10 Things That Eat Your Gas The Most
Gas prices grow extremely fast and don’t be too much surprised: experts say we can expect a 15-20% (!) price increase by the end of the year. With that prices even small cars owners won’t be able to go far on their cars not mentioning pickup owners for example. So what can be done about this? Here I listed top 10 things that you should pay attention to while driving and avoid them as that’s them who eat your fuel the most.
1. First thing is your car’s aerodynamics. Although all new cars have flowing design, some old cars are not aerodynamic. Besides open windows always increase the wind resistance and make you less aerodynamic. Altogether these two things can enhance gas usage up to 18%
2. Then goes the air conditioning. Yes, I understand – it’s too damn hot. But consider this before turning you AC to maximum: an average car conditioner eats more than 2 liters per 60 miles.
3. Your wheels. I mean not the wheels themselves (it will be hard to ride without them), but when they are poorly inflated you can loose up to 7% extra gas as the surface of contact between wheels and gravel grows. I bet 7% of your gas is worth pumping the wheels properly.
4. If nothing is wrong with your car but you feel that still you are wasting more fuel than normal you should definitely consider you driving style. You will probably notice that sometimes you tend to drive in a rude manner: harsh accelerations, harp turnings. All this makes you car eat more gas.
5.Another thing could increase your gas usage from 7 to 9%. That is your air filter, especially when it is dirty. In that case it will limit the access of air into the engine, which negatively affects its performance. Try to clean it regularly and you will feel the effect immediately.
6. Engine idling. Well, that all clear with that you’d say. Of course it is. Who needs to keep his engine running while not riding? But according to the statistics, an average driver spends up to 10% of his driving time in the idle state, where he literally wastes his fuel for nothing. This happens on short stops on the red lights, while awaiting “ just 2 minutes” for someone, warming up your engine and so on.
7. Speeding. Not only it’s dangerous and illegal, it also uses extra gas. Going on 90 mph gives you 25% (!) more gas usage than on 60. Think about it.
8. Overloaded car. It’s simple: every 30 kilograms makes your car eat plus 2% of fuel. So try to get rid of all unwanted stuff from your boot (yes, everyone has it) and clean up your saloon regularly. Avoid cheap, heavy tuning.
9. Unaligned wheels. Go to a repairing service and get your wheels aligned. This will economize up to 4% of your gas. Your expenses will pay themselves in no time, you’ll see.
10. Using wrong gear. This means that often, especially newbie drivers, use unsuitable gear for the speed they’re going on. This is not that hard to remember which gear to use, or you can simply ask one of your driver friends.
Happy mileage increasing!
Quick Fuel Saving Links (August 5-8)
- Want another great gas saving tip? Get a manual transmission car. Not that fast to get used to drive with that stick, but have a look at this amazing stats and rethink your attitude to manual transmissions:
‘You’ll probably save about 5,000 gallons of gas and $30,000 or more by only driving cars with manual transmissions over the course of your lifetime’.
It is not that hard to learn manual transmission driving when you keep in mind the amount you save: $30,000 (what is the average lifetime expectancy I wonder?)
- Gas saving tips these days are properly mixed with alternative vehicles: Segway, two-wheeled balance powered by electric mobility – it is a saver to gas prices dependency? It is fun to read someone’s experience traveling on a 10 mile trip on that two wheel wonder though I feel discouraged once I am through. On the other hand these new vehicles DO have future, we need just make some changes to our infrastructure to let them enter our lives.
- If you do not know by this time who is responsible for current gas prices do not miss House Speaker Nancy Pelosi conclusions. We should have guessed that President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are to blame, but we were scared to say that. Pelosi’s point:
“There are plenty of opportunities that oil companies should explore before environmentally sensitive areas such as ANWR are open to drilling, pointing to the 33 million acres that have already been approved for offshore drilling and the 68 million acres of federal land in the lower 48 states that is open to exploration”.
- If you are not yet tired of all those typical saving tips reprinted daily in hundreds of blogs and sites I would re-list them once more time (this time they are published on thebachelorguy.com blog):
1 - Check Your Tires
2 - Change the Air Filter
3 - Lighten Your Load
4 - Check Your Spark Plugs
5 - Make Sure Your Cap is Tight
6 - Don’t Be Idle
I just wonder what amount of gas you can save following these ‘advanced’ fuel saving tips? Probably I should not be that ironic, but could anyone show me numbers – what is the effect of these fuel saving techniques?
- If you think that GasBuddy is the only service that aims to help desperate drivers to save cash on gas bills – you are wrong. Gas saving services pop up here and there weekly if not daily:
- share and compare your mpg with Fuelly.com
- find cheap gas using your cell phone and GasRunner.com (though their website does not look reliable and popular service, but probably the project is still in Beta.
- US set records exporting oil. Unbelievable, but true:
“A record 1.6 million barrels a day in U.S. refined petroleum products were exported during the first four months of this year, up 33 percent from 1.2 million barrels a day over the same period in 2007. Shipments this February topped 1.8 million barrels a day for the first time during any month, according to final numbers from the Energy Department.”
Toyota Prius Spy Photos
Toyota Prius 3 debut is scheduled for Detroit Motor Show in January 2009. Toyota will start new open sales in the USA and Japan in April 2009.
There are minor Prius exterior changes – one can clearly see that at the spy photos. Those few changes include longer body and more spacious interior. Prius is famous for its original design and this time it will come with even more distinct features.
Prius 3 comes with Hybrid Synergy Drive, but 1,5l gas engine will be switched for more powerful 1.6l one. The result – more powerful car with improved fuel safety characteristics – 4.9l per 100km in the city and 4.9l in the highways.
It is notable that introduction of new lithium-ion batteries for Prius 3 is scheduled for 2010 earliest. By that time Toyota has plans to produce 480 000 hybrid cars per annum.
Quick Fuel Saving Links (July 26-30)
Hydrogen powered cars – what it feels to drive and if these cars have future:
Indeed, the Equinox is no slouch when it comes to performance. The first few times I put my foot to the floor, the torque of the electric motor really set me back in the seat. I really was impressed—and that’s coming from a guy used to driving a V8 Jeep Grand Cherokee…
8 more ways to save gas – this time geeky ways:
- Find the best gas prices on the Web.
- Look for online gas promotions.
- Use GPS or mapping tools.
- Share a ride with your Web buddies.
- Track your gas use.
- Know your car’s health.
- Replace your engine computer chip.
- Ecomod your car.
I really like this handy tool to search for fuel efficient auto (by class & year) Annual fuel cost and air pollution score included…
You can also compare cars one to another
Guys from Edmunds.com know much about cars, no doubt. What about their testing gas saving tips? What did they test?
Test #1 Aggressive Driving vs. Moderate Driving
Test #2 Lower Speeds Saves Gas
Test #3 Use Cruise Control
Test #4 A/C On, Windows Up vs. A/C Off, Windows Down
Test #5 Check Your Tire Pressure
Test #6 Avoid Excessive Idling
One great positive thing about never ending gas price increase is the fall of car accident deaths. Stats by state prove it is true