What are YOU doing to lower YOUR costs for fuel?

Driving less?
Driving more slowly?
Taking the bus or 'mass transit'?

OR

Nothing at all???

I know... It's YOUR money and you can waste it any way you want to!

However... if you're interested in saving money on your fuel costs, there are some things you can do to make that happen.

Of course we will always wave "Our Flag" and tell you about the benefits of adding EnviroMax Plus to the fuel you put in the tank of YOUR vehicle.

But there are OTHER things that you can do that will help too! We've listed many of them before but this is important enough to do it again. Here we go!

1. Correct tire pressure is imperative for THREE reasons! YOUR safety tops the list. Correct Pressure will also help your tires last longer AND number three... You'll get better fuel mileage by decreasing the "Rolling Resistance" you'll have with under-inflated tires. So read the correct tire pressure from the information on the "door post" or in your "Owners Manual."

2. Driving more slowly can really save you money on fuel! In doing our online research, we found the following information at www.fueleconomy.gov

"While each vehicle reaches its optimal fuel economy at a different speed (or range of speeds), gas mileage usually decreases rapidly at speeds above 60 mph.

As a rule of thumb, you can assume that each 5 mph you drive over 60 mph is like paying an additional $0.21 per gallon for gas."

Can you believe that? An extra 21 cents per gallon just to save a few minutes? Why not leave just a little earlier and save some money? Sound like a better all the time??? Sure does to me!

3. Wash & Wax your car regularly! What's that? Me, wash & wax the car? Well... now that you mention it, when I watch car races on TV (or in person) the cars are always shiny! Right? Wonder why? The REAL reason is not so you can read all the advertisements pasted all over them but instead... the owners want the air to flow as smoothly over the finish of the car as it possibly can... and adding a great WAX JOB to the finish is probably the cheapest way to do that! It's something we ALL can do... and we can save gas by doing it!

4. Use the BEST Lubricants in your vehicle that you can afford! It is a known fact, documented for years, that FRICTION LOSS in the engine and drivetrain of a vehicle waste a huge percentage of the usable power that the engine generates. How can we decrease this Friction Loss? Use a better lubricant! The slicker, the better... in most cases! Notice I said... "in most cases!"

Most of us use the oil that the service station, dealership or quick lube place sells... Some of us go to the store and buy what we THINK is best and change it ourselves. Then, some do research and find that there are "slicker" lubricants to use!

Heard of Synthetics? Developed by NASA researchers, these lubricants are the "slickest thing on earth!" and you can use them in YOUR engine and drivetrain! Will they help? You bet!

Enough to justify the higher cost? That's debatable! And how high is the cost? I can tell you, from experience, that the prices are from "mild" to "wild" and on up! I probably shouldn't talk specific brands here... because I'd probably forget someone important and they'd be offended... so I'll just suggest that you go to your local auto store (or discount store) and look around. You'll find a BUNCH of different brands. Read the information on the package. How often do they recommend that you change the oil? What's the cost per quart? Can you get a bargain buying in larger quantities? Shop around!

Then, if you're really curious, go to Google and enter Synthetic Lubricants in the search box... WOW! I'll bet you're as surprised as I was... Lots of places to look there, huh?

Now, back at the start of this item... I said "The slicker, the better... in most cases!" If you have an older vehicle with hundreds of thousands of miles on it and you've NEVER used synthetics before, there's a rumor out there that says "Most of the synthetic lube oil will blow right on past the slop in the piston rings and out the exhaust pipe!" True or False? Ask YOUR mechanic what he/she thinks! Be your own judge. It will, however, work wonderfully in the gearbox! No matter how old it is!

5. TUNE UP your car regularly! Yes, a quick tuneup can do a LOT for your mileage! In most of today's cars, you can't do a lot in the way of a tuneup, like you could 15 to 20 years ago. Today, the big deal is the distributor cap, the rotor button, check the PCV valve (replace as required) and do the same to your Air Filter... I recommend replacing it at least Quarterly! Look at your spark plugs and replace them if needed, and at the same time, maybe the plug wires? If the spark does not get to the plugs effectively to burn that gas and air mixture, then you're loosing mileage and power! That's largely why a tuneup makes such a difference. You're again able to burn, more efficiently, the air/gas mixture and have the engine doing what it was designed to do! If you are mechanially adept, checking these things regularly is a GREAT idea! If not, have your mechanic check them at least every six months. The savings you'll realize in fuel mileage will make it worth it to you... to have this done!



Check back regularly to find more tips... and please visit our website at: http://www.AskMrAuto.com