We are always keen to help our clients save money when possible especially when it comes to our expert industry. Have a look at some of our tips and tricks and see if you could change any of your daily habits or routines to increase your cars fuel efficiency.
Keep an eye on petrol promotions and loyalty schemes
Many of us already have a keen eye watching the petrol prices fluctuate and try to fill our tanks when it’s at a low. However you could get it just as cheap all year round by using loyalty cards and making the most of promotions. Most petrol stations run some form of loyalty scheme, whether you get a percentage of cashback or offers and tokens sent through to you it sometimes pays off to choose one place and stick with it to get the most for your money. Supermarkets often give you money off every litre of petrol included on the receipt of your shop but these are often unnoticed and thrown away. They can be up to 10p off every litre which really adds up if you are filling up so be sure to take notice and keep your receipts!
Don’t lug around unnecessary weight
Your roof rack may be a life saver when it comes to fitting all of the kid’s luggage in the car for a family holiday however you don’t need to carry it with you every day on your commute to work. It’s not only the extra weight but also the wind resistance that it causes that makes the engine work harder. Your car will use more fuel to move more weight so be sure to unclutter your car and remove any thing that you do not need for the trip. The lighter your car is the less effort it needs to accelerate, which results in less petrol being used and more pennies in your purse.
Keep your tyres pumped up
We know it’s easy to forget sometimes but checking your tyre pressure only takes 5 minutes and not only improves the vehicle handling and safety but also increases fuel efficiency. The lower the tyre pressure the higher the drag on the car and the more petrol it will be drinking up. If you are unsure what your tyre pressure should be you can usually find it in your cars manual.
Plan your trips in advance
This may sound like an obvious tip, but try to avoid rush hour. Other than traffic jams being a very unpleasant place to spend your time it’s also a very expensive time to travel. Every time you have to stop and start your car again using first and second gear it uses a big chunk of your petrol. If you do have to spend a lot of time in traffic on your commute to work or everyday life you could consider investing in a hybrid car that uses much less fuel.
Everyone has a last minute drive they need to take or something they forgot to pick up from the shops however you can save a lot of petrol by running all of your errands in one trip. Your engine will be using a lot less fuel once it has been running for a while than once you first start it up from being cold so when you can help it try and make just one journey.
Be careful on hot days
There’s nothing better than a nice drive to the seaside on a hot sunny day under the blue summer skies however both ways in which you would cool down during these journeys also cause you to use extra petrol. Air conditioning uses a lot of petrol however winding the windows down and having the sunroof also causes a drag on the car meaning it also uses more petrol to move forward. Our general advice to save as much as you can is to have the windows wound down if you are traveling at a low speed but to switch to the air conditioning once you put your foot down.
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Your roof rack may be a life saver when it comes to fitting all of the kid’s luggage in the car for a family holiday however you don’t need to carry it with you every day on your commute to work. It’s not only the extra weight but also the wind resistance that it causes that makes the engine work harder.