Drive more Fuel Efficiently
The more that you are behind the wheel of a vehicle the more money you can save. Take a close look at your driving habits as that is the area where people end up using approximately 1/3 more fuel than they really should on the highway. It is amazing how many people are offended when they read that!
There are many great places online where you can take quizzes about your driving habits. It can give you an honest evaluation as to how aggressive you are. If you fall into a category that isn’t good then you need to accept it and make a commitment to change it. Here are some great pointers to get you rolling in the right direction.
You need to stay at a constant speed as much as you can. Pay attention to the posted speed limits and set your cruise control. You will need to slow down from time to time for the flow of traffic and such but that should still help with your fuel usage. Make sure you don’t follow being other vehicles too closely either. This stopping will decrease your speed so you will be going faster and then slower even though you aren’t exceeding the posted speed limit.
If you are one of those individuals who weaves in and out of traffic passing people and then getting back into the groove of the traffic by slowing down again you are wasting fuel. Even if you are in a hurry, such methods don’t save you very much time.
We have all seen drivers like that on the road each day. They move in and out of the traffic but then we end up catching up to them at a stoplight or on an exit ramp. This shows that this type of aggressive driving really doesn’t get you there any faster, yet it is costing you more fuel than it should to arrive at that destination.
When you stay at a constant speed you and everyone else on the road around you is much safer. You will have more control over your vehicle and other vehicles can accurately anticipate your movements. It will reduce the wear on your vehicle as well.
It can take some time for you to make changes in this area. Pay close attention to it and then do your best not to give into the urge. You may not realize just how often you used to engage in that type of behavior until you are attempting to stop doing so. In addition to saving you fuel it can save your life as well due to other drivers not knowing what you will be doing out there.
Many places where you can drive allow you to exceed 60 miles per hour. It isn’t uncommon to find signs for 75 miles per hour on busy highways and freeways. It is important to understand that you will decrease the amount of miles per gallon when you are over 60 miles per hour. So to be able to go faster you are going to have to accept the fact that you are burning more fuel to do so.
This one is quite a dilemma as you don’t want to be the turtle on the fast road. If you choose to drive at a lower than posted speed you need to stay in the right hand lane. That way you aren’t obstructing traffic and being a danger to yourself and others.
In many ways that is the practical solution though so you will want to continue at the posted speed limits. If you are following the strategies of the other hypermiling guidelines though you should still end up getting more miles out of each tank of gas.
When you aren’t moving, your car is idling. Turn off your vehicle to save you on gas. Many people let their car idle to warm up in the winter and then to cool down in the summer. If possible place your vehicle in a garage so you don’t have to let it sit outside collecting frost or for the sun to beat down upon it.
In the summer time you should also consider running errands early in the morning. This way you won’t be relying upon the air conditioner to keep you cool. This is a very big waster of fuel for your vehicle. If you are using it quite often you will notice you are going to the pumps more often than normal.
If you are stuck in traffic for any length of time, you also want to turn the vehicle off. This way you won’t be wasting fuel or allowing the engine to overheat. A good rule of thumb is that if traffic is at a standstill for more than five minutes to shut the vehicle off.
Do your best to avoid common bottleneck areas as well. It may be due to road construction or to rush hour. It can also be the result of not enough lanes for all the traffic. If you will be traveling those roads often see if you can find alternative roads. You can access interactive maps online where you enter point A and point B. It can then give you several routes to get there.
Even if the alternative is one that is several more miles, it can end up saving you fuel in the long run. You will need to experiment so you can decide for yourself which route works best for you. It would be nice if the alternative was able to save you both fuel and time.
How much do you currently pay per gallon for gas? I am guessing it is close to $4 or more right now. If you can save 1/3 of that then you will be cutting back that cost by more than $1 per gallon. The exact cost will depend on other factors such as your vehicle and the cost of gas in your area. Yet you can see how that savings is going to add up.