vehicle to run smoothly on the road, wearing the tread down evenly. Uneven tires could lead to poor fuel usage and potential mishaps on the road. Refer to your car's owner manual or look at the tire itself for guidance on refilling your tires. Having your tires balanced won't happen near as often as checking the air pressure, but a local tire service technician can help!
Don't let your motor idle
Letting your car run when it's not moving, aka idling, is a massive waste of fuel. The average MPG when idling is ZERO! Modern cars have start-stop technology that helps cut down on wasting energy. Vehicles burn more fuel when idling than in motion and release more pollutants into the environment. The wear caused to your car from turning it on and off is about $10 per year or less. That is $60-$500 less than you spend in a year on fuel when you leave your vehicle running.
Clear out the extra weight
You wouldn't think that your gym bag, those extra shoes, or the boxes you forgot to take out last week are wasting your gas, but they could be! Items in your car or attached to the outside can slow it down, taking more effort to get it up to speed when on the road. This extra effort costs you more in fuel. Anything that causes resistance to the vehicle's motion affects its fuel efficiency too. Clean out your back seats once a week, and unload anything that isn't necessary to take with you. Don't forget the luggage racks, trailer attachments, and items on the roof can also slow your car down on the road.
Keep to the speed limit
We all have stepped on the gas pedal a little harder at times, just wanting to get home as soon as possible. But have you ever wondered why that speed limit sign only lets you go 55 mph? It's just as much to do with reducing fuel consumption as safety. Driving above 55 mph only reduces fuel efficiency because your car will require more energy to maintain speed. So allow a respectable distance between other drivers and yourself, get up to speed, and set your cruise control to avoid using your accelerator. However, never use cruise control on rain, snow, hail, sleet, or icy roads. This poses a significant danger to you and other drivers around you.
Save Money With Technology
Instead of driving from place to place, there are websites and apps out there that will show you real-time gas prices in your area. One that you can try is called Gas Buddy. Simply enter your zip code into the Gas Price Map and it will show you current prices for all of the stations in the area. https://www.gasbuddy.com/. It also allows you to search by the brand of stations, such as Chevron or BP in case you have a preference.
Hopefully, this will not be a long-term problem but these are still helpful even if gas prices eventually go back down.
What are you doing to survive these high gas prices? Share with us on our Facebook page. We would love to hear your ideas and maybe it can help us all save some money!
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