You have probably heard theses gas saving tips from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and whoever taught you to drive. Yet very few people actually bother to implement them.
Why is that? Are people tired of hearing them? Have these gas saving tips been said so many times that people tune them out? Well, you are going to hear them again in this series of articles, along with the reasons why they DO work!
Gas Saving Tip #1: Know Your Vehicle's Fuel Efficiency
The actual fuel efficiency of your car will probably differ from that stated on the price sticker. Variables such as make, model, weather, city or interstate driving, and driving habits will affect the fuel efficiency. Efficiency is measured in miles driven per gallon of gasoline used (miles per gallon or mpg).
That is why you should periodically calculate your vehicle's fuel efficiency. If you see it decreasing, you know that something's not right with the engine and can take quick action to fix it.
Some people are unaware of how to properly calculate fuel efficiency. It is more than simply dividing miles by gallons. For example, if someone drives 500 miles and then buys 1 gallon of gas, the fuel efficiency is not 500 miles per gallon!
Here is the proper method to calculate fuel efficiency in mpg:
1. Fill up your gas tank. Do not top it off.
2. Write down the starting mileage.
3. Drive until the tank is almost empty.
4. Fill the tank up again the next time you need to buy gas.
5. Write down the ending mileage.
6. Write down the number of gallons of gas it took to fill up the tank.
7. Calculate the Miles Traveled as the Ending Mileage minus the Starting Mileage.
8. The fuel efficiency in mpg = Miles Traveled / Gallons Used
Example:
A driver fills up her tank when the odometer reads 25,000 miles. When the tank is almost empty, she fills up with 18.5 gallons, and the odometer reads 25,500 miles.
Starting Mileage = 25,000 miles
Ending Mileage = 25,500 miles
Miles Traveled = 25,500 - 25,000 = 500 miles
Gallons Used = 18.5 gallons
Fuel Efficiency = 500 miles / 18.5 gallons = 27 mpg
If her next efficiency calculation under similar driving conditions is only 20 mpg, she knows that something is wrong with the vehicle.
As gas prices go higher, the need to save gas and save money on fuel is greater than ever. More gas saving tips can be found at the website below.
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