Easy Hacks To Improve Your Fuel Economy

Easy Hacks To Improve Your Fuel Economy

Owning a car is all but a necessity, and though it comes with plenty of perks, the cost of fuel, routine maintenance, and repairs can make a dent in your budget. Here are a few pointers that will help improve your fuel economy and extend the life of your vehicle.

Watch Your Speed

It is common for most of us to speed on the highway. While it might be fun, speeding puts a great amount of stress on the engine. While it is true that most cars can drive at high speeds without any issues, speeding also consumes more fuel. The reason for this is quite simple: Your car will have to work harder against the greater drag that comes with speeding will end up burning more fuel. Try taking it easy on your gas pedal and watch your fuel economy improve.

Use Regular Gas in Your Car

While you might be tempted to put premium fuel in your car for better performance and fuel economy, unless you drive a performance car, it won’t work. It’s important to realize that manufacturers test their cars using the fuel that is most ideal and that gas type usually isn’t premium. Trust the manufacturer’s recommendation for gas for your car.

Watch Your Car's Load

Most people make the mistake of overloading their car by putting too many things in the trunk or the bed. While it might be practical, it definitely adds greater stress on your engine. It will be forced to outperform its normal operating range and will burn more fuel to do so. You can check the weight capacity of your car by referring to its gross vehicle weight rating. It is not recommended that you push the weight beyond these standard ratings.

Reduce Drag

Just like you shouldn’t overload your car, you should also avoid attaching storage accessories when you aren’t using them. Your car might look great with an overhead storage container, but it will add weight and increase aerodynamic drag. Even special aerodynamic storage containers affect fuel economy. Increased drag means your engine will have to invest more energy in moving through the air, thereby burning more fuel.

Keep Your Tires Properly Inflated

Pumping up your tires to the correct pressure is one of the easiest ways to ensure fuel efficiency. Unfortunately, it is a habit that is neglected by a lot of drivers. Ensuring correct pressure will help the tires in maintaining good ground contact. Failure to do so will increase your tires’ rolling resistance and decrease your fuel economy.

Keeping an eye on your tire pressure is easy. Most newer cars have digital tire pressure sensors, and you can buy tire-pressure accessories that link to your phone to provide you with real-time information.

Improving fuel economy can be easily achieved with these hacks. You’ll save money at the pump and do your car a favor, too.