10 Ways to Save Gas and Money

Courtesy of thedailygreen.com:

1. CHECK AIR FILTER (A clean air filter can improve gas mileage by as much as 10%, and nearly one in four cars needs an air filter replacement) = savings of $.28/gal.

2. ALIGN YOUR TIRES (Poor alignment not only causes tires to wear out more quickly, but also forces your engine to work harder, which can reduce fuel economy by as much as 10%) = savings of $.28/gal.

3. TUNE UP (A properly tuned engine can improve mileage by 4%) = savings of $.11/gal.

4. PUMP UP TIRES (More than one-quarter of vehicles have improperly inflated tires. The average under-inflation of 7.5 pounds causes a loss of 2.8% in fuel efficiency) = savings of $.08/gal.

5. CHECK GAS CAP (It is estimated that nearly 17% of cars on the road have broken or missing gas caps, which not only reduces gas mileage but may harm the environment) = savings of $.02/gal.

6. SLOW DOWN (For every 5 mph you reduce highway speed, you can reduce fuel consumption by 7%) = savings of $.19/gal by reducing speed from 70 mph to 65 mph.

7. DRIVE SMOOTHLY (The more smoothly you accelerate and decelerate, the better your gas mileage, with potential gas savings of 33% on the highway and 5% around town) = savings of $.48/gal.

8. DON'T RIDE YOUR BRAKES (Riding with your foot on the brake not only wears out brakes but can also increase gas consumption by as much as 35%) = $.96/gal.

9. LIGHTEN YOUR LOAD (For every 100 extra pounds carried around, your vehicle loses 1 to 2% in fuel efficiency) = savings of $.04/gal for every 100 pounds of weight removed.

10. DON'T IDLE (Besides causing pollution, idling wastes gas. If stopped for more than 30 seconds, turn off the engine, and don't bother to 'warm up' your car before driving -- it is not necessary) = $.01/gal for every two minutes you avoid idling.