Fuel Saving Tips and Tricks

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ChocolateBadger

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Hi guys

Given the high petrol prices nowadays, lets start a thread of creative and crazy ways that you use to save fuel.

I know that with a fuel injected engine, on a down hill it is better to ride the revs than free wheel as it stops using fuel all together.

EDIT: Can you also mention what car you are achieving this with because all cars are different.
 
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Not so sure about creative or crazy ways, however these are from the AA:

http://www.aa.co.za/about/press-room/commentary/some-green-driving-and-fuel-saving-tips.html

  • Plan your journey and complete several tasks in one trip to avoid unnecessary driving.
  • Avoid idling and stop-start driving. When stopping and then starting your car again in traffic, you use more fuel and produce more emissions.
  • Avoid speeding as it increases your car’s fuel consumption significantly. Driving at slower speeds reduces your vehicle emissions as well as increasing the driver’s safety.
  • Reduce your car weight in the car by removing unnecessary heavy items if you are not using them. Remove extra weight to reduce your engine’s workload, which will burn less fuel and cutting your emissions.
  • Use air conditioning only when necessary as the vehicle air conditioner increases load on the engine which increases emissions. Rather open the window to cool the inside of your vehicle and park in the shade.
  • Monitor your vehicle’s car tyre pressure regularly. Under inflated tyres have a lower pressure and create more resistance when your vehicle is moving which means the engine has to work harder.
  • Avoid over revving your vehicle as it accelerates emissions and uses more fuel. Use your gears wisely, by changing gears earlier, you can reduce revs and reduce emissions.
 
Ecco said:
  • Avoid idling and stop-start driving. When stopping and then starting your car again in traffic, you use more fuel and produce more emissions.
Click to expand...

What?? Why would luxury cars then have the "if I stop I turn off my engine" feature?
 
Ecco said:
Avoid over revving your vehicle as it accelerates emissions and uses more fuel. Use your gears wisely, by changing gears earlier, you can reduce revs and reduce emissions.
Click to expand...

But don't sit in 5th with your foot flat and your revs low... tyring to climb a hill when you're in the wrong gear for example.

Fuel consumption has a lot to do with throttle position.
 
AcidRaZor said:
What?? Why would luxury cars then have the "if I stop I turn off my engine" feature?
Click to expand...

I presume the fancy new start stop feature on new luxury cars work very different to completely switching off on older cars.
 
Accelerating is a big one, as it take lots of energy to get your heavy car moving. So try where safe and possible to creep slowly towards a red robot with the hope of catching it when it goes green. The momentum helps a lot
 
Take it slowly on the highways. On my cars, driving at 100 actually makes quite a difference to my consumption.
 
AcidRaZor said:
What?? Why would luxury cars then have the "if I stop I turn off my engine" feature?
Click to expand...

stop start as in coming to a halt and then pulling off. The auto-engine-stopstart thing does the avoid idling trick.

lift your foot off the accelerator well before you have to stop - try to anticipate traffic movement ahead to avoid sudden braking. Your brake pedal wastes more fuel than your accelerator pedal.
 
From the AA list:

"Avoid speeding as it increases your car’s fuel consumption significantly. Driving at slower speeds reduces your vehicle emissions as well as increasing the driver’s safety."

Please note that if your driving in 4th gear at 60 your wasting petrol. Generally 100km/h is around the most efficient speed.

Braniac done a test on fuel consumption, they used a crap "car" tho, but they found sensible speed and sticking to it to be the most efficient, however, a close second was speeding up and coasting, in my opinion this would have won if they made the track bigger and didn't loose all the power every few seconds on the turns.

I tried to find the video but the only thing I can find on youtube is explosions.
 
encrypted said:
From the AA list:

"Avoid speeding as it increases your car’s fuel consumption significantly. Driving at slower speeds reduces your vehicle emissions as well as increasing the driver’s safety."

Please note that if your driving in 4th gear at 60 your wasting petrol. Generally 100km/h is around the most efficient speed.

Braniac done a test on fuel consumption, they used a crap "car" tho, but they found sensible speed and sticking to it to be the most efficient, however, a close second was speeding up and coasting, in my opinion this would have won if they made the track bigger and didn't loose all the power every few seconds on the turns.

I tried to find the video but the only thing I can find on youtube is explosions.
Click to expand...

Could you narrow it down to best cruising RPM per gear?
 
encrypted said:
From the AA list:

"Avoid speeding as it increases your car’s fuel consumption significantly. Driving at slower speeds reduces your vehicle emissions as well as increasing the driver’s safety."

Please note that if your driving in 4th gear at 60 your wasting petrol. Generally 100km/h is around the most efficient speed.


I tried to find the video but the only thing I can find on youtube is explosions.
Click to expand...

Absolute crap.

Power needed to overcome drag increases as the cube of speed... 60km/h is something like 20% of the drag at 100km/h.
Be in a gear that allows minimal rpm without the engine labouring - so probably around 1800 in a petrol, 1500 in a diesel?
 
Sinbad said:
Absolute crap.

Power needed to overcome drag increases as the cube of speed... 60km/h is something like 20% of the drag at 100km/h.
Be in a gear that allows minimal rpm without the engine labouring - so probably around 1800 in a petrol, 1500 in a diesel?
Click to expand...

I used to word AROUND to avoid this.

My old 1400 petrol couldn't cope at 60 really in 5th gear.

My Audi's CVT Gearbox loves 95-100km/h, the little computer says that's about the best.

Every car is different. Every car is different. Every car is different. Every car is different.

The EPA suggests 60mph.. OH wait, so did I.
 
1. Get to the last gear as soon as possible.
2. Avoid driving 60km/h in 2nd gear for example. Higher the revs = more consumption of petrol
3. Turn aircon off, when not in use
4. Keep windows closed when driving 80km/h+ and windows open at low speeds ( think I saw that on mythbusters?)
 
ChocolateBadger said:
Could you narrow it down to best cruising RPM per gear?
Click to expand...

Depends on the car, but generally highest gear and whatever revs have the pistons moving up and down properly, I don't think you will notice too much of a difference between 80 and 100. It depends on your car. Rev'ing too low is supposed to be bad for the engine, so every car will have its own sweet spot.

Slipstreaming also works, find a truck going a sensible speed and sit behind it :P
 
encrypted said:
I used to word AROUND to avoid this.

My old 1400 petrol couldn't cope at 60 really in 5th gear.

My Audi's CVT Gearbox loves 95-100km/h, the little computer says that's about the best.

Every car is different. Every car is different. Every car is different. Every car is different.

The EPA suggests 60mph.. OH wait, so did I.
Click to expand...

You think 60 in 4th would be less efficient than 100 in 6th? Lol!

Aero drag is the biggest factor by far, within reasonable rev ranges.
 
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