The Safe Driver

Getting more value from your vehicle starts with you

Getting good value from the things you have is important to just about everyone. There are so many things people do to try to save money, including buying things they need when they are on sale, using coupons and perhaps using discount stores. Everyone needs to have a spare car key, but aren’t always sure where to go to get the best deal. The cost of having a locksmith to open your car door or having an emergency key cut can be expensive, especially if you’re going to the dealership. There are other places to have duplicate car keys made at a fraction of the cost to save you money.

But without realizing it, many people waste money on a daily basis. What if you were given a break on your monthly rent or mortgage; would you take it with a smile? Many drivers make the effort to find the gas station that offers the cheapest prices, but will they do the things to get good value from their savings?

When you’re sitting in traffic or anywhere really, you’re wasting more fuel than you may realize. In many cases, it’s from the daily commute. Even though many people feel there’s nothing they can do about fuel waste, there actually is. The photo below shows time spent in a drive-thru line up. The line-up was short and the time spent was minimal, but look at the waste. This 30 litres/100 km translates to under 8 mile per US gallon. My average fuel rating on the vehicle I’m driving is currently 7.7 liters/100 kms. That translates to well over 30 MPG. Would you ever buy a vehicle that showed fuel consumption to be 8 MPG or 30 litre/100 km? Of course not, but many choices that a driver makes can hurt their fuel consumption more than they may realize. So let’s look at a few solutions for saving fuel and money.

Based on what was just mentioned, go inside to buy your coffee or use the banking machine. The drive-thru can also waste a lot of time, not just fuel. I’ve been to some places where the drive-thru has more customers waiting than what was inside waiting. I went inside and purchased what I needed, then returned back to my car while others were still waiting in line at the drive-thru. Not only was I saving fuel, but I also saved time.

During your morning commute; look for roads that often have less traffic lights and stop signs. The initial start-up from a stopped position uses up most fuel. Keeping a steady flow is better for your savings. To help keep that steady flow, look well ahead while driving and when you see the traffic lights change to red, ease off the gas early and coast. This can save you a lot of fuel over time. If you ease off the gas early and you only have to drop your speed in half, the acceleration back up to speed takes less power and that uses less fuel. The added plus is that it gives you the sense that you’re still getting to your destination instead of sitting in traffic.

Since many people want to be in control, they often want to drive. But have you ever thought about sharing rides with one other person, perhaps every other week? Here are just a few of the benefits other than fuel savings; less vehicle wear, sharing parking costs, less stress from the grind of daily commutes.

If you really want to get the most out of the fuel you’ll need to make some changes to what you do with your vehicle. Dropping prices in fuel is only one small part of saving money at the pumps. A change of attitude and skill should also happen if you really want to save your hard earned money.

**Have a quick listen to this short episode of the “Speed Bumps” podcast as fuel economy is discussed further!