MY TIPS - to INCREASE your GAS MILAGE

[TooManyGizmos]

~


GAS prices are HIGH ...... and still rising !!

Sometimes we forget to do routine-preventative maintanance on our vehicles .

Here are some things you may not have done recently ... but should consider !

Change your plugs and air cleaner and pour in some fuel injector cleaner to your gas tank
to improve your gas milage. At 4.00 per gallon , it should add some M.P.G's .

You might also put 2 to 3 more P.S.I. in your tires to reduce rolling resistance.
But don't add too much air which might affect traction, turning, or braking distance
and may cause hydro-planing in the rain.

Remove excess weight that may have accumulated - which robs fuel milage.

And be sure you have air pressure in your spare tire and propper flat repair tools.

These are the things we ALL ..... forget to do .

Racing to the next red light two blocks away is very bad on your milage and wallet.

~

[ElectronGuru]

Totally good tips.


Consider also larger changes...

We changed a few years ago, to a vehicle with a third of the weight and 3x the MPG.

Moving somewhere less sprawled out also helps (yeah, impossible in the US for anyplace built after WWII)!

Went from spending hours every day on the freeways, filling a 30G tank every week - to walking many places in a 1920's neighborhood and filling a 15G tank once a month (annual savings: 1260G).

[StarHalo]

You might also put 2 to 3 more P.S.I. in your tires to reduce rolling resistance.

Mythbusters already busted this one; even if you add enough PSI to make the tire dangerous, the MPG gain is negligible.

But speaking of the Mythbusters, don't forget that they added a staggering 11% MPG with no change to the engine or driveability..

[gollum]

living 3.2 kms from work helps a lot with extending my trips to the bowser

I am getting about 5-7 weeks out of a tank

[Helmut.G]

Mythbusters already busted this one; even if you add enough PSI to make the tire dangerous, the MPG gain is negligible.

Even if that is true having the proper tire pressure or more still makes your car a lot safer, so do it anyway.
Going up from recommended pressure might have little effect, but a too low pressure will definitely increase fuel consumption.
Also if you put in more air it will last longer until you have to re-fill.




My tips:

Don't use the car for short trips. A cold engine will use like two times the fuel on the first half mile.

Buy a lightweight car.
Every time you accelerate you need to drag all those tons up to speed and every time you get a red light all that energy is GONE.
In germany this would be "Buy a lightweight DIESEL car." because diesel engines need A LOT less fuel, but I see they aren't popular in the US.

Drive in a smart way. Don't accelerate when you know you'll have to brake very soon. Every acceleration burns a lot of gas. If you have a red light, let the car roll.

Story: I was in a cab some time ago and the driver was going like an idiot (this story was not the worst he did). One time we were going at a good speed and had a red traffic light approaching in front. It was already red for some time so it was clear (small town and you know your traffic lights) that it would turn green soon.
The driver kept his foot on the gas pedal, maintained his speed and had to brake quite hard to a complete halt. Half a second after we stopped the light turned green.
Had he instead let the car roll 40 meters before the light he would never have had to even touch the brake. We could have gone faster while saving fuel.


keep a proper distance to the cars in front of you. I know this is often hard when the other guy is going so SLOWLY, but it really helps saving and safety.
If a car in front of you has to slow down in order to turn and you have no distance, you will have to slow down as well. Re-accelerating uses your expensive gas.


EDIT: I forgot this one but it's important:
Try to make little use of your air conditioning. AC needs an incredible lot of gas. Heating is fine as it uses waste heat the engine produces anyway.
Set your AC a couple degrees higher and you will save.
Open the doors only for short times when AC is active or your cool air will escape and you need more gas to make new cool air.



Tips for manual shifters:

Always go in highest gear possible. This really saves a lot and your engine loves the low RPMs.

accelerate fast while switching gears up fast When accelerating, push the gas pedal down 3/4 of the way. Most engines are most efficient around this point, by far. (only accelerate if it makes sense to accelerate of course)

go to neutral and roll when it makes sense. You wouldn't believe how far your car will roll, while the engine uses next to nothing in idle. Works especially well when going down a light hill, or on the short way to the next red traffic light.


