What Impacts Fuel Economy

by Tim Joseph
A lot of saving money at the gas pump is knowing what factors affect your fuel economy. There may be things costing you money that you don’t know about and that’s why educating yourself is so important. Today I came across an interesting website (http://www.willyoujoinus.com) created by the good folks at Chevron. I don’t believe we have any Chevron gas stations here in the Detroit area but this website can help us none the less. If you click on the MPG Optimizer you can move these little sliding icons around to see what is impacting your fuel economy.

The website asks you to set the icons based on a series of seven questions. By moving the icons I found that I save 15 miles per gallon. The questions are:

1. What kind of car do you drive?
2. Are you an aggressive driver in the city, accelerating and braking suddenly?
3. How fast do you drive when you’re on the highway?
4. Do you use the manufacturer’s recommended grade of motor oil?
5. How much extra weight do you have in your backseat and trunk?
6. Do you get your car’s engine tuned up regularly?
7. How well-inflated are your tires?

Most people are not sure how often they need to tune their car up. Usually it’s 60,000 – 100,000 miles so most people would answer “Always” to question 6. By changing a few little things, you could save big just by knowing that you need to change.

Fuel Economy Series Part 4

by Tim Joseph

Nempimania: An obsession with getting the best fuel economy possible.

If you’re really feeling it at the pump and have enjoyed out series then quite possibly you have Nempimania. I know I do. I’ve talked a lot about trading your car for one that’s more fuel efficient or how to track your fuel economy. I’ve also told you how much money you can save with Nitrogen and how to calculate that savings. Now I’m going to give you some tips on how to maximize your fuel usage and save money. Imagine if everyone in America reduced their fuel usage by 20%. Most likely it would cause the investors to sell their shares in crude oil and cause the price to fall. I ended up only spending $10 on gas this week compared to $16 last week and $20 the week before. I have cut my gas costs in half. Just by using these techniques.

Observe The Speed Limit – Each 5mph you drive over 60 costs you $0.20 per gallon for gas.
Remove Excess Weight – This affects smaller vehicles more than large vehicles but the general rule of thumb is every extra 100 pounds in your vehicle will cost you 2%. At $4/gallon it costs you $0.08 per gallon.
Avoid Excessive Idling – You get 0 mpg when you idle.
Use Cruise Control – It helps you maintain a constant speed and will save you gas.
Use Overdrive Gears – If you have an automatic transmission, make sure you use the over drive gear.
Keep your Engine Tuned – Engines that are out of tune cost you 4% at the pump
Check and Replace Air Filters – Replacing a clogged air filter can improve your gas mileage by 10%.
Keep Tires Properly Inflated – 1 psi drop costs you 0.4% and it can add up quickly.
Keep Your Oil Changed – Not only will it make you engine run longer but it’ll save you at the pump.

Personally, I have been shifting at 2,000 RPM’s. Also, I’ve been shifting into neutral down hills and when coming to a stop. This will bring your RPM’s down a lot, let your engine run easier and save you a lot of money.

In Part 5 I will highlight Dick Scott’s most fuel efficient vehicles at each of our dealerships. That will close out our Fuel Economy series but whenever we hear of ways that will save you money at the pump, we’ll pass them along.

To get into a more fuel efficient vehicle, please contact:
Dodge – 800-571-6906
Motormall – 800-486-2415
Kia – 800-730-9872
Nissan – 800-504-8536

Fuel Economy Series Part 1

by Tim Joseph

Over the next few weeks I’m going to be writing a lot about fuel economy. Traditionally, gas is at its highest prices in the summer months when most people are traveling. It seems to spike even higher during holidays like July4th. With the 4th less than a month away, gas prices are expected to go up to $150 per barrel which is about $20 more than they are now. Today the gas station I pass on the way in to work had 87 octane for $4.05. At Dick Scott we have several high mileage vehicles that will get you where you want to go for a whole lot less. Vehicles like the Nissan Versa or the Kia Rio. I’ll tell you a lot more about those vehicles as we progress in the series but for now let’s talk about fuel economy in general.

FuelEconomy.gov is a great reasource for everything fuel related. Do yourself a favor and download the Fuel Economy Guide for 2008. A lot changed in the way fuel economy was calculated in 2008 so if you bought your car in 2007 you may want to see what has changed. You car hasn’t changed but the new testing may give you a more accurate look at where your money is going.

One thing of interest on this website is the section about “Find Your Car’s EnergyImpact Score“. This made me think of a good friend of mine who had a 2005 Ford F-150 w/ the big 5.4L V8 engine. He drove around 15,000 mile per year. He traded it in for a Versa, admitting that there was no need to have such a big vehicle. I did a side by side comparison between the 05 F-150 and the 07 Versa and here is what I found:

	Versa	Ford F-150
Cost To Drive 25 Miles	$3.52	$7.04
Fuel To Drive 25 Miles	0.89 per gallon	1.79 per gallon
Cost to fill up	$26.81	$126.55
Mile on a tank	333	450
Tank Size	13.2 gallons	35.7 gallons
Annual Fuel Cost	$2110	$4220

Not only did Derek lower his payment a couple hundred dollars a month on his payment (even more on insurance) but he cut his gas bill in half! If you are considering a Nissan Versa or any one of Dick Scott’s high mileage vehicles, please compare your vehicle to the new one to see how much you’ll save. Now that’s being frugal!

Dick Scott Kia – 800-730-9872
Dick Scott Nissan – 800-504-8536
Dick Scott Dodge – 800-571-6906
Dick Scott Motormall – 800-486-2415