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Sanderson Auto Repair Car Care Tips
How to Improve Your Car’s Gas Mileage Here are some of the things you can do to ensure improved gas mileage for your car:
Driving Habits
- Keep your car clean. Mud on the undercarriage can weigh a significant amount and slow you down.
- Consolidate your daily trips and errands. This will also save you the cost of restarting your engine, which uses a lot of gas.
- Air conditioning is most efficient at cruising speeds. Turning the AC off and rolling the windows down when driving around town will save gas.
- Don't throttle the gas or mash brake pedal! Sudden starts or stops use more gas than gradual changes in speed.
- Don’t idle for too long. Turn off the engine if you anticipate a lengthy wait.
- Limit car warm-ups in winter.
- Clear out the trunk. More weight equals more drag.
- Avoid high speeds. We know this is almost impossible to resist but you can improve your gas mileage by up to 15 percent driving at 55 mph rather than 65 mph or greater speeds.
- Use cruise control. Maintaining a constant speed is ideal for improving your gas mileage.
Servicing Your Vehicle
- Relace the spark plugs in your engine and clean the induction system in your engine regularly. This way, the air and fuel mixture will burn cleaner and more efficiently.
- Improve the intake/output system. By allowing gas to get in and exhaust out of your vehicle you will improve the vehicle's overall performance and gas mileage.
- Reduce friction. Use high-quality or synthetic motor oil.
- Check your oil! Low oil makes your engine work harder.
- Change your filters. Dirty filters can sometimes increase the amount of fuel your vehicle uses by as much as 10 percent.
- Keep tires properly inflated and vehicle aligned. Check regularly to ensure your wheels are fully inflated and your alignment is good.
- Check and service all fluid containing systems regularly. This keeps the vehicle operating at peek efficiency and driving smoothly.
- Get regular engine tune-ups and car maintenance checks. A lot can go wrong with a car. Damaged spark plugs or transmission problems can also contribute to poor gas mileage.
- Address warning lights if they come on. Check engine lights, ABS lights, brake lights, traction control lights all indicate that your vehicle computer sees a problem with your vehicle. Stay on top of your warning lights.