If you want to make saving as much as you can a hobby and there's no traffic you would bother, you can alternate between accelerating in highest gear and rolling. This way when you use your engine it's in its most efficient state possible. The difference this makes is bigger than you might think.
Many engines can be as efficient as 25% (diesel 35%) but in normal driving will be around 10% or less . That's where the difference comes from.



By the way, when going at a constant speed most cars use the least gas when you drive 35-45 MPH in highest gear.
Going slower the friction in the drive train burns your gas (especially when you need lower gears), going faster the air resistance increases.
Going faster than 80 the air resistance increases A LOT.

[orbital]

+

~ Using particularly smooth acceleration and braking will help the most >> think smooth, smooth, smooth.
~ Make sure your transmission fluid is in tip-top condition
~ Proper tire pressure, but do not over-inflate
~ If I may add,,,,Lucas Fuel Treatment* (Injector Cleaner on label) works very well on making your engine run smooth.
The cost is easily half of what you'll get in gas savings, trust me it is. = Both Injected & carbureted setups
Iv' been using it a few years now // buy the gallon jug. {no I don't work for Lucas}
~ Make less short trips, the starting up & turning off your motor is a gas gulper
~ If its open and clear, applicable & safe, tuck in behind a semi on the highway & take a load off.....
~ Generally, be smart

* This is a cleaner/lubricant, not a detergent,,,,,,big difference between the two types

_______________

Lastly,,,,,With a manual transmission, don't under'rev your motor,
this will do you more harm than good in the end.

[NonSenCe]

in cold weather. pre heat the engine with engine block warmer/ oil pan warmer.. anything colder than 30-40f weather you can help your engine by preheating it for 20mins or more (depending how cold it is out there)

more efficiency better mileage. sometimes changing the stock exhaust and intake from stock will make a difference. (making little more power, more efficiently in lower rpm can mean you do get better mileage) cost vs reward is a problem sometimes.. (so looking at the junkyards for the parts from a car with higher output might be a good option.

re-programming the chip in modern cars is also a good way to up the power and some programs actually can inprove the mileage too. ask around, see if its possible for your car.

tire sizes do matter. big and wide tires are not fuel efficient. (dont change from the original size of tyre much. wide threads eat power!) little taller profile will help with gear ratio too. and there are tires that roll easier than others. (environment green ideas offered to public) there are independent tire tests done.. check the rolling resistance on those tests and you can choose a tire that will save you few dollars on the road as it takes less power to move around.

check the aerodynamics of your car. personal experience: if it was supposed to have a protecting pan under the engine and you or someone else took it out because it was in the way while doing oil change and never installed it back.. put it back. it was meant to be there for 1. protection 2. helping with airflow. - just installing the bottom plate back helped with my cars mileage with little under 0.5mpg. (every little helps) dont have any extra airflow resistors in your car if you dont need them all the time (extra light-rack on top of pickup -more drag)

check all bearings and brakes so they are not dragging and wheels turn easily. also maintain the car otherwise too. check that everything is ok and in tune.

[jtr1962]

Story: I was in a cab some time ago and the driver was going like an idiot (this story was not the worst he did). One time we were going at a good speed and had a red traffic light approaching in front. It was already red for some time so it was clear (small town and you know your traffic lights) that it would turn green soon.
The driver kept his foot on the gas pedal, maintained his speed and had to brake quite hard to a complete halt. Half a second after we stopped the light turned green.
Had he instead let the car roll 40 meters before the light he would never have had to even touch the brake. We could have gone faster while saving fuel.

That's standard operating procedure for many cyclists-basically just coast when you have red in front of you. In fact, if motorists emulated what cyclists often do, they would get much better fuel economy in local driving situations.

go to neutral and roll when it makes sense. You wouldn't believe how far your car will roll, while the engine uses next to nothing in idle. Works especially well when going down a light hill, or on the short way to the next red traffic light.

