Phoenix is known for its “urban sprawl,” where suburbs and cities stretch across the entire Valley of the Sun. Back in the days of the housing boom, one popular slogan among realtors was “drive until you qualify,” meaning housing got more affordable the further you went from the city. The trade-off to that, however, was a longer commute. Since public transit in Phoenix is horrible (aside from the light rail for a few college kids), the only option for most of us is to drive if we need to get anywhere.
Now couple our economic hardships with long commutes and we find unnecessary strain on our pocketbooks. The thing that bothers me most is the single driver who uses a big pickup or SUV as their daily driver. Now, I’m not advocating that we all go out and buy a hybrid. In fact, quite the opposite. Hybrid and electric vehicles are not always cost-effective means of transportation, nor are they particularly helpful in saving the planet.
Not all of us can afford to run out and buy a new car, much less a hybrid or electric vehicle. Vehicles with these technologies often have a higher cost associated with them, which is why buying one makes little sense if your purpose is saving money. Instead of buying a new car to increase your gas mileage, I’m going to give you a couple of tips that, if applied, could put a little extra money in your pocket.
First, inflate your tires. Sure, it sounds simple, but you’d be surprised to find out how many people ignore such a simple task. Check the driver’s door area for a sticker showing the proper psi for your tires. Or, most tire shops can help you determine how much pressure your tires need. Many gas stations, including all QuikTrip locations, have free air pumps.
Second, make sure you’re using the proper fluids and changing them often. It’s important to use the recommended fuel type for your vehicle. Not only will proper fuel increase your mileage, but you’ll reduce the amount of sludge build-up and reduce your risk of engine problems. In addition to fuel, be sure to use the recommended oil and change it regularly. Many new cars can go upwards of 5,000-10,000 miles between oil changes. Waiting too long to change your oil can cause problems much more serious than bad gas mileage.
Third, put your car on a diet. There’s no reason to drive around all day with a trunk full of junk. Not only will your car get better mileage because of the weight loss, but a clean car looks much better than one full of dirty gym clothes and food wrappers. If it’s not necessary, get it out of your car. To do one better, recycle that old stuff or donate it to Goodwill or Deseret Industries.
Last, and most importantly, the best way to get more miles out of each gallon is to improve your driving habits. We all know that Arizona drivers are horrible. Heck, you might even be one of them. Well it’s time to listen up and take notes. Most vehicles achieve maximum efficiency around 55 mph. According to fueleconomy.gov, every 5mph you drive over 60 mph is like paying an extra $0.28 per gallon for gasoline.
I’m no racecar driver (although I really wish I could be), but I’m not an “eco-friendly” driver, either. Like everyone else on the U.S. 60, I tend to set my cruise around 75 mph and just go with the flow. However, a few months ago, I decided to perform a little experiment. For an entire week, the time it takes me to drain a tank of gas, I decided that I wouldn’t drive faster than 70 mph during my commute. My goal? To see how much my gas mileage would improve.
At the start of my experiment, my drive to work became frustrating. It always bothered me to have people passing me. Despite cruising in the right lanes (aka the slow people lanes), I constantly had people coming up on my tail and changing lanes at the very last second. It took a lot of patience to drive slower. But toward the end of the week, I began to enjoy my commute a lot more. In fact, the drive was a lot less stressful than it had been before. I found myself arriving at work in a better mood and less peeved at my fellow road warriors.
At the end of my test, I was surprised to see that my fuel economy had jumped from 28 mpg to over 33 mpg. I determined this by dividing the number of miles I drove by the quantity of gallons needed to fill my car to the brim. Although not a perfect system, it was accurate enough for me to see the difference. In terms of cost savings, I got an extra 5 miles of driving per gallon of gasoline. If I drive 15,000 miles per year and continue to average 33 mpg, that equals 454 gallons of gasoline, or about $1,590 (assuming $3.50 per gallon) spent to fill up my car. However, if I continue to drive the way I usually do, I’d be paying $1,875 over the course of a year. According to the estimates of fueleconomy.gov, I should be paying about $1,929, which isn’t too far off from what I experienced.
Aside from saving money at the pump, following these tips to increase our fuel mileage decreases our demand for foreign oil, mitigates our carbon emissions, and will likely reduce wear and tear on our vehicles. Visit fueleconomy.gov for more tips and tricks, and consider doing your own experiment to increase your mpg. And, if you’re so inclined, send a letter to the editor with your awesome achievements!
Ryan Biggs is a regular contributor to Nerdvana, the East Valley Tribune’s science and technology web site. Nerdvana focuses on the East Valley’s semi-conductor, defense, aerospace and bio-science industries as well as fun stuff for nerds. Ryan’s passion is cars.
bobunf posted at 12:14 am on Mon, Feb 27, 2012.
Here are some other ideas for saving money on gas:
1. Buy at Costco or use a credit card that gives discounts. Discover gives a 5% credit for six months every year. Some versions of the Chase Freedom card also periodically give a 5% credit. There are lots of other credit card deals.
2. There are other loyalty deal with Fry's, Safeway and Maverick. The Maverick Adventure Club Card always gives 2 to 4 cents off and Maverick is frequently the cheapest station around. They have 170 stores in Arizona, Nevada, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and Idaho, although none in the valley.
3. Buy on cold days, cloudy days and early in the morning. You pay for volume; so, when you buy when its cold, you buy more "mass" of fuel for the same price. Bulk deliveries of petroleum products are volume corrected to 60º F. You get about 2% less gasoline by filling when the temperature is in the low nineties, as opposed to filling when the termperature is in the low sixties. Never fill the tank completely or it will overflow when the temperature of the gasoline rises.
4. Wait to fill until the tank is near empty. This, and not filling all the way will reduce the average amount of gasoline you carry around; and this will extend your gas because you will haul a lighter load on the average. Ten gallons of gas weighs about 80 pounds. If you reduced your average gasoline load by 50 pounds, you would save around ½% of the gas you would otherwise use. There may also be some saving from less evaporation.
5. Don’t start the car until you’re ready to go; arrange your belongings, get everyone in the car; adjust the seat and mirrors; put on your seat belt; know where you’re going; all before you turn the key. Lower the windows with the engine off.
6. When you arrive, turn the car off. Don’t wait until you finish your cellphone call, or have sorted out what you’re taking with you. To listen to a few more minutes of your radio show, turn the key to the accessories position. Raise the windows with the engine off.
7. Avoid drive-throughs at fast food restaurants, banks and other places—too much idle gas consuming.
8. On the other hand, do use drive-through parking places. It takes less time, energy and gasoline to pull forward out of a parking space, than it takes to back out, and then switch gears.
9. If you’re waiting for someone, it’s usually best to turn the car off. If you don’t know how long they might take, things usually take longer than planned. Rule of thumb: one minute of idling equals one start.
10. Don’t press on the gas pedal before or while starting the car; it just tends to flood the engine and waste gas. Just turn the key and let the car start without your help from the gas pedal.
11. Don’t go to the post office; leave the envelope in the mailbox for the mailman to pick up, or use the internet for paying bills and communications where feasible. Even putting an extra unnecessary stamp on an envelope will almost always be cheaper than going to the post office.
12. Not using the AC when stopped or driving slowly will save gasoline. Having the windows open when traveling at high speeds will use more gasoline. So to save gas, keep the AC off as long as you don’t have to lower the windows at high speed. How much gas will this save? I don’t know, but I suspect one is dealing with several percent.
13. Park in the first spot you find. If you wander all over the parking lot looking for that really close parking space, you'll use more gas.
14.