Summer is here and you've got the whole family wagon loaded up with everything you'll need at your destination (and for a few stops along the way). You've budgeted carefully and looked at every expense along the way to make sure you stretch your dollar as much as possible, but there's one area many people overlook when planning their trip out that has tremendous money (and planet)-saving potential: fuel economy. The cost of gas has been rising steadily, and I'm betting the savings from a 10-20 percent increase in fuel efficiency in your current vehicle would go a long way at the beach (or anywhere for that matter).
Here are a few tips that may generate fuel savings on your next road trip. I'll just focus on the big ones, but if I've missed anything (moi?) please let me know in the comments section below so others may benefit.
Tip 1 - First and Foremost: Stop Driving Like a Maniac!
Remember that defensive driving course they made you take when your foot got a little heavy on that long stretch of road? Well, it turns out that what you learned may not only increase your chances of surviving the road, but may also save gas money. Chief among these tips is your acceleration rate. Next time you take off from a red light, count how long it takes you to get to 60 mph. If it's in 10 seconds or less, you are accelerating too fast. Instead try to get up to 60 mph in 15-20 seconds. Doing so could increase your fuel savings by 31-37%!
Tip 2 -What's the Rush? You're Already on Vacation!
As your speed increases, your fuel economy decreases exponentially. The physics on this is a bit over my head to be frank, but stick to this simple rule of thumb, and you're golden. Much smarter people than myself have figured out that once you cross 40 mph your car has to work harder to overcome wind resistance, and that number grows very quickly the faster you go over that. Simply driving the speed limit can save you 12-14% on fuel costs that are better spent on ice cream and cheesy souvenirs.
Tip 3 - Cruisin' Ain't Losin'
Give your right foot a rest already! Simply setting the cruise control for long stretches of road can add up to big savings on your trip - 7-14% on fuel costs, in fact! Using the cruise control greatly reduces the typical driver's surges in speed (see tip 1) and forces them to take the "long view" of the road instead of having to quickly react to everything around them. Personally, I've found that getting in the right lane, relaxing, and putting on the cruise control makes driving on a long trip less of a chore and more of an enjoyable part of the trip. Instead of worrying about what the guy ahead or behind me is doing, I give them plenty of space and am able to take in the scenery as we roll down the road.
Tips 4 - Idle Engines are the Devil's Work
This is an easy one. You aren't burning fuel if your car is off, but it takes a little extra to start the engine up - so what's the magic number of time to stop idling? Follow this rule of thumb: If you're going to be stopped for more than a minute, go ahead and turn the car off. The amount of fuel you'd be using will be more than what it would take to start the engine up. Avoiding excessive idling can save up to 19 percent!
So those are the biggest fuel-savers I could find, though in the course of my research, I learned a few other tips I've never considered, like using premium gas on longer road trips for savings of about 10%. What else did I miss? Let me know on the comments section below. By the way, did you know that according to the EPA, we put 19.4 lbs of CO2 into the atmosphere for every gallon of gas we burn? Clearly it's in the planet's best interest for us to do what we can to cut down on our fuel consumption.
How about trading your car in for a more fuel efficent one? That's one way to increase your MPG. If you don't mind driving something a little older the cost is negligible. We rock a 2001 Toyota Camry (Manual 4-cylinder) for most trips and easily get 30MPG. A car doesn't need to be brand new to get get fuel efficency.