Yep. Most cars will easily roll at a constant speed down a 1% or so gradient (that's a very slight hill). On level ground a car can still roll for many blocks, even from a speed of only 20 mph. Again, emulate what cyclists do. There were times I started coasting 5 or 6 blocks before a red light from an initial speed of ~20 mph. By the time I hit the intersection I was still going at 13-14 mph just as the light flipped back to green, right past the line of stopped cars which rushed past me only to hit the light. It helps also to know the timing of the lights on the roads you travel.

[StarHalo]

go to neutral and roll when it makes sense.

True for older cars, but not newer cars; modern cars shut off their injectors completely when left at zero throttle in gear - you would use more fuel rolling downhill in neutral (engine idling, using fuel as if it were idling) than if you left the car in gear and coasted down the hill (engine effectively off).

[Helmut.G]

True for older cars, but not newer cars; modern cars shut off their injectors completely when left at zero throttle in gear - you would use more fuel rolling downhill in neutral (engine idling, using fuel as if it were idling) than if you left the car in gear and coasted down the hill (engine effectively off).

Yes you don't use any fuel that way but that's not the rolling I mean. In german we call it the "engine brake" and it has its own important use.


You can easily compare it yourself. Go 50 or 60 MPH and take the foot off the gas pedal. You're not burning ANY fuel, which is good, but your car slows down FAST because you are converting speed into heat via engine friction at high RPMs. That's good if you want to stop or for going down steep hills or mountains.

Now go those 50 or 60 again and take out the gear. You ROLL and roll on, only slowed down by the air hammering against your windshield. Yes your idling engine is still burning 1 to 2 liters an hour depending on your car but at that speed that's a more than excellent gas mileage and you just keep rolling.

There are a lot of situations where rolling is more efficient of the two.

[Steve K]

That's standard operating procedure for many cyclists-basically just coast when you have red in front of you. In fact, if motorists emulated what cyclists often do, they would get much better fuel economy in local driving situations.

I had the same thought... probably because I usually commute by bike!
Seeing as how a bike is very limited in power, it does teach many lessons in conserving power. Gradual acceleration, coasting, timing the arrival at a stoplight in order to not have to stop, etc. It also makes you appreciate aerodynamic drag! Pedaling into a 20mph wind will almost cut my speed in half.

If it is time to replace your car (as it is for me), there are a lot of cars now that have impressive mileage! I was looking at Mazda's "SkyActive" technology; nothing too cutting edge, but it does combine higher compression ratio, the use of the Atkinson cycle (I need to learn more about this), direct injection, 6 speed transmission, lower weight by virtue of higher strength steels, and (maybe?) better aerodynamics. I think the Mazda 3 with SkyActive is claiming 39mph on the highway.
Of course, I still prefer to bike to work!

Steve

[127.0.0.1]

MPG ?

adjust the nut behind the wheel.


How ?
install a scanguage II, and

a) calibrate fuel consumption accurately

fill up at the same gas station and same pump with vehicle parked at
the same spot, and stop at the first click]. do this for the first few tanks to calibrate the
scanguage offset accurately.

b) calibrate actual speed vs sensed speed

drive with a GPS unit and fine-tune the speed calibration offset on the scangauge so
it exactly matches your tire diameter vs actual speed. not all tire diameters exactly match
the speedometer calibration in the car. [a 185/60 r15 from Michelin will be different than
a 185/60 r15 from Goodyear. scangauge is accurate enough to dial a 1% offset if you need it,
and GPS will tell you what the speed actually is]

c) Now it is dialed in, ...

use the scangauge to monitor current, average, and tank MPG and you can then use that
data to adjust the nut behind the wheel for -best overall mileage- and learn yourself somethin' about
how your driving affects mpg

and yes I recommend scangauge over ecometer or any other OBD-II connected device. scangauge
just gives you the data you need and it is fine tunable, therefore can be made 'most accurate'

[StarHalo]

the Mazda 3 with SkyActive

That'd be my recommendation in that price range for economy, or surprisingly, sporty..

