Lift clubs or carpools ... Saving money on petrol or diesel fuel this way ?
29. 12 Month Average for Regular Unleaded
Keep track of the cost of regular unleaded fuel for your records.
30. Combine trips
Try to combine as many purposes into one trip as you can for the following reasons:
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You'll save time and money by combining the number of errands and stops that you make in one trip.
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When you make several smaller trips, especially in cold weather, you will use up to twice as much fuel than if you were taking a multipurpose trip.
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Cold starts for your car use up more petrol and are harder on vehicle maintenance than driving for a longer period of time, keeping the engine of your car warm.
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Planning your trip makes your driving more efficient and you spend less time driving aimlessly from location to location.
31. Commuting
There are ways that you can get to work that will help you save on petrol consumption for your car.
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When driving to work avoid the peak times for rush hours. This way you'll use up less fuel and you'll spend less of you precious time sitting around in heavy traffic.
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Try telecommuting from work if you're in a position to do so.
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If you are the owner of more than one vehicle you should try to drive the car that has the best fuel mileage more often than the one with higher fuel mileage. Save the vehicle with the lower fuel mileage for those trips when you don't want your new vehicle damaged or don't want to put the miles on the odometer.
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Find out about ride-sharing programs ( lift clubs) and carpools that are available in your local area. By commuting to work with others you'll be cutting your monthly fuel costs by as much as half. You'll also be saving on the wear and tear of your car. Many large cities have what is known as the HOV lane (high occupancy vehicle) to encourage drivers to commute to work.
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Use the public transit service (like metrorail trains, taxi or bus services) if its convenient for you and available where you live. You may be able to drive your vehicle to the bus depot and commute from there. Even though you're still driving your car part way to work you'll still notice a substantial savings when it comes to the cost of your commute to and from work.
32. Walk
You will definitely save on petrol if you leave your car at home. Try walking to close destinations, or take your bike. Today's society seems to think that we need to drive everywhere that we go.
If more people walked, rode their bikes, or took public transit there would be less pollution. As well, you personally will notice a difference in the amount of money that you spend each month on your fuel costs.
33. Avoid fast getaways at the stoplight
Accelerate slowly when the light turns green. The faster that you accelerate the more fuel that you are going to consume.
Make sure you start at the stoplight slow and steady so that you conserve as much fuel as possible while you are going from a stopped position into a driving mode.
It may be tempting for younger people to accelerate and race away from the stoplight. Don't fall into this trap and you can save up to 20 percent in fuel costs just by being a safe driver.
34. Avoid an idling vehicle
Try to avoid letting your car idle, even on those cold mornings when you try to heat up the car before driving to work.
Studies show that there is no need to let your car idle for more than 30 seconds even in cold weather and that idling will reduce your fuel consumption. New cars are specifically designed for you to be able to start and drive away immediately without any idle time.
Make sure that you get up early enough to scrape the snow and ice off your car in the winter months. There is no need to start your car while you are cleaning off your windows.
Finish cleaning off your windows and then start your car when you are ready to leave.
35. Remove weight from your car
If you are not specifically hauling around some heavy material make sure that you remove it from your car.
This means not using your car as a storage box for unwanted items that you don't know where to put. The more weight that you carry in your car, other than passengers, the more fuel that you are going to consume as you drive.
36. Turn off your car
Studies show that its more fuel efficient to turn off your car than it is to let it idle for much longer than about 45 seconds.
If you are in a long line up at the ferry, waiting for someone outside the store, or waiting for an accident up ahead to clear you can turn off your car engine and save yourself some money and fuel.
Plan your trips so that you can avoid those long idle moments that will waste your petrol and add rands onto the price of a gallon. It only takes a second to start your car again if you have turned it off while waiting in a traffic jam that doesn't seem to be moving.
37. Avoid using the air conditioner
When you first get into your hot vehicle try to drive with the windows open to let out the hot air and let in a fresh breeze.
If this fails to lower the temperature in your car you can put on the air conditioning. The air conditioner will work more efficiently and faster if you open up the windows first.
If you need to use the air conditioning in your car you should keep in mind that your fuel economy will be reduced by 10 to 20 percent.
One of the ways to use your air conditioner is to use it for minimal amounts of times. Keep the windows closed when you are using the air conditioning.
Once the car has reached a cooler temperature you can turn off the air conditioning but it is important to note that you should still keep the windows closed since opening them will only allow in the hot air once again.
38. Avoid sudden stops and turns
When you are driving your vehicle you should try to avoid braking suddenly or starting abruptly.
Studies indicate that when you brake gradually, start slowly, and avoid those sudden stops that you can increase your fuel consumption. Drive responsibly and with care to avoid these stops and starts.