You don’t have to own a car operated by solar energy or ultra-expensive hydrogen fuel cells to make a difference. You can get started today with your very own car. Here you will find a few tips to help you get the most mileage out of your car, which in turn will also reduce emissions by hundreds of pounds of Co2 per month.
If a million people follow these steps, and assuming the savings are 5% of the emissions and gas, we are talking about hundreds of gallons of gas per month that are saved, and many tons of Co2 not produced. These changes start with you, and some of my tips are free. Feel free to write your own additions as a comment to make this article more complete.
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Drive your car at the most efficient speed.
Cars are optimized to run the greatest distance per measure of gas, at a speed of around 45 miles an hour. At lower speeds, the gear ratio makes the engine perform more revolutions to move the car. This means that the engine has to perform more cycles to move the car from point a, to point b. Acceleration is not linear, due to drag and the performance of an engine which is not linear. This means, after the rpms go midway, the car becomes inefficient. -
Conserve momentum.
If you accelerate and brake many times, you constantly waste momentum or kinetic energy as opposed to when you drive smooth. Ideally, you want to minimize the changes in speed, as this makes the engine spend more energy trying to accelerate the weight of the car. When you drive smoothly, you can save as much as 10% of your gas. -
Keep the tires at optimum pressure.
Under pressurized tires become more abrasive and the friction with the road surface is much higher. This results in tires that don’t last long and more resistance to speed. This becomes another way to waste energy and fuel. -
Reduce Weight in your car.
Weight is resistance to acceleration. Do not carry unnecessary luggage in your car, and use alloy wheels. These are two measures you can take to reduce weight in your car. -
Replace your Air filter.
A clogged air filter will affect the air flow and intake. This creates an unbalance in the movement of air, and causes the car to not completely burn fuel on every cycle. This also results in a loss of power. -
Maintenance and Tune up.
This one is self explanatory. -
Avoid unnecessary trips.
Take measures such as car pooling. Make sure you buy all the groceries that you need so you don’t have to be back to the super market the next day. Consider using public transportation whenever possible.
It is especially important to check your tire pressure as it is getting colder outside since the cold reduces tire pressure.
A lot of the advice given here on maintaining your vehicle make sense. However, I find it most unhelpful to be told how to drive. Engines when they are at their designed maximum temperature operate most efficiently. Though I wouldn’t advise screwing them until they’re nice & warm.
As an aside, I believe that what the public are spoonfed re global warming, is a load of absolute tosh. Global warming may or may not be a fact, but it is utter vanity to state that our species is the cause. We ain’t that ‘good’ that we can defeat nature, short of a nuclear war.
Now why don’t all you do gooders get a nice Gardner 6-pot to play with. Or a sexy Cummins L10. As long as you’re not tipping battery acid into streams, you’re not doing any harm.
PS I have a lot of respect for David Attenborough. Which would explain why I was somewhat vexed when he was on tv the other night: he was talking about ‘global warming’ and was strategically placed in front of half a dozen cooling towers.
WHEN WILL YOU GUILT RIDDEN DO GOODERS REALISE THAT COOLING TOWERS RELEASE NOTHING MORE THAN VAPOURISED WATER, IE *STEAM* !?!
You aren’t doing yourselves any favours !
Get a grip FFS
Regards,
Dr Diesel.
Hardly interesting or new topic.
I think PM and Consumer reports covered this for last three decades?
But, the “Dr” may be” Diesel” … Dr Diesel
Here are a few more…
To save 4-8 mpg don’t get rid of your big safe vehicle before trying a few racing tips. For under $100 increase your fuel economy by 4-8 mpg. My GEO gained about 5mpg overall but it is a much lighter vehicle.
The whole point is my tips are good for the life of your ride, increase HP and MPG while making it last a lot longer.
Advanced auto has your :[/URL][URL=http://www.knfilters.com/filtercharger.htm]knfilters.com
(good for 2-4 mpg) Use a K&N air filter (lifetime warranty)
(good for 2-3 mpg) E3 Spark plugs good for 3-4 mpg (lifetime warranty)[/URL][URL=http://www.e3sparkplugs.com/]e3sparkplugs.com
Yes dahhh – DON’T STEP ON IT OR TAILGATE. These are the biggest gas wasters.“jackrabbit starts†and abrupt stops waste fuel but they also cause extra wear and tear.
Keep wheels aligned and rotate every oil change.
Here are more ways to save on gas:
Using “lighter†viscosity oil can save as much as 2-3 mpg .
Misaligned wheels, worn wheel bearings or dragging brakes also can reduce fuel economy by 10%
Buy the low octane fuel NEVER 93. Reformulated gas is already destructive to your engine Most cars work fine on regular gas (unless you hear an engine knock). But you should use the octane the carmaker specifies if you have a HOT ROD running 10:1 or great compression. http://www.repairfaq.org/filipg/AUTO/F_Gasoline6.html
Use your air conditioner wisely. Running your air conditioner greatly increases gas consumption. Don’t use it if fresh air will cool the vehicle sufficiently.
Lighten the load. Don’t use your trunk to store stuff – extra tires, beach chairs, a case of motor oil. Added weight lowers fuel economy. A rooftop luggage rack also creates drag that will reduce mileage.
Stay out of traffic. Also try to avoid unnecessary idling, which burns more gas than turning off and restarting the engine.
CAR POOL – It is more fun to drive with a drunk friend than no one at all 😉
Plan your errands. Taking frequent short trips will guzzle gas. Instead, try to combine errands with your daily commute: Pick up your dry cleaning on the way home from work, for example.
