• Home
  • About Evelyn Kanter
  • Evelyn Kanter’s Books & Apps
  • In The News
  • Workshops
  • NYC on the Cheap

Evelyn Kanter ecoXplorer

smarter traveling, driving and spending

  • Green Hotels
  • Green Cars
    • Best Cars under $20,000
    • Test Drives
    • Diesel Cars
    • Electric Cars
    • Hybrid Cars
    • Hydrogen Fuel Cell
    • Luxury Drives
  • Travel Deals
    • Free
    • Budget Travel
    • Discount Tickets
  • Xplore More
    • Safety and Health
    • How To
    • Five Best
    • Travel Pioneers
    • Motorcycles
    • Vintage Cars
  • Scam Alert
  • Where to Go Next
    • Historic Travel
    • Epic Adventures
    • National Parks
You are here: Home / Green Travel / How to Save Money at the Gas Pump

How to Save Money at the Gas Pump

Leave a Comment

gas saving tips_ecoXplorerIt doesn’t matter whether gas prices are up or down. Whatever the price, you’ll save money at the gas pump if you tune up, slow down and lighten up.

How to squeeze more miles out of each gallon of gas

Tune Up

A properly tuned engine can improve fuel economy about 4 percent, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Fixing a serious issue – such as faulty oxygen sensor – can boost mileage up to 40 percent.

If you have a late model car equipped with a service-engine-soon light, don’t ignore the warning.

Pump Up

Properly inflated tires improve gas mileage up to 3 percent or more, plus properly inflated tires are safer and last longer.

Under-inflated tires can lower fuel economy by 0.3 percent for every one pound-per-square-inch drop in the pressure of all four tires.

Do not rely solely on the tire pressure monitoring system to detect an under-inflated tire; you should also check tires with a good gauge once a month.

Unpack

Turning your vehicle into an attic or garage on wheels makes your vehicle work harder and use more gas.

The EPA says an extra 100 pounds reduces fuel economy up to 2 percent, and even more in smaller vehicles.

A loaded roof rack cuts fuel economy by up to 5 percent.

Since about a quarter of each gallon of gas goes toward overcoming wind resistance, when cargo rides on top of the vehicle, fuel economy is reduced.

Even empty ski/snowboard and bike racks can affect aerodynamics, so remove them when the seasons are over.

summer car careSlow Down

While each vehicle reaches its optimal fuel economy at a different speed or range of speeds, gas mileage decreases rapidly at speeds above 60 mph.

According to the EPA, every 5 mph over 60 mph is like adding an additional 24 cents per gallon for gas.

Avoid Idling

A car gets zero mpg when the engine is idling. Even though it does take a small amount of fuel to restart a vehicle, 15 minutes in the drive-through can burn through a quarter of a gallon of fuel.

So that dollar menu is more like a $2 menu.

Chill Out

Speeding, rapid acceleration and braking can lower gas mileage by 33 percent on the highway and 5 percent in city driving.

Put it in Overdrive

Using an overdrive gear on the highway reduces engine speed, saving both fuel and engine wear.

Roll ‘Em Down Around Town

Air conditioning reduces fuel efficiency by up to 10 percent. Avoid using the air conditioner by rolling down the windows at speeds below 40 mph.

At speeds above 45 mph, wind drag uses more fuel than running the A/C.

tips for stress-free road tripUnclog

It’s hard to run if you can’t breathe.

Older cars without fuel injection and computer-controlled technology can lose 14 percent of their fuel economy because of a dirt-clogged air filter, which also can damage the engine.

An air filter full of dirt makes the engine work harder and can let in impurities that damage the engine.

Replacing a severely plugged filter improves fuel economy by up to 14 percent, according to the EPA. In modern cars, replacing a dirty or clogged air filter also improves acceleration performance

Use the Right Oil

Because oil reduces engine friction and friction makes an engine work harder, using the manufacturer’s recommended grade of oil improves fuel economy by 1 percent to 2 percent.

Plan your Trips

Taking your kids to soccer or swim classes? Grocery shopping?  Plan routes and timing to avoid heavy periods of traffic congestion.

Cap Check

Loose or poorly fitting gas gaps can trigger a “check engine light” warning.  Worse, they send 147 million gallons of gasoline into the air as vapor every year, according to a report by the Discovery Channel.

A missing or poorly fitting cap can reduce fuel economy by 1 to 2 percent.

Want more tips? Check with your local Chevrolet Certified Service technician.

Thanks for visiting ecoXplorer. Stay up to date with the latest news about green travel, green cars, smart spending and frugal living by subscribing. It's free. RSS feed.
Welcome back to exoXplorer. Stay up to date with the latest news about green travel, green cars and smart spending by subscribing. It's free. RSS feed.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Skype (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Green Travel, How To Tagged With: Fuel Economy

What do you think? We value your comments and love hearing from you. Cancel reply

Most Popular Recent Posts

  • Scam Alert: Kars4Kids Car Donation Charity
    Scam Alert: Kars4Kids Car Donation Charity
  • 2 Reasons to Avoid Jimmy John's
    2 Reasons to Avoid Jimmy John's
  • Scam Alert: Mideast Peace Charities
    Scam Alert: Mideast Peace Charities
  • Lamborghini Stretch Limousine for Rent
    Lamborghini Stretch Limousine for Rent
  • Best Used Car Buys: 2005-2010 models
    Best Used Car Buys: 2005-2010 models
  • Foreign Cars Made in America
    Foreign Cars Made in America
  • Free Hotel Rooms for Cancer Patients
    Free Hotel Rooms for Cancer Patients
  • Best 2020 Green Cars & SUVs
    Best 2020 Green Cars & SUVs
  • Roam From Home: Virtual Travel
    Roam From Home: Virtual Travel
  • Scam Alert: Bahamas Free Cruise Fraud
    Scam Alert: Bahamas Free Cruise Fraud

ecoXplorer is your guide to smart spending and eco-friendly living

ecoXplorer Evelyn Kanter is a journalist with 20+ years of experience as a newspaper and magazine writer, radio & TV news producer & reporter, and guidebook and smartphone app author – all focusing on travel, automotive, the environment and your rights as a consumer.

Contact me at evelyn@ecoxplorer.com.

Also follow my NYC website, www.nyconthecheap.com.

Search ecoXplorer by category

Translate ecoXplorer

© 2010-2020 EcoXplorer by Evelyn Kanter. All the stories and photos on our site are protected by US Copyright laws. Any unauthorized copying is strictly prohibited. Plus, it’s just not nice.

  • Home
  • About Evelyn Kanter
  • Evelyn Kanter’s Books & Apps
  • In The News
  • Workshops
  • NYC on the Cheap

ecoXplorer.com is an independent information service which is compensated by advertisers and sponsors. This site includes some links to other websites which are compensated for by our sponsors when you click them.

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.