[vali]

- buy a diesel car with manual tranny.
- be smooth.

I currently have a Passat 1.9 TDI with 130 bhp. Great car to do a lot of miles. Can do 1000 km with 60 l of fuel easily (about 45 mpg in non-flat terrain), have lots of torque to overtake a the engine will last more than the gas equivalent.

If you want a sporty drive, just forget it.

PD: diesel is about 10% cheaper than normal gas here.

[orbital]

^

Last fall, my brother traded in his well used Cayenne for the new TDI Passat

[Helmut.G]

IMO, no dumber car out there than a cayenne.
No wonder you need a 400 horsepower engine to get an acceptable driving experience when your car weights two and a half tons.
I don't get why people buy them. What's the advantage of having the heaviest car possible? If I had that kind of money to blow I'd much rather buy a half the weight, similar powered car. Much less fuel needed, much more fun.

[orbital]

^

Helmut, he did a alot of towing

[Jay R]

By a Kia Rio Ecodynamics. 88 miles to the gallon combined cycle. Drive it carefully on the freeway and you'll get over 120 mpg easy. Course, that's proper Imperial gallons. Your little U.S gallons would only return 74mpg combined and something over 110mpg on the highway. Give it a few months and a bunch more cars will come out with the same or similar engines. You could get a Skoda Fabia estate now that will do 83mpg so around 75miles per U.S. gallon.
Sound good, well when gas costs $10 a gallon as it does over here, the car makers appreciate that they have to produce something a bit more economical if they want to sell any cars.

[Illum]

Good advice here, I'll add a couple more


Drive with the windows up.
Try not to linger under 35mph for too long, neither for speeds over 75 [mainly for trucks and SUVs]
If possible, avoid driving behind anything that could cause wake turbulance
Accelerate slow, brake slow
Check your oil often, the books say 3000 miles... but I find that often a change is warranted around 2700 miles.
If you have to carry a payload, work it inside, avoid streamers or paints on the windows. I found a good clean/wax job helps with mileage too.

[StarHalo]

- buy a diesel car with manual tranny.

Diesel is the way to go for Interstate travel, but doesn't hold a candle to the hybrid in city cycle. As is usually concluded in these threads, diesel for long-distance commuting, hybrid for city commuting.

By a Kia Rio Ecodynamics.

None of the cars in this post are available in the US.

If possible, avoid driving behind anything that could cause wake turbulence

Getting a couple car lengths from a larger vehicle can dramatically increase MPG; I'm particularly fond of enclosed race trailers which sit low to the ground - even at very safe distances, getting behind one of these at any speed can add 10+ MPG..

[Illum]

Getting a couple car lengths from a larger vehicle can dramatically increase MPG; I'm particularly fond of enclosed race trailers which sit low to the ground - even at very safe distances, getting behind one of these at any speed can add 10+ MPG..

This is true if you are on the highway, but even then I'm somewhat pessimistic in following a lorrie that close.

[StarHalo]

This is true if you are on the highway, but even then I'm somewhat pessimistic in following a lorrie that close.

You can start to see the difference in the MPG meter from several car lengths away, it's pretty impressive how big a hole those trailers punch in the air.

Speaking of bump drafting, a fun story: Back when the first-generation Honda Insight was introduced, they lent a copy to each of the major car magazines and set up a contest; Drive from Columbus to Detroit, most MPG wins. Car and Driver got creative and rigged the back end of a Chevy Suburban with giant RV mudflaps and bungee cords to hold the rear liftgate and swing doors open - driving down the highway with the Insight tucked snugly into this vacuum, the normally 70 MPG Honda averaged 121.7 MPG

[Monocrom]

By a Kia Rio Ecodynamics. 88 miles to the gallon combined cycle. Drive it carefully on the freeway and you'll get over 120 mpg easy. Course, that's proper Imperial gallons. Your little U.S gallons would only return 74mpg combined and something over 110mpg on the highway. Give it a few months and a bunch more cars will come out with the same or similar engines. You could get a Skoda Fabia estate now that will do 83mpg so around 75miles per U.S. gallon.
Sound good, well when gas costs $10 a gallon as it does over here, the car makers appreciate that they have to produce something a bit more economical if they want to sell any cars.