Fill up in the morning. You’ll get slightly more fuel for your dollar if you fill up when it’s cooler outside. (Cooler gasoline is more compact.) Over time, the savings can add up
Change fuel filter every 24,000 or two years in cold areas water collects and causes more fuel consumption.
Change your oil and check the filters every 5000 miles for peak performance (any more is a waste of $$$$ and gives NO benefit).
Also consider the problems with ethanol fuel?
In their own words, here are the major problems with E85 (i.e. reformulated gas)
GOV & Toyota nailing the major problems.
http://www.voiceyourself.com/08_gettinofthegrid/08_5ways07.php
[URL= http://www.voiceyourself.com/08_gettinofthegrid/08_5ways07.php%5Dfuel%5B/URL%5D
Seriously… [URL=http://www.christopherhaase.com/blog/2005/06/pseudoscience-threat-to-our.html]The Pseudoscience of Using[/URL] Ethanol & Hybrids to the gain “green†buyers & P.R. will be the greatest threat to our Environment and Economy in the next decade… Look what it did in just Wisconsin in 5 years…..
[URL=http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/19128]Ethanol and its unintended consequences[/URL][B]Link[/B]
In a modern engine ethanols BTU loss is well documented by both CARB & EPA… Please keep in mind, if YOUR car is light, and very efficient. The larger the mass and inefficiency of a vehicle the more negative impact ethanol has i.e. the worst polluting vehicles will pollute more and use more.
ADM – Supermarket to the world
[URL=http://www.christopherhaase.com/blog/2007/01/again-i-ask-fuel-or-food.html]Play GOD – Food or Fuel (link)[/URL]
On the other end, requiring all vehicles with a GVW of 3,000 lbs or more to run on diesel would have the exact opposite effect increasing mpg 10-20 vs Ethanol… Again simple BTU / GVW well documented by transit authority for decades…
Need more “fuel” for thought? Just ask.
Christopher Haase
Christopher,
You said, “Hardly interesting or new topic. I think PM and Consumer reports covered this for last three decades?”. I still don’t think that people understand these type of tips though. They must be pounded in- over and over. I think that the article was well written and a little more in depth than most of the “save gas with these tips” kind of articles. It seems that all you did was rehash what the author wrote, and try to promote your own blog. Just my two cents…
Acetone has gotten me major mile per gal. I keep tight records because I drive older cars (so I can work on them) and am looking to get the best mileage out of them. People see me at the gas station pouring 5 oz. of acetone in and ask me what I am doing. Now I see people doing the same for themselves. My ’83 S10 pickup with utility box weighs 4200 lbs. When I got it the mpg was 11.5. Maximum mpg now is 17.5. The most significant increase was due to acetone, 3 oz for every 10 gallons at the pump. ’86 Suzuki Sidekick got 29 mpg when we got it now gets 37 mpg. ’80 Chevy vandura camper got 7 mpg at purchase not gets 11 mpg. The latter two were gains from acetone only.
I am the inventor of Vapster, a fuel vaporizing device which converts liquid fuel into vaporized fuel. I have been testing over a year on my Mazda MX-6. Typical highway mileage for this car is 30.5 MPG. With the Vapster device I average 42 MPG. Some runs are at 44 MPG. Further improvements to the system will push the mileage into the 50 MPG range.
I have contacted the engineering depts. of the University of Miami, Florida Atlantic University, Georgia Tech, MIT, and University of Florida to be a third party witness to this device. Sadly to say nobody has come forward to witness this amazing device.
Good work, but I do have a couple of exceptions:
1. Not all cars get optimal gas mileage at 45 mph. It really depends on the individual car.
2. Just as under inflated tires can rob you of gas mileage, over inflated tires can make for some seriously dangerous driving conditions.
Stokes – Good point on Acetone. I would put some of the Acetone info I have here, but I think it would upset Jeff…
Jeff did you “read” my post?
I guess you made a better point this is a total “rehash” from many sources.
My post? It is a “fuel discussion” not a “rehash”, I just included a few extra things “I personally did” to my own car to add 10mpg.
Seriously, did you read what I posted about fuels. It is actually relevant and important, unlike this thread.
“promote†what? I have no ad’s, link backs, products?? I promote others Jeff as they help me to learn and succeed in a life I am very thankful for.
But, in case you doubt me… I just shut down my “blog” to further your point a person should not link to critical information….
“two cents” – Please get to know me before you judge me. I didn’t think this site was the digg… Yikes.
Christopher,
The “Leave A Comment” feature of WordPress is for everyone to share their views. Please do not draw us into your feud with Jeff_Kalish. I would also ask that you not use our bandwidth by displaying our site on yours. I would prefer that you link to us, as you would then not be using our bandwidth. I would not take anything said by other people commenting too personally. I don’t have a problem with anything that you said, so feel free to comment. Thanks!
I’ve two older cars: 1989 Cadillac Seville, and 1985 Toyota EFI Pickup. I’ve put a Condensator in both, and both have had great improvements. The Caddy went from 13.5 mpg around town to 18.5 mpg. On the highway it’s even up to about 22 mpg. The pickup went from 19 mpg around town to 25 mpg. This, of course, is in addition cutting down carbon build up in the engine and crudding up the catalytic converter.
I heartily recommend this device (and I have no financial interest in the firm or its sales at all).
Nice…
Cool.
a little bit off topic did any one see the 60 minutes show 2 nights ago with Bloom Energy..?
HEHEHE i like cars 🙂