Help your vehicle and save on gas tips 2

It gets harder and harder to save money. It seams like not only is gas prices going up but so is everything else. I don't know about you, but I use to buy one week of food for 4 on $50.00, and now it takes $100.00 or more.

• 1. Check the tire air pressures weekly. Buy an inexpensive manual air pump and an accurate tire gauge (not a pencil gauge as they are not accurate). Keep all tires inflated to the pressure as recommended for your car. Go by the sticker on the doorframe or fuel filler flap and not the tire wall. If you don't mind a slightly noisier ride, use the full load or high speed recommended inflation. It won't hurt the tires and will up mileage a few percent.
• 2. Drive at a consistent speed Avoid accelerating fast or braking suddenly. Use cruise control when you can.
• 3. Slow down. Air resistance goes up as the cube of velocity. Rolling resistance is the dominant force below about 40 mph. Above that, every mph costs you mileage. Go as slow as traffic and your schedule will allow. Drive under 60-65 since air grows exponentially denser, in the aerodynamic sense, the faster we drive.
• 4. Combine trips. If you can do one longer trip, you will save fuel and time. Make lists to avoid having to go back. Call ahead to avoid wasted trips.
• 5. Plan your trips in advance. This can prevent wasting fuel and wasting time. Plan to use alternative routes. Often back roads can prevent you from stopping at traffic lights and more importantly sitting in traffic jams.
• 6. When you go on a trip you can buy a GPS system. Global Positioning Systems help you navigate to find the fastest and shortest distance to your destination. A good GPS can save you time and fuel. Also the cost of GPS systems has really come down and you can get a good GPS system for around $350. Also, there are some creative ways you can use GPS systems to save money on gas. For example, you could use a GPS to calculate how far away you are from the next state and if you know fuel tax is less in the next state, just put enough fuel in to get you to the next state and fill up with gas where it is cheaper.
• 7. Clean out any unnecessary items in your car. If you have heavy objects in your car that you don't need, remove them. If your car is lighter, it will use less fuel to get where you're going.
• 8. Remove unneeded racks. If you have a bicycle or ski rack, remove it when you're not using it. It causes drag and lowers mileage.
• 9. Don't fill until the last quarter tank. If you do this, it can extend your gas because you are hauling a lighter load as the tank nears empty. This also allows you to buy gas on low-cost days. However, in cold weather, you may not want to do this. Also, running a car with less than a quarter tank of fuel can shorten the fuel pump life, and letting your tank empty completely can cause fuel pump and filter problems. And you never know when you might be in an emergency and need some gasoline in your car!
• 10. Avoid having to stop. If approaching a red light, see if you can slow down enough to avoid having to actually stop (because you reach the light after it is green). Speeding up from 5 or 10 miles per hour will be easier on the gas than starting from full stop.