There are times when you need both low-end torque, as well as horsepower. My first car was a Ford Escort. I actually liked it a lot. Very economical. Just two major issues with it. One, the driver's seat would become very uncomfortable if you sat in it for two hours or longer. Two, there were times when I was white-knuckling it down the entrance to the expressway. Never again. Something very economical, such as a KIA Rio; just not for everyone.

[NonSenCe]

veering far offtopic.. sorry:

about escorts.. i could not ever get my leg comfortable on the gas pedal. there was no support for it. so i had to take off road every 150miles just to stretch my legs because of that alone. that on top of the crappy seats with short bench and no side support, and the wrong angle steering column.. did you notice that at all. (all i have driven had the steering wheel in slight angle, not aimed at the driver dead on. and many had the gear box also in angle. the gears didnt go straight foward and back but few degrees to right side) 1st gear was too short to be useful as it run out too fast, basically just to get the car rolling, and engines (1.3 and 1.4) were too powerless to use the second gear to start moving. i hated them all. (none of them were mine, but my grandad, my dad and my sister has had 4 of them that i drove alot too, best was my dads 1.6l ofcourse. not counting the 1.8 and hopped up versions with turbos my friends had) but like said.. hated the escorts as driving experience.. but except one particular car they all worked fine and did what a car needs to do. move, stop and turn.

there is always a need for little bit of more power, but that can can somwhow compensated by smart driving by the perseon behind the wheel. to see into the future. know that your cars acceleration is like molasses mixed with bungee cord you learn to prepare to it. you dont try to make it into tight spots at all if you are not used to be able to go there. jumping from powerful car into no-go version will be difficult. one gets used to the performance.

i have been actually waiting for the manufacturers to start installing NOS systems into the small cars for that small short need for more power (overtaking or something like that), thats what they are doing with hybrids (when one needs more power both engines run), they have tried that with "overboost" functions in turbo cars (few seconds of more power available, not available for all the time but just for while). or some aftermarket company starts promoting 10-20hp nos boost for econoboxes alone.. dealer installed and factory warranty stays kind of deal. economy when one needs it, instant boost of power for seconds if you really need it, and then back to the shop to refill the bottle when needed. (easy revenue to the dealer, refilling the bottles.)

this might be viable solution to power needs vs economy, because seriously if one knows how to participate the need of power and learn to drive with slow car they dont need the extra power that often. i would imagine hardly anyone really drives their cars daily so that they are always at peak power when shifting. (those that do, they drive too agressively and they often already have a powerful car in their use.. most commuters dont ever see more than 3000rpm if they drive normally and smoothly, i know i dont) and this way a 20hp for 10seconds boost from nitrous oxide bottle would last a long time. if i recall right, 10lbs bottle of nos, lasts about 7-9 times of 100hp shot before running low.. so that would likely make it roughly 35-40 of 20hp shots available to eco friendly motor. plus with these new fancy computer injection electric computer-stuff the engine should be easy to compensate for the nos blast so it wont detonate etc when you press the boost buttons in the steering wheel. (yeah 2 hands operation needed so you do it intentionally and have a good hold of the steering wheel when you will experience the power pull! hahah.)

