Improve Gas Mileage

18 Proven Ways To Increase Your Gas Mileage 

With the rising cost of gas prices…and no end in sight…many consumers today are looking for ways to improve gas mileage and save as much money at the gas pump as they possibly can. While nobody is able to control the price of gas, you definitely can change your driving habits and follow some basic guidelines to help you save as much money as possible. 

Here are 18 practical and afforadable tips to help you increase your gas mileage and save money at the gas pump.

1. Keep your tires properly inflated. This will allow your car to minimize resistance as it moves across the streets and roads, which will ultimately improve fuel mileage as you travel.
   
   
2. Take care of your engine well. If your engine is in good shape and well lubricated, it will have less friction, which will help improve gas mileage on both short and long trips.
   
   
3. Buy your gas in the morning or evening. Gasoline becomes denser in colder temperatures. This means that if you fill up your gas tank in the cooler morning or evening hours, that you’ll be getting better gas price economy.
   
   
4. Watch your speed. When you are driving on a highway, the faster you go, the less fuel-efficient you will be. One of the best ways to improve gas mileage is to drive close to 55 on the highways and close to 20 in town, whenever possible.
   
   
5. Avoid unnecessary speeding up and braking. These waste fuel, so a good way to get better fuel efficiency is to avoid stop and go traffic if possible. Use cruise control when you are on the highway. This will keep your engine running at a consistent workload, which will reduce wasted fuel due to random acceleration and braking. If two routes are similar in length, choose that which has less stop signs and less congestion.
   
   
6. Change the oil in your car on a regular basis. When you keep the oil in your car clean you reduce the wear that is caused by friction in the moving parts of your car’s engine.
   
   
7. Replace the air filter in your car. Studies at Fuel Economy suggest replacing the air filter in your car on a regular basis. Replacing a clogged air filter can improve the mileage that you get with your car by up to 10 percent. 
   
   
8. Turn off the Air Conditioning. Air Conditioning is great in the hot summer months, but only use it when you really need to and just use the blowers the rest of the time. Avoid opening the windows when driving at speed as this can increase aerodynamic drag which will waste more fuel. Running the air con when you don't need it will waste a lot of fuel.
   
   
9. One of the simplest ways to increase gas mileage is to keep your vehicle (whether it is a car, truck, van, or even motorcycle) as light as possible. If your vehicle is heavy, it will take more fuel to power it along the roadway. Only carry necessary items, and try to avoid using your trunk as storage space, particularly for bulky and heavy items that are not necessary on a regular basis. (However, it is still a good idea to carry an emergency safety kit, particularly in colder times of the year. Do not sacrifice this precaution in the name of fuel efficiency.)
   
   
10. If you have a manual transmission vehicle and an automatic transmission vehicle, use the manual whenever possible. It will allow you to shift more quickly and intelligently between gears. By always being in the appropriate gear, you will never be using more power than necessary, and thus you will improve fuel mileage as compared to driving the automatic vehicle.
    
    
11. Use high quality engine oil. This is one of many important ways to improve gas mileage because it allows your engine to run more efficiently. The smoother your engine runs, the better mileage you will get. Good engine oil is good for your engine, and can prolong the life of your vehicle. To select a high quality engine oil, be sure to look for products that are approved by the API (American Petroleum Institute) and say “energy conserving” on the API label.
    
    
12. One of the increasingly popular ways to improve gas mileage is to use a mileage increasing fuel additive or fuel reformulator. This is added to the gasoline in your tank and helps your vehicle use more of each gallon of gas your put into the tank. This can significantly improve fuel mileage at a relatively low cost, particularly when compared to fuel prices.
    
    
13. When you are filling up your gas tank, resist the temptation to ‘top off’ the tank. Rather than help improve fuel mileage directly, this simply saves you from wasting gas. Gasoline is like any other liquid, and thus subject to changes in temperature. If the temperature rises, the gasoline may expand and overflow, thus wasting the gas instead of allowing it to fuel your vehicle.
    
    
14. Another good way to improve gas mileage is to avoid excess idling. You will save significant amounts of fuel over time if you don’t let it idle while waiting to leave in the morning or while waiting to pick someone up.
    
    
15. Drive less by consolidating destinations. One excellent way to improve gas mileage is to combine your tasks into a smaller number of trips. If you can buy more days of groceries at one time by doing some simple planning, this is one of the easiest ways to increase gas mileage there is.
    
    
16. Park your car in a garage when possible. By keeping your vehicle away from extreme temperatures, you reduce the amount of fuel needed to balance out the temperature when it comes time to drive. A garage keeps it cooler in summer and warmer in winter, saving more fuel for driving rather than temperature control.
    
    
17. When it comes time to replace your tires, one of the little known ways to improve gas mileage of all is to use low rolling resistance tires. These are designed specifically to waste less energy in the way the rubber meets the pavement. They allow you to go further with less resistance, ultimately improving the use of gasoline and increasing your gas mileage.
    
    
18. When you are driving an automatic transmission, use your overdrive gears (1 and 2 on the shifting bar) whenever possible and practical to do so. These gears slow down the speed of the car’s engine, thus burning less fuel and running more gently on the engine itself.

Start by slowly implementing one or two of the money saving tips and before long you’ll start to see a sizeable difference in the amount of money that you spend each week buying gas for your vehicle. You don’t need to make big changes all at once but if you try to adopt as many of the tips and suggestions listed here you’ll be able to save yourself money, increase your gas mileage and improve your fuel economy.

Useful Information

 Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Fuel economy in automobiles.

 US EPA Fuel Economy
 Fuel economy data used by consumers and and various government organizations.

 Drive Smarter Challenge
 Take the Drive Smarter Challenge and get more money-saving fuel-efficiency ideas.

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