With diesel prices above 2.2 euros per liter on the motorway, hunting for the cheapest distributor is no longer enough. With the expensive fuel increasingly pressing, every motorist must find ways and systems to save on fuel. The good news is that We decide a significant part of driving consumptionwith some attention before even starting the engine.
This is possible through small precautions and tricks that can save money while driving, consuming less and less. In fact, according to the ICA, one careful driving style it can cut consumption and bring fuel savings with an economic advantage that goes between 5 and 15%. Let’s see, point by point, where the fuel we waste ends up and how to recover it.
The first waste happens in stop-and-gos
The first waste occurs in continua stop-and-go. According to the ACI, “it is necessary to maintain a moderate and as uniform speed as possible, avoiding unnecessary braking and restarting” which, in addition to causing an increase in emissions, above all causes fuel consumption which increases exponentially as you accelerate. Indeed, every sharp acceleration demands much more energy from the engine than is needed to maintain the pace and each braking dissipates it as heat in the brakes. The best strategy is to observe and anticipate the flow of traffic, then “increase the following distance from the vehicle in front to balance speed fluctuations in the traffic flow, allowing smooth driving.”
Above a specific speed, the real opponent of the engine can become the use of a certain speed, in which each additional km/h costs more than the previous one. This is where the biggest saving of all comes from, since Going from 130 to 110 km/h on the motorway cuts consumption by 15–20%. Another fundamental rule is to shift to higher gears earlier. At the same speed, a lower rotation speed means less friction and less consumption, as well as a reduction in polluting emissions and engine wear. And if you drive a supercharged car, don’t worry. As we explained in this article, as long as you keep your foot light, the turbo is an ally for efficiency and reduced consumption.
Flat tires account for 20-30%
Then there is a saving that is played from a standstill. A flat tire deforms more and increases rolling resistance. As the European Commission explains on the page dedicated to the energy labeling of tyres, tires affect the 20-30% on fuel consumption of a vehicle, and traveling with correctly inflated tires can save up to 10% energy. For this reason, checking tire pressure is essential, and must be done once a month and coldreporting the pressure according to the value indicated in the car’s user manual.
Another element that can compromise the car’s consumption is having the trunk full of objects that are not needed, and which become silent ballast, and which worsen the aerodynamics of the vehicle. In fact, according to the ACI, it is useful to “avoid unnecessary loads and excessive aerodynamic bulk, and not travel in heavy load conditions: the weight of the vehicle and its structure strongly influence consumption and stability”. The advice is simple, which is that the car must be lightened of everything that is not needed for the journey.
Air conditioning and windows
We must never forget, especially in a period of scorching heat like the one we are experiencing, that the climate factor is crucial. Indeed, the air conditioning takes energy directly from the engine. The increase in consumption stands on average at around 1 liter per hour, or around 2 liters every 100 km, as we have explained in this in-depth analysis. To avoid consuming too much, the important thing is to avoid excessive differences compared to the outside temperature and to use recirculation wisely.
And the old man dilemma between windows down and air conditioning? It depends on the speed. As we explained in another article, at low speeds lowered windows are the best solution to save fuel, while at higher speeds it is more difficult to estimate what is best. Here you will find the numbers of the study that compared the two options. Furthermore, it must be said that a car in good shape, a maintained car is a car that consumes less. Oil, brakes, tyres, filters must be maintained in the conditions indicated by the manufacturer.
Electric cars
As for electric cars, everything we have seen This also applies to those who drive an electric vehicleeven though it actually burns nothing and uses electricity to generate movement. Of course, even in this case, inflated tires, no excessive weight, constant and moderate speeds contribute to extending the autonomy in a similar way to combustion cars.
The only difference in the case of EVs is the regenerative brakingwhich works a bit like the dynamo of a bicycle, and which recovers in the battery part of the energy that a combustion car would dissipate in the brakes.