---
on topic.. ermmm.. lower mileage. dont go looking for a deal for low gas price.. likely you will burn the "winnings of few cents" while driving to find the station. if you KNOW some place sells fuel for less.. think if you need to go near there for other business or is it cheaper to use the nearest station after all. minimize the extra driving.

and again.. ooofff tooopic..
about diesels, i have learned that diesel injector cleaners (like LiquiMoly diesel purge) they are basically just kerosene. (the kind we use in storm lanterns etc over here) - i add a drop of 2stroke engine oil for safety measure to my kerosene treatment (3parts kerosene 1 part diesel) if i connect the bottle directly into the diesel pump end.. it will likely work without the diesel part but i like to play safer.

and i think gas engine injector cleaners have kerosene, turpentine(of sorts) and bit of octane booster.

and many oil purge/passage cleaners are also kerosene based.

[0dBm]

Sensible tips. Thank you all for contributing.

"At 4.00 per gallon..."
I only wish that we in metropolitan Southern California are still paying this amount; however, I gladly do so to enjoy mid-60s weather in January and February.

[Cataract]

Your car is at its most fuel efficient at the point where the last gear just kicked in - that is, if you accelerate slowly enough for it to engage sooner rather than later to give you extra power.

Keep your speed as steady as possible.

Cruise control is only fuel efficient on flat surfaces or constant inclines: by trying to keep your speed steady, it uses up a whole lot of gas to get over a hill and then tries to slow the car when going down the other side. Disengage the cruise, and keep your foot steady on the pedal. Yes, you will slow down uphill but then regain your speed when going down.

Keep the exterior of you car clean - it reduces drag.

Buy good tires (good idea about checking rolling distance in reviews) and get your car properly aligned (front AND rear wheels, too many places only check the front alignment). This will save friction, drag and tire life.


And my extreme tip:
If you can't take anything more out of your car, lose weight yourself. One way to accomplish this while saving a whopping 100% on MPG is to get around on your bicycle. The lazy way to do this is to leave your 4D EDC flashlight at home with your 10$ in pocket change and ask your girlfriend to meet you at the restaurant.

Cheaper gas is often just that: cheap gas. Check your mileage and see which gas station gives you the best MPG for your dollar.

[orbital]

+

One great way to save a ton of gas is a good old moped.

We have two '02 Honda Metropolitans w/ nearly 18K miles on each of them! {these are 4-stroke}
They are an absolute blast to ride and do odds and ends on.
(you can easily get a couple of bags of groceries under the seat)
They are super simple to work on & maintain

With the throttle fully wide open, they still get around 75MPG
They top out at about 40mph, but that's a fun 40

>>>> I'v saved over 1500 gallons gas @ $4/gal. over the last 10 years,,, if I was to use my 4L Grand Cherokee for those miles.

[Monocrom]

@ NonSenCe -

My Escort was a 1998 model. Thankfully by then, Ford was using the excellent Mazda Protege but with different styling and Ford badges. Makes sense that one of the most reliable-rated Fords of all time was actually a Mazda under the skin. I had no issues with angles. I was impressed with Mazda enough that my current vehicle is a V6 Mazda6. One of the most comfortable driver's seats out there. Even recognized for that by the major car publications.

Driving smart is always a good idea. Unfortunately, we share the road with a ton of idiots. I've used the power of my V6 engine countless times to accelerate quickly away from a potential accident because some idiot was either chatting away on their cellphone or was, basically, just an oblivious idiot. When it comes to driving, you can do everything right; and still end up in an accident.

@ Cataract -

I recently had to have my car's fuel system flushed out. Three year-old car. The culprit? Yup, I had been filling up consistently with cheap off-brand gas. Turns out those additives the major brands mix in really does make a difference. I no longer use that off-brand gas station. In the end, the few bucks I saved just wasn't worth it.

[StarHalo]

Economy doesn't have to be slow: the new BMW 328i sedan; 0-60 in 5.6 sec, 155 mph top speed, 24 MPG city/36 MPG highway:

[Monocrom]

Economy doesn't have to be slow: the new BMW 328i sedan; 0-60 in 5.6 sec, 155 mph top speed, 24 MPG city/36 MPG highway:

Are those actual numbers or projected numbers for what the car is capable of?

That's the one thing I hate about the Auto industry. They have their own version of emitter lumens vs. (actual) out the front lumens.