With Gas Prices On The Rise, Learn Ways to Improve Your Gas Mileage

Gas Prices Are Rising

Have you noticed gas prices changing lately? If you are worried about spending more money, you should learn how to improve your gas mileage. Being efficient with your gas can help you save in the long run.

With gas prices now rising, it doesn’t hurt to know some ways to improve your gas mileage. Here are a few simple ways to increase your gas mileage when possible.

Track Your Mileage

You will want to start tracking your mileage diligently. Make note of how much fuel you used between fill ups. Doing so can help you determine whether you are burning too much fuel.

Need to fill up first, then write down the current number of miles recorded on your dash, then the amount when you fill up. This number will let you know how far you went. Track the gallons of gas you added to your car next to it.

What’s a Good MPG?

While tracking your mileage, you want to figure out if you are getting a good MPG, or miles per gallon. With most vehicles, anything above 20 MPG is going to be considered good. However, you want to try to get your efficiency up to 30 or 40.

Whether or not you can do that will depend on the make and model of your vehicle. Newer cars (not trucks) might be able to even reach 50 and 60 MPG. Hybrid vehicles can get even more than standard cars overall.

If you live in the city, your car might spend a lot of time idling. That means you will naturally get a much lower MPG than cars that often drive on highways and open roads.

Inflate Your Tires

Simply adding enough air to your tires to meet the recommended PSI can help quite a bit. You should always inflate your tires when they seem low, since it allows your tires to get better traction on the road. Plus, under-inflated tires make your engine burn more fuel to drive. If you are consistently having tire pressure issues, see you favorite shop to check your tires and rims.

Your car came with an owner’s manual. Inside, you will find the best PSI for improving your mileage. A tire that’s under inflated by even 10 PSI can greatly cost you the more you drive. Tire recommended PSI is also on the original tires that come with your vehicle.

Clear Out the Trunk

All that junk in the back of your car is weighing it down, causing your mileage to drop. Vehicles with front-wheel drive are even more affected by this. When your trunk is full, the front tires can’t keep a solid connection to the ground.

Plus, the additional weight causes the engine to burn more fuel to move your car. You will want to take all non-essentials out of the trunk because of this.

Replace Some Parts

Replacing certain parts in your car gives it a longer life expectancy, while helping bring up your mileage. You will want to change the air filter and spark plugs according to manufacturer recommendations.

These parts are pretty inexpensive. Visit your favorite service shop to help you replace these necessary filters. For Do-It-Yourselfers – how to install is important.

Use Recommended Motor Oil Only

A car’s engine runs best when you are using the recommended motor oil. Your owner’s manual should also have this information listed.

If you are using the incorrect oil, it can cause your engine to work much harder than it needs to. So, next time you change your oil, make sure that you are using the correct type. Your engine will run more smoothly, leading to better mileage.

Slow Down for Stops

When you speed up to beat a stoplight, you are wasting gas. Most of the time, you will end up having to stop anyway.

Instead, we recommend that you coast to the stoplight. You can use this trick any time that you have to stop. For instance, you can coast to stop signs, highway exits, and hard turns.

Inspect Your Gas Cap

Eventually, the seal on your gas cap can wear out. If it breaks, oxygen is going to get inside of your gas tank. When that happens, your engine is going to be using way more gas than it should. Getting a replacement and setting it up is a simple project.

However, you need to make sure you get a gas cap that fits your car tightly. Most cars today have a sensor that looks for the cap. If it can’t sense it, you may have more issues pop up.

Try Cruise Control

Most people barely ever use their cruise control functions. However, it is useful in getting better mileage. Using it on highways helps you reduce the amount of times you have to brake and accelerate, which saves gas.

Plus, this method also helps you to stay at a safe speed limit. If someone near you is speeding on the highway, it can be easy to accidentally match them. Cruise control is going to keep you safe.

Run the A/C Less

Using the air conditioner is going to lower your gas mileage. Next time it’s warm, try turning on the fans and lowering all of the windows instead. Your car will burn less gas like this.

Avoid Idling

When parking, you want to turn the car off as soon as you stop. Leaving your car idle can waste more gas than you probably realize. If you are sitting in the car with it running, you are simply burning too much gas.

Next time you have to wait with the car parked, make sure to turn it off. You can also set it in neutral to use less fuel.

Have Your Exhaust System Checked

Any issue in your exhaust system is going to cause your engine to use more fuel. If you are not getting good gas mileage and don’t know why, you will want to have it looked at by your preferred shop. While it may be tempting to do this on your own, a lot of the exhaust parts are in difficult to reach places.

Conclusion

If you need to improve your gas mileage, the tips above are a good place to start. However, if you are stumped and feel like nothing is working, it can be a good idea to have a pro inspect your car. They can let you know what is wrong.

