As the prices of fuel are getting more and more critical, it is good the get some tips and tricks to use less fuel.
1. Shut down the engineIt is a common belief that starting a car consumes more fuel than just letting it run while idle. Reality shows that for any stop that takes less than 30 seconds, it is worse shutting down the engine. Leaving the motor running can make up to 15% fuel economy! This could be quite constraining especially when you are stuck in traffic jams.
Fuel saving: up to 0.2L per 100km
2. Check the pressure of your pneumatics Checking the pressure of the tires is a matter of security after all, but it contributes also up to 20% of total used energy of the car. If the tires are too low in pressure, your fuel consumption can increase up to 5% more. If the tires are too worn out, lack of adherence could be very nasty. Therefore, do not hesitate and check regularly the state of your tires and their pressure, you could even add a few tenth of bar above the indicated norm, especially if you have to drive a long distance.
Fuel saving: up to 2%
3. Do not abuse air-conditioning Sure, in summer, air-conditioning brings an undoubtable comfort. However, it comes with some drawback, essentially when you have to fuel your car more often. At low speed, it is advised to drive with open windows. If you do want to use the air-conditioning, start to use it after opening the windows a few minutes. Indeed, the air-conditioning condenser is supplied by the colder airstream and consequently, is less demanding in energy to cool down. On motorway, driving with open windows will affect the aero-dynamism of the car and subsequently increase fuel consumption, it is preferable to use the air-conditioning in these conditions. To be comfortable and not too energy demanding, adjust smartly the temperature of the air-conditioning. It is not necessary nor that healthy to maintain a temperature of 18ºC in the car. Instead, try to fix it around 20-25ºC, depending how hot is it outside.
Fuel saving: up to 20%
4. Do not overcharge your carThe heavier the car, the more fuel consuming. Therefore, the best is to try to travel as light as possible and remove all the items out of your trunk that you don’t need. If you have to transport many things, it is advised to spread evenly the different items in order to have the weight nicely distributed all along the vehicle.
Fuel saving: between 10 and 20%
5. Switch to lower viscosity grade lubricantCar manufacturers are doing their best to reduce the fuel consumption of the cars in order to have less polluting emissions. They manufacture nowadays lighter and more efficient cars. Another approach that has been tested, is to use some lighter lubricants. Many tests have been performed by using the most recent synthetic lubricant technology SAE 5W/30 versus conventional mineral or semi-synthetic grades like SAE 15W/40 or 10W/40, on special tracks, with the same cars. It showed some fuel economy up to 2%. Therefore, if your car is using conventional products and if you switch to modern products like Syrinx SAE 5W/30, you could perform some fuel economy and still benefit from full protection of all the performance additives.
Fuel saving: 1-2%
