With the price of gasoline in America selling for more than most people ever imagined, we're all quite interested in learning more about how to get better fuel economy. It isn't hard to do. You just need to stay focused on squeezing as much out of a gallon of fuel as you can.
Here are three simple techniques that contribute to more miles per gallon. Each contributes a little to the equation. Practice these and many other techniques to get the highest fuel efficiency that your vehicle is designed to provide. If you ignore the techniques, you'll be paying more than you should to operate your vehicle.
The first techniques is simply driving out farther in front of your bumper than you normally do. This means keeping an eye on the road way out ahead of yourself so you can anticipate slow downs, stops, the need to exit the road, and the need to accelerate a bit.
For example, climbing a hill requires gradual acceleration to help get over the hill without the need to drop down into lower gears. If you wait until you are on the incline, you'll be wasting fuel by stomping on the gas or dropping down a gear or two to climb it. The easier way is to anticipate the incline and gradually accelerate to climb the hill while maintaining momentum so you stay in top gear.
Just remember to watch your speed as you increase it a bit in order to climb the hill. A speeding ticket costs way more than any fuel you might save by using this technique.
We're often told to keep our car serviced to obtain the best fuel economy. This is still good advice, especially for older cars that don't have computer controls to help keep fuel economy optimal as you drive. If you're still driving a carburetor fed engine, a tune-up once a year or every 10,000 miles is a good idea.
For any vehicle, keep up on your air and gas filters. A clogged air filter makes your engine work harder to pull in air. A clogged fuel filter can lead to failure that dumps sediment into the carburetor or fuel injectors.
One of the best ways to know if you need a tune-up is to monitor your fuel economy with every fill up. You should know what kind of economy your vehicle gets based on the type of driving you're doing and the time of year. Summer provides the best fuel economy, while winter provides the worst.
Turn off the AC, and you'll improve your miles per gallon a bit. On older cars, the AC compressor runs all the time, so it is a constant load on your engine. This affects fuel economy all the time you are driving. Also, be aware that some models turn on the AC when the "climate control" is in any position except "vent" and "off". That means even "defrost" and "heat" cause the AC compressor to run.
Newer models run the AC compressor intermittently, so they have less effect on your fuel economy. Nevertheless, it is still a good idea to minimize use of the AC at lower speeds and just roll down a window. If at highway speeds, use the AC instead of opening a window. Also, turning off the AC a few miles before your destination will allow you to grab the remaining cooling effect from the heat exchanger by just letting the fan run on the recirculation mode.
Clair Schwan is an expert in frugal living, and has 38 ways to save gas, get better gas mileage and purchase cheaper fuel. See his gas saving ideas and more frugal living tips at http://www.frugal-living-freedom.com
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