With gas prices now rising, it doesn’t hurt to know some ways to improve your gas mileage. Here are a few simple ways to increase your gas mileage when possible.

Track Your Mileage

You will want to start tracking your mileage diligently. Make note of how much fuel you used between fill ups. Doing so can help you determine whether you are burning too much fuel.

Need to fill up first, then write down the current number of miles recorded on your dash, then the amount when you fill up. This number will let you know how far you went. Track the gallons of gas you added to your car next to it.

What’s a Good MPG?

While tracking your mileage, you want to figure out if you are getting a good MPG, or miles per gallon. With most vehicles, anything above 20 MPG is going to be considered good. However, you want to try to get your efficiency up to 30 or 40.

Whether or not you can do that will depend on the make and model of your vehicle. Newer cars (not trucks) might be able to even reach 50 and 60 MPG. Hybrid vehicles can get even more than standard cars overall.

If you live in the city, your car might spend a lot of time idling. That means you will naturally get a much lower MPG than cars that often drive on highways and open roads.

Inflate Your Tires

Simply adding enough air to your tires to meet the recommended PSI can help quite a bit. You should always inflate your tires when they seem low, since it allows your tires to get better traction on the road. Plus, under-inflated tires make your engine burn more fuel to drive. If you are consistently having tire pressure issues, see you favorite shop to check your tires and rims.

Your car came with an owner’s manual. Inside, you will find the best PSI for improving your mileage. A tire that’s under inflated by even 10 PSI can greatly cost you the more you drive. Tire recommended PSI is also on the original tires that come with your vehicle.

Clear Out the Trunk

All that junk in the back of your car is weighing it down, causing your mileage to drop. Vehicles with front-wheel drive are even more affected by this. When your trunk is full, the front tires can’t keep a solid connection to the ground.

Plus, the additional weight causes the engine to burn more fuel to move your car. You will want to take all non-essentials out of the trunk because of this.

Replace Some Parts

Replacing certain parts in your car gives it a longer life expectancy, while helping bring up your mileage. You will want to change the air filter and spark plugs according to manufacturer recommendations.

These parts are pretty inexpensive. Visit your favorite service shop to help you replace these necessary filters. For Do-It-Yourselfers – how to install is important.

Use Recommended Motor Oil Only

A car’s engine runs best when you are using the recommended motor oil. Your owner’s manual should also have this information listed.

If you are using the incorrect oil, it can cause your engine to work much harder than it needs to. So, next time you change your oil, make sure that you are using the correct type. Your engine will run more smoothly, leading to better mileage.

Slow Down for Stops

When you speed up to beat a stoplight, you are wasting gas. Most of the time, you will end up having to stop anyway.

Instead, we recommend that you coast to the stoplight. You can use this trick any time that you have to stop. For instance, you can coast to stop signs, highway exits, and hard turns.

Inspect Your Gas Cap

Eventually, the seal on your gas cap can wear out. If it breaks, oxygen is going to get inside of your gas tank. When that happens, your engine is going to be using way more gas than it should. Getting a replacement and setting it up is a simple project.

However, you need to make sure you get a gas cap that fits your car tightly. Most cars today have a sensor that looks for the cap. If it can’t sense it, you may have more issues pop up.

Try Cruise Control

Most people barely ever use their cruise control functions. However, it is useful in getting better mileage. Using it on highways helps you reduce the amount of times you have to brake and accelerate, which saves gas.

Plus, this method also helps you to stay at a safe speed limit. If someone near you is speeding on the highway, it can be easy to accidentally match them. Cruise control is going to keep you safe.

Run the A/C Less

Using the air conditioner is going to lower your gas mileage. Next time it’s warm, try turning on the fans and lowering all of the windows instead. Your car will burn less gas like this.

Avoid Idling

When parking, you want to turn the car off as soon as you stop. Leaving your car idle can waste more gas than you probably realize. If you are sitting in the car with it running, you are simply burning too much gas.

Next time you have to wait with the car parked, make sure to turn it off. You can also set it in neutral to use less fuel.

Have Your Exhaust System Checked

Any issue in your exhaust system is going to cause your engine to use more fuel. If you are not getting good gas mileage and don’t know why, you will want to have it looked at by your preferred shop. While it may be tempting to do this on your own, a lot of the exhaust parts are in difficult to reach places.

Conclusion

If you need to improve your gas mileage, the tips above are a good place to start. However, if you are stumped and feel like nothing is working, it can be a good idea to have a pro inspect your car. They can let you know what is wrong.

Go to Nutleykia.net, or call 973-241-3222, or visit us at 66 Washington Avenue in Nutley, New Jersey to get your car serviced.

Tags: car tips, gas mileage, improve gas mileage
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