Drivers react as gas tops $4 per gallon
When fuel prices spike, lots of tips and tricks to save on gas get trotted out. Here are seven that donβt violate the laws of physics, compromise safety or insult your intelligence.
The price of gasoline today isnβt exceptional β well off the $3+ spikes seen in the early part of this decade. On the other hand, a gallon of regular gas is still significantly higher (when accounting for inflation) than where it was in the 1990s. Donβt let a βwell, itβs been worseβ mentality blind you to the fact that filling the tank is taking money out of your wallet.
7 gas-saving tips that actually work
Get junk out of the trunk
UpdatedCar engineers spend a lot of time engineering pounds, ounces and grams out of todayβs cars. Donβt undo their efforts (and the gas savings they represent) by leaving anything unnecessary in the luggage compartment. Golf clubs are a common violator, but so is random dead weight like those items slated to go to the second-hand store one of these days. Or, dear lord, a case of individual water bottles for after-workout hydration.
Every time you accelerate, youβre using gas to get that stuff up to speed with you. How much more? This depends on your car, but the EPA estimates a 1% reduction per 100 pounds. On a per-gallon cost basis, thatβs about $0.03, using the EPA baseline figures. Get your stuff in order and youβll save money, too.
Get the rack off the roof
UpdatedWhen theyβre not worrying about the weight of their designs, auto engineers fuss over aerodynamics. Improvements to how your car cuts through the air bear fruit most at high speeds β highway miles. The most common way drivers hurt their aerodynamics, and thus mileage, is by putting items on the roof.
Do you have activities that mandate a lot of equipment? Consider whether you could use a hitch-mounted rack or box instead. Tucked in the slipstream of your car, these have a much smaller mileage penalty. And, finally, if your vehicle came with a factory roof rack that you never use, see if you can remove the crossbars. Youβll save a few pounds this way, too.
Combine your trips
UpdatedBeing told to group your errands sounds a bit like a nag, much like the admonition not to use the trunk as a storage locker. Still, we will repeat the reasons why planning ahead can save gas:
If grouping trips means fewer miles driven, well, thatβs obvious.
But even if you have to go in multiple directions, all non-electric cars use more fuel when the engine is cold. So the fewer times you to bring the engine up to temperature, the better. Cold starts arenβt good for your car (or the environment, for that matter).
Shut that puppy off
UpdatedAmericans continue to wildly overestimate how much fuel it takes to start an engine versus to keep it running. The reality is, once youβre stopped, your car is wasting fuel after about 7-10 seconds of idling. Thatβs why newer cars have a feature that shuts the engine off during stops when the brake is applied. The carβs still on, but the engine isnβt. Push the accelerator pedal and the engine snaps back on β off you go. Some people find this maddening, but the gas savings is real. If you want to maximize mileage, donβt disable the auto on-off feature.
Check apps and join clubs
UpdatedFinding the cheapest fuel was once sport for me. But phone apps like GasBuddy, Gas Guru and Fuelzee make it almost too easy to find the best gas deals. Since you can use them to screen for brands, you can also make sure youβre getting good quality fuel, which, in the long run, matters to the health of your car.
Joining a membership club like Costco or Samβs Club could also pay off. Figuring how quickly youβll recoup your membership cost with the per-gallon savings on their discounted fuel is pretty easy math.
Donβt rely on the tire light
UpdatedAll cars built since 2007 have tire-pressure monitoring systems. The hitch is this: The system might not alert you until a tire is 25% lower than the recommended pressure. And if you wait for that, youβre wasting money, as underinflated tires reduce your gas mileage by roughly 0.2% per pound that theyβre low. That might not sound like much, but try this math: If your recommended inflation pressure is 40 psi, and youβre 25% low on air, thatβs a 2% hit to your gas mileage. Plus, underinflated tires wear more quickly and unevenly, reducing your tire life.
Drive slowly wisely
UpdatedNo list of gas-saving tips would be complete without the admonition to slow down. Thereβs no getting around the fact that lower speeds require less fuel, most because aerodynamic resistance increases with the square of speed.
Thatβs the lecture. But driving to save fuel doesnβt have to be a dull crawl in the slow lane. Try thinking of it this way: brakes turn your money into heat, so can you avoid using them?
This isnβt meant to encourage dangerous behavior like not stopping for stop signs or the like. Rather, anticipate, anticipate, anticipate. Look down the road farther, and coast down when you know that traffic signalβs going to change to red. While hybrid and electric vehicles are best equipped to take advantage of this style (through regenerative braking), many conventional gas cars now engage power-sapping accessories like the alternator during coast-down to maximize fuel efficiency.
As for accelerating, if you know youβre going to be holding a higher speed for a while, like when youβre merging onto a highway, go ahead and shove the gas as hard as you need. Not only is slow acceleration in this situation potentially dangerous, it doesnβt actually save fuel.