Travelers Can Cut Gasoline Costs in Tough Economy with Drive $marter Challenge Interactive Website
Written by Alliance to Save Energy
Monday, 11 May 2009
Summer Travelers Can Cut Gasoline Costs in Tough Economy with Drive
$marter Challenge Interactive Website, Money-Saving Tips, Resources
WASHINGTON, May 11 -- With the Memorial Day holiday weekend and heavier summer driving season approaching, and with gasoline prices nowhere near last summer's record highs, thoughts turn to weekend and vacation road trips as a great escape from economic reality.
The Alliance to Save Energy's interactive Drive $marter Challenge fuel efficiency website provides vacationers and everyday drivers with hundreds of dollars of money-saving gas tips, resources, and myth busters that respond to the call of frugal drivers: Why pay more for gasoline than you have to, particularly in this economy?
Whether you are headed to the big city or the great outdoors or staying closer to home, you can start saving money on gas even before you are on the road with a little advance planning, basic maintenance, and your driving and other choices:
Planning your vacation:
-- Get a customized vacation map with low gas prices along the route.
Getting lost while driving in unfamiliar areas could lead to an
expensive waste of gas. Resources on the Drive $marter Challenge
website
(http://drivesmarterchallenge.org/money-saving-tips/fuel-efficient-res
ources.aspx) can help your family print a customized vacation map that
highlights low-cost gas stations along your route.
-- Choose the right vehicle. If your family has more than one vehicle,
drive the car that gets better gas mileage if possible.
-- Rise and shine! When possible, drive during off-peak hours to reduce
gas costs and stress by avoiding stop-and-go or bumper-to-bumper
traffic conditions.
-- Investigate other travel options. Consider trains, buses, or public
transportation to your vacation destination when possible.
-- Explore new ways to get around at your destination. Find information
on biking, public transportation routes, car sharing, walking, and
renting hybrid or fuel-efficient vehicles on the Drive $marter
Challenge website resources page at
http://drivesmarterchallenge.org/money-saving-tips/fuel-efficient-reso
urces.aspx .
Before you leave: maintenance tips
-- Inflate your tires. Keeping your tires properly inflated improves gas
mileage by around 3%.
-- Select the right oil. Using the manufacturer's recommended grade of
motor oil improves gas mileage by 1 to 2%. Motor oil that says "Energy
Conserving" on the API performance symbol contains friction-reducing
additives. Change your oil as recommended to extend the life of your
vehicle.
-- Tune up. Fixing a car that is noticeably out of tune or has failed an
emissions test can improve its gas mileage by an average of 4%.
On the road: driving tips
-- Decrease your speed. Gas mileage usually decreases rapidly above 60
mph. Each five miles per hour over 60 mph is like paying an additional
20 cents or more per gallon for gas.
-- Drive sensibly. Speeding, rapid acceleration (jackrabbit starts), and
rapid braking can lower gas mileage by 33% at highway speeds.
-- Use cruise control and overdrive gear. Cruise control cuts fuel
consumption by maintaining a steady speed during highway driving.
Overdrive gear, when appropriate, reduces engine speed, saves gas, and
reduces engine wear.
-- It's a "drag." Avoid carrying items on your vehicle's roof. A loaded
roof rack or carrier increases weight and aerodynamic drag, which can
cut mileage by 5%. Place items inside the trunk when possible to
improve fuel economy.
-- Turn down the air. Operating the air conditioner on "Max" can reduce
mpg by 5-25% compared to not using it.
-- Avoid idling, which gets 0 mpg. Cars with larger engines typically
waste even more gas while idling than cars with smaller engines.
-- Navigate with a GPS system. GPS systems can help you find your way
and, increasingly, GPS programs can search for low-priced gas at
nearby stations.
-- Fill up before returning rental. Rental car companies charge higher
gas prices if you don't fill up the tank before returning the vehicle.
Keep your gas receipts in case the company requires receipts to remove
a gas surcharge.
The Drive $marter Challenge website, www.drivesmarterchallenge.org, has been updated with 2009 vehicle models and current campaign partners. The website calculator and all tips will be further updated May 19 with new projected gas prices for the year.
The Alliance to Save Energy is a coalition of prominent business, government, environmental, and consumer leaders who promote the efficient and clean use of energy worldwide to benefit consumers, the environment, the economy, and national security.
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