Date 21 September 2012 Title How to Get More Miles to the Gallon Nationwide Vehicle Contracts Guides Authors Donna Kelly, Marketing & Website Editor Stephen Woor, Content Writer How to Get More Miles to the Gallon Nationwide Vehicle Contracts Guides
CONTENTS Introduction... 3 Completely Free Fuel Efficiency Tricks... 3 Drive Light, Use Less Fuel... 3 Change Your Habits... 3 Additional Tips... 4 Spending Money to Save Money? Premium Fuel Economy Tips... 4 Buying Fuel Efficient Cars... 4 Can you Modify your Car to be more Fuel Efficient?... 5 Measuring Mileage... 6 2012 Nationwide Vehicle Contracts Limited 2
Introduction We are regularly warned that petroleum is a scarce commodity, and whilst early threats of exhausted global reserves have proven pessimistic, there can be little doubt that the resource is finite. The problem is, we are currently very dependent on petroleum in all aspects of industry and especially in motoring. Whilst the major manufacturers are working out alternative ways of powering our cars and meeting with success as they do it, we re all still stuck trying to use less fuel as prices continue to rise. Fuel economy isn t all about the grand environmental issues facing humanity as a species. Whether you have purchased your car or whether you are leasing, operating a car has never been especially cheap, even if for most people it is entirely essential. In the following guide, Nationwide Vehicle Contracts examines a number of fuel efficiency tricks that can make a real difference to your monthly bills. Completely Free Fuel Efficiency Tricks The best things in life are free, and if you re wondering how to get more miles to the gallon, you ll find that many of the most dramatic benefits come through learning how to drive economically. Drive Light, Use Less Fuel When sending rockets into space, every single last thing sent with the astronauts is exhaustively measured and inventoried in the name of fuel economy: nobody wants to be stuck in a rocket that runs out of fuel halfway up, after all. You re probably not sending you car into orbit, but the same principles apply: the heavier your car, the more fuel you have to use to get it to move. So here are some ideas for taking pounds of the weight of your car: Remove your roof rack, bike rack and other non-essential accessories when you re not using them. This isn t just about the weight of course: roof racks are the cause of a great deal of wind resistance Have a good clear out. Whilst that packet of fruit pastilles in the glove compartment probably aren t causing an enormous amount of extra strain, we all have plenty of clutter that could be cleared out from the various pockets, compartments and from the boots of our car. Don t go disposing of emergency supplies if you re likely to get stuck in snow on a hillside, but equally, do you really need four pints of water and a briefcase of emergency flares if you re driving through suburban London? Assuming that you can fill up affordably without going out of your way, it s actually more economically sound to go more often to your petrol station and to keep your tank between ½ and ¾ full. Fuel contributes to the weight issue, after all Change Your Habits Good economic driving often starts with changing habits. Our guide continues with these petrol savers: Use your accelerator and your brakes less: the faster you go, the more fuel you use. And when you brake instead of letting your car slow to halt by taking your foot off the accelerator, you re simply wasting energy you ve already put your down for 2012 Nationwide Vehicle Contracts Limited 3
Switch your engine off whenever you can. Also, if you warm up your engine before driving off, you re stuck in a driving mentality that is several decades old! Most drivers could make savings by changing up gear earlier, thus giving their engines less work to do The most responsible way to drive is by taking passengers with you. Yes, technically this contradicts all said above about weight, but four drivers in a single car are going to use far less petrol than four drivers in four separate cars. Even asking for a small contribution to the operating costs should cover the inefficiency. Get everyone to pay an equal share, and you ll all save a substantial amount. Only use air conditioning when you absolutely have to, and always turn it off when driving at lower speeds Interestingly, opening your windows to keep cool and save petrol by not running your air conditioner is actually counterproductive: at high speed you ll actually be wasting more fuel thanks to air resistance (and you ll be slightly more warm and uncomfortable to boot). Additional Tips You car may be technically compatible with premium quality fuels, but that doesn t mean that it actually benefits from being filled up with them. Only high performance cars such as sports cars and upper tier luxury vehicles need to be filled up with premium fuel. Otherwise, you are just paying extra for no extra benefits Over inflate your tyres and you can expect to see handling problems. But if you fall below the recommended pressure, you will see your Miles Per Gallon start to plummet. Save on petrol: check your tyres A recently serviced car with no mechanical problems or developing aches and pains will be a lot more fuel efficient than any car that is slowly starting to fall apart Planning a journey so that you always take the shortest route (with the least