Hybrid Jungle

When you’re looking to buy a car and you see the EPA estimated gas mileage, do you usually laugh and subtract 15% to get the real world number? If I told you that you can easily exceed the posted EPA estimated mpg, you would think I’m crazy right? Think again, as this is much easier than you think and it doesn’t require you to purchase the latest infomercial product. The techniques below demonstrate how you can become a hypermiler. A hypermiler is a driver who exceeds the EPA estimated fuel efficiency on their vehicle by modifying their driving habits. All it requires is your right foot!

Evaluate your Driving Style
Probably the most important thing is to evaluate your driving style. Aggressive driving can make a huge impact on your gas mileage and by adjusting the way you drive, you can expect massive fuel economy gains. A moderate driving style can save up to 37% over an aggressive driver! Don’t stomp on the gas from a stop when the light turns green. Instead, you should smoothly reach your desired speed at a moderate pace. In addition, you could save an additional 12% just by driving the speed limit.

Maintain a Constant Speed
If you are constantly hitting your brakes, it means you are also constantly accelerating. Maintaining a constant speed is crucial in getting good gas mileage. Keeping at least a two second distance between you and the car in front of you, should help keep nervous braking to a minimum. Look far ahead of you while driving and try to avoid hard braking.

Cruise Control is Your Friend
If you are driving on the freeway, consider using your cruise control as it smooths out your acceleration and can yield an average saving of 7%. Cruise control cuts down on the unnecessary speed changes that burn additional gas. Also, some people will use cruise control as a means to accelerate. This is because you can accelerate with small, defined increments, like 1 mph, and if you hold it you will get smooth acceleration.

Avoid Excessive Idling
If you are going to be stopped for longer than a minute, you should consider turning the engine off. When your car is idling you are getting 0 mpg. I was surprised to learn that tests show that avoiding excessive idling could save up to 19%.

Coasting
Coasting can also save significant amounts of money and can be used as an efficient way of slowing down. If you see a red light ahead, then immediately stop accelerating and start coasting to the light and brake lightly if needed. When you are going down a hill, consider coasting as much as possible.

As you can see, there are a number of very simple things you can do to achieve increased fuel efficiency. Many of the tips above can easily be accomplished, will help you spend less time at gas stations, and save you a significant amount of money. Evaluate your driving style and see if you can make a few minor adjustments that will in turn yield big results. It doesn’t matter if you have a Toyota Prius or a Hummer, as these techniques apply to everyone.

Source: Edmunds

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Comments not related to the article or offer no value to the discussion will be removed.