Fuel efficiency: How to maximize yours
Maximize your car鈥檚 fuel efficiency.
Over the last five years, we鈥檝e put an average of 20,000 miles a year (combined) on our vehicles. When you鈥檙e driving that many miles, even a little bit of fuel efficiency makes a huge difference.
For example, if we鈥檙e getting 15 miles per gallon and I discover a way to get that mileage up to 16 per gallon, suddenly we鈥檙e burning through 83 gallons of gas less per year. At $3 a gallon, that鈥檚 $250 a year in gasoline savings.
If you can make a bigger jump 鈥� from 15 to, say, 20 miles per gallon 鈥� you鈥檙e saving more than $1,000 per year if you drive as much as we do.
That can be a huge savings, particularly when most of the choices you make don鈥檛 really impact your day-to-day life. Here are eight specific steps you can take to improve your fuel efficiency.
Shop for fuel efficiency. When you鈥檙e looking for a replacement for your current car, keep a serious eye out for fuel efficiency. Use sites like to find out the fuel efficiency of the models you鈥檙e considering and give an extra look to models with better fuel efficiency. If you can buy a car with 5 miles per gallon more efficiency, you鈥檒l save significant money every year you own it.
Don鈥檛 speed. When you鈥檙e speeding, your car uses fuel much less efficiently. A car traveling 75 miles per hour is much less fuel efficient than a car traveling 55 miles per hour. Beyond that, you also run the risk of acquiring traffic tickets if you speed, which not only have their own cost but also increase the cost of your insurance.
Maintain even acceleration. You eat gas whenever you press down the gas pedal in your car. The most efficient way to drive is to maintain even acceleration, meaning you don鈥檛 push the pedal down and you don鈥檛 let it up, either. Cruise control works for this if you鈥檙e driving where it鈥檚 flat, but if you鈥檙e in a hilly area, you鈥檙e better off doing it yourself, speeding up on the downhill slope and slowing down when going uphill.
Air up your tires. Fill up your tires to the maximum recommended pressure in the owner鈥檚 manual in your automobile, which takes into account the mass of your car. Every pound of pressure that you鈥檙e low in any of your tires results in a 1/8% reduction in fuel efficiency 鈥� and almost everyone鈥檚 tire pressure is at least five pounds low per tire. If that鈥檚 true for you, just airing up your tires would result in at least a 2.5% increase in fuel efficiency 鈥� it鈥檚 like going from a 20 mile per gallon car to a 21 mile per gallon car. I check my pressures every month.
Minimize your car鈥檚 weight (unless it鈥檚 winter). The more weight your automobile is carrying, the more work the engine has to do and the less fuel efficient your car is. The best solution is to minimize your car鈥檚 weight, which is a good idea when the roads aren鈥檛 slick.
Use the right kind of motor oil. Read your car鈥檚 manual and make sure that whatever service you鈥檙e using to get your oil changed is putting the right kind of oil in your car. Using the wrong kind of oil can result in a 2% loss in fuel efficiency for your car (on top of other potential problems).
Turn off the ignition instead of idling. If you鈥檙e sitting for more than fifteen seconds, turn off your car鈥檚 engine rather than just idling. Idling eats up gas 鈥� it鈥檚 essentially burning money. I turn off the engine even at some stoplights, but I always turn it off when waiting on trains, in traffic jams, or waiting on accidents.
Use a warehouse club. This is the single best principle I鈥檝e found for saving money directly on the gas you buy. Over the course of a year, we pay for a Sam鈥檚 Club membership solely through the gasoline savings. Our local Sam鈥檚 Club offers gas at least $0.04 per gallon less expensive than each of their competitors. If we use 1,000 gallons of gas over the course of a year, there鈥檚 the $40 for our membership. Any savings we actually get for anything else is subsidized just by the gas.
Saving money on your car鈥檚 fuel efficiency is a great way to cut down on your costs in the coming year. Best of all, most of the methods are things you can do just once and reap the rewards from for a long time.
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