Improve Gas Mileage: Tips And Ideas

There is no end in sight to high gas prices. A vehicle’s fuel economy is now a major factor in a vehicle’s affordability and total cost of ownership. Whether your vehicle is new or used, there are simple steps you can take to improve gas mileage and increase mpg.

The first area to concentrate on when improving gas mileage is driving style. Accelerating and decelerating require more fuel consumption than driving at a constant speed. Accelerating quickly burns considerably more fuel than accelerating gradually. Try accelerating more slowly until you reach your cruising speed and you will find that you can get better gas mileage without driving slower than normal. Using your vehicle’s cruise control feature can help you maintain a constant speed thereby helping you improve gas mileage.

Here are some tips about your lifestyle. Try not to idle your engine for very long it will use up valuable gas. Try not to get caught in too many traffic jams. You can change the way you go to work if you need to so that you can avoid stop and go situations. Try to multitask if you can, get everything you need in one trip instead of 3 or 4. If you can carpool do so it will take a lot of the burden off your wallet and everyone else.

The last set of tips to improve gas mileage will focus on car repair and maintenance. For the maximum fuel efficiency, the tires must be inflated up to the maximum amount of pressure shown on the tire sidewall. But over-inflation leads to uneven wear and decreased life for the tire.

You need to look at your owner’s manual and figure out the schedule for changing your air filter, fuel filter, and spark plugs. You should also have your exhaust system, engine timing, and valve clearances checked according to the schedule in your manual. If you have your car checked regularly you can improve your gas mileage and your vehicle will be less likely to break down and in general operate better for you.

Using regular gasoline in lieu of premium instead will not improve your gas mileage. It will, however, help enhance your mile-per-dollar efficiency by effectively reducing your cost of gas. When you detect pinging problems, which is usually associated with older as well as specialized high performance engines, then it might be useful to switch to premium gasoline. There is no discernible benefit to be derived from using high octane and other expensive gasoline additives. Unless specifically recommended by the car manufacturer in the user’s manual, avoid using premium gasoline.

A vehicle’s fuel economy is now a major factor in a vehicle’s affordability and total cost of ownership. Whether your vehicle is new or used, there are simple steps you can take to improve gas mileage and increase mpg. Driving at a set speed requires less fuel than accelerating. Multiple trips around town should be combined into a single trip. Carpooling saves money as the gas expenses can be divided. Tires should be inflated to the maximum pressure displayed on the tire’s sidewall. Consult your vehicle’s owners manual and follow the advised replacement schedule for air and fuel filters, and spark plugs.

- Stephan Grindley