Even with the recent decrease in fuel prices in South Africa, the cost of fuel remains a worry to many of us. Here are our top 5 tips for making your driving more efficient.
1. Ensure your tyres are correctly inflated. Tyres that are under inflated or not only dangerous because they increase breaking distance and lead to uneven wear on your tyres, they are also a contributing factor to the bad fuel efficiency of a vehicle. Keeