Driving is a part of daily life for every American , but it can also be expensive. If you’re looking for ways to save gas while driving, here are some tips on how to save gas while driving.
How to Save Gas: Some Suggestions
Buy Gas Using Gas Apps
There are many apps that can help you find the best gas prices. Some of them, like Upside and GasBuddy are the gas discount app that will show you where the nearest gas station is and let you know how much it costs so that you can decide whether or not it’s worth your time to fill up there. You can also use these apps to plan a route based on where the cheapest gas is.
Another great thing about using one of these apps such GetUpside is being able to save up to $.25c per gallon on each gas station. So make sure to download the getupside app and start getting a discount.
Check your tire pressure
Check your tire pressure when it’s cold. You should check your tire pressure in the morning, before you leave for work or school. This is because the air inside of a tire expands as it warms up during the day.
Check all 4 tires at once. Don’t just get out of your car in front of one tire and check its pressure—check all four tires together!
It’s best to use an accurate gauge when measuring your tire pressure, but if you don’t have one handy, then buy one at online marketplace such as amazon.
Follow the speed limit
The first thing you should do is follow the speed limit. This doesn’t mean driving as fast as possible, but rather observing the posted limits for your vehicle and road. The speed limit is set by the government and can be changed at any time, so it’s important not to assume that a particular stretch of highway will always have a certain speed limit.
In some states, it may be tempting to drive faster than the legal maximum because traffic moves more quickly than other people around you—but always keep in mind that driving at a slower pace can actually make your trip more comfortable and help reduce gas consumption.
Maintain your vehicle
The first step to saving gas while driving is to make sure your vehicle is in good condition. If you have a car that’s in good shape, you’re more likely to get better mileage out of it.
Here are several things you can do:
- Check your tire pressure regularly, as this will positively impact your gas mileage. If one or more tires are under-inflated, the car uses more fuel and produces more wear on the tires than it should. So check them once a month and keep them properly filled at all times (this takes about five minutes). This will increase fuel efficiency by up to 3%.
- Change your air filter regularly—at least every year or so—to keep dust from clogging up key components like the engine and radiator. A clogged air filter can lead to excessive engine wear due both to improper cooling (leading ultimately towards overheating) as well as increased resistance for incoming gasses which translates into less power being produced by each cylinder stroke when running on full throttle.
Use cruise control on the highway
Cruise control is a wonderful thing, and can be very useful when driving long distances. It allows you to set your desired speed and then keep that speed by automatically applying the brakes and engine throttle as needed to maintain your chosen speed. You can also use cruise control on short trips around town, but this is not its intended purpose.
Drive normally
The first rule of saving gas is to drive normally. This means driving at a comfortable speed, avoiding speeding up and slowing down, accelerating quickly when you start to drive, driving under the speed limit, and driving too slowly or too fast.
While it may seem counterintuitive to avoid speeding up in order to save gas (driving faster uses more gas), there’s a reason for this: every time you accelerate your vehicle puts stress on its engine—and that stress requires additional energy from your fuel tank.
If you’re going over 70 miles per hour (a bit over 100 km/h) then chances are good that even after accounting for aerodynamic drag effects like rolling resistance and wind resistance, your vehicle is using more energy than if it were traveling at 65 miles per hour (105 km/h).
Avoid long idling
Idling your car is wasting fuel and causing unnecessary pollution. It’s also a safety issue, because your vehicle could stall while you’re stopped at an intersection or in traffic. If it is safe to do so, turn the engine off when you are stopped for more than a minute. Use the parking brake while parked to keep it from rolling away. Don’t idle in neutral or drive with your foot on the gas pedal—in either case, you’ll use up more fuel than necessary just keeping the engine running
Use the A/C as little as possible
In general, your car’s air conditioning system will consume more gas than the heating system. When you are driving at a constant speed, any fluctuation in gas usage is because of how much power the engine has to make up for hills or headwinds. Therefore, it makes sense that using the A/C will cause your car to use more fuel than usual when you’re going up and down hills—and even more so if there’s a lot of traffic around you!
Change filters
There are two types of filters: the engine air filter and the fuel filter. The engine air filter should be changed every 12,000 miles, or at least once per year. A dirty fuel filter can cause your car to use more gas than it needs to while driving and will decrease your overall mileage by up to 20%.
Choose the best route
The first thing you can do to save gas on a road trip is to choose the best route. It’s tempting to just hop in your car and go, but if you plan ahead and consider all of the variables that affect fuel consumption, you can save yourself money at the pump.
Here are some tips:
- Avoid rush hour traffic. You might think that driving during peak hours will be faster because there are fewer cars on the road, but this isn’t always true—you may end up sitting in traffic for longer periods than normal.
- Avoid toll roads whenever possible; they’re often less direct than other routes and can add miles onto a trip without saving much time or money in return.
- If possible, avoid surface streets (or county roads) when driving long distances; these tend to have more speed limits lower than highways do, which means fewer opportunities for speeding up while maintaining safe speeds overall (and thus less gas used).
Final Words
We hope you learned something from these tips. If anything, it’s that there are many ways to make your car more efficient and save gas. It’s important to keep a few things in mind when doing so: firstly, the best way to save on gas is by driving regularly and carefully; secondly, always check the weather forecast before heading out on a long journey because if it looks like rain or snow then plan accordingly (such as bringing an umbrella). The third tip is simply common sense but worth repeating: don’t drive faster than necessary!