time spent idling in queues) will always mean greater fuel efficiency. How can I Save Money by Spending Money? Premium Fuel Economy Tips Moving on from the changes you can make to your habits and driving style completely free of charge, it s worth considering whether there are any ways that spending money up front could save you money over the life of your car. Buying the Most Economical Car The motor market is increasingly geared towards offering you ways of going further for less: fuel reserves and global expansion have made fuel efficiency a necessity, and every new overhaul of our favourite makes and models edge MPG higher. Just ten years ago, fuel efficiency advice would have been limited to the (still perfectly true) facts that: Small cars and smaller engines have better fuel efficiency than bigger cars and bigger engines Diesel engines are more fuel efficient than petrol. 2012 Nationwide Vehicle Contracts Limited 4
However, fuel efficiency is sufficiently important now that marketing and showrooms now make MPG more visible, and offer alternative ratings that can inform your purchase of the most economical car on the market: A simple band A to band G fuel rating, accompanied by expected road tax will be displayed on most new models Read and compare specifications for MPG ratings always ensure that the specifications are specific to the precise model you are shopping for: two identical looking cars can sometimes have very different specifications The internet provides everything you need to find out the facts about fuel economy: carfueldata.direct.gov.uk is a government run starting point. Of course, the most fuel efficient vehicles on the market currently are those that are not using petrol or only partly using petrol. Electric and hybrid electric vehicles are providing a far cheaper way of filling up. However, it s open for debate whether it is actually cheaper to own one of these vehicles when all of the costs of running them are taken into consideration: purchase prices still remain high. Can you Modify your Car to be more Fuel Efficient? The thought of buying a new car just for the sake of fuel efficiency is probably not an appealing one for the majority: it s certainly something you want to consider every time you do buy, but in the middle of your car s life, you re probably not going to ditch it for the efficiency savings you could be making. As we ve established, changes in habits could make a real difference. But are there any short-term investments you could be making in your current vehicle? There are three principle changes you can make to an existing vehicle to make it more efficient, at least in theory. Make your car more aerodynamic by using body kits and car mods to improve air flow around your vehicle. Convert your engine to accept fuels or set up a hybrid engine system. Fit aftermarket cruise control to your car (if you don t already have it) Modifying aerodynamics would involve adding air dams, wheel arch gap fillers, wheel skirts, grill blocks and even adding dramatic boat tails. The trouble with this is that a large number of modifications on the market are purely for looks spoilers, for instance, almost universally make cars worse to drive despite making your vehicle look sportier. Taking aerodynamic design into your own hands means going against the already well researched design choices made by your manufacturer, not to mention the basic aesthetics (boat tails are apparently capable of reducing fuel consumption dramatically. They just look utterly ridiculous). Under the bonnet you could take the extreme step of converting to electric or hybrid power. However, though kits are available you ll need to be a competent motor mechanic to even consider embarking on what is an enthusiast s project. There are companies that will do the conversion for you, but it would be a stretch to say that paying for them is economically logical. If you want better performance from a car you intend to maintain and drive for decades to come, a conversion may make sense. Otherwise, the main reason for such a dramatic upgrade is to do your bit for the environment. 2012 Nationwide Vehicle Contracts Limited 5
Cruise control on the other hand is a guaranteed saving, but only for people who aren t already making changes to the way they drive. Measuring Mileage Of course, if you re planning on making changes, it helps to actually have some idea of the miles per gallon you re currently getting. This applies regardless of whether you re overhauling your car, buying a new one or just changing your driving habits. The advice on this point had usually been to buy a trip computer (ScanGauge being an example), and connect it to your car s diagnostic connector. This is still the most precise way to measure your miles per gallon, but the extra expense for this petrol saving device may be difficult for people to justify. The basic functionality is likely available via GPS technology on your sat nav system. This is assuming, of course, that you haven t disposed of your sat nav because of similar functionality in your phone. Trip computer apps, route monitors and the like are available on app stores for most major smartphones, and compared to buying a dedicated fuel saving device, their cost is negligible. Going out of range can make for some inaccurate readings, but for a rough guide, these apps are indispensible. 2012 Nationwide Vehicle Contracts Limited 6