Tips on Better Fuel Economy
Posted on May 8, 2008
Filed Under GENERAL
High gas prices are simply crushing everybody’s standard of living. Everything costs more…. food, entertainment, housing, everything.
I found an old article I wrote 2 years ago about how to save money on fuel. I edited it to make it current (I changed “$3 gas will soon be here” to “$5 will soon be here”.) What do I think will happen with fuel? I don’t know. My gut tells me eventually gas will plateau, and recede, probably back into the $2.50 – 3.00 range. But right now, there just seems like there is no end in sight. One idea I had was to invest in oil. My broker told me about a fund called “USO”, which pretty much moves in lockstep with the price of oil. So if I put money into that, I am pretty much limiting the pain if gas keeps going up. Lose at the pump, win in the stock market. Anyway, here are some tips:
1. Stay on the highway. Stop and go driving in town uses at least 50% more fuel compared to the same number of miles driven at steady highway speeds.
2. Drive the speed limit. It may take a little longer to get there, but you use 10% to 30% more fuel if you drive 75, instead of 60. The faster your trucks drive, the more fuel they waste. An old rule of thumb says that you lose 0.1 miles per gallon for each mile per hour you drive over 55.
3. Older equipment uses more fuel. Older tractors generally do not have the aerodynamics that later model tractors do. In addition, newer trucks have electronic engines, both of which enable the later model trucks to achieve better 2fuel economy than the old mechanical engines.
4. Avoid using the engine fan when possible. This uses fuel; if possible, use ram air to cool the radiator.
5. Tires. Rib-style tires give you less traction, but they also have less resistance to the road, as compared with the big lug-style tires. Reduced road resistance equals greater fuel economy. Proper tire inflation also reduces road resistance. Under-inflated tires cause more heat and resistance with the road, burning more fuel.
6. Avoid idling whenever possible. The engine is running, fuel is being burned, but you’re not going anywhere! An idling truck will burn around a gallon of fuel per hour.
7. Driver skills. A driver who is paying attention can save you money on reduced fuel costs. Drivers who accelerate and brake gently will always get better fuel mileage than those who start and stop suddenly. Drivers who drive at or near the speed limit will use less fuel than those that speed, not to mention be less likely to get speeding tickets, and have accidents. Many over-the-road trucking companies offer fuel economy bonuses to their drivers.
8. Terrain. Driving in flat areas takes less fuel than in rolling or mountainous terrain.
9. Use the Internet to find where the best fuel prices are. Many people know in advance what their routes are going to be. You can plan how you are going to fuel your trucks (or cars) in advance as well. Not all truckstops or gas stations are created equal. Also, some states have cheaper fuel than others. There are websites out there, which will tell you where the cheapest fuel is. I use www.gasbuddy.com. For example, gasbuddy tells me that there is a station 5 miles away selling unleaded $0.10 cheaper than the station across the street from my house. While that’s only $2.00 savings if I buy 20 gallons, what if I was buying 200 gallons of diesel? That’s $20.
The high fuel prices now make it important to pay attention to how your trucks are being driven, and where you are getting fuel. Your bottom line depends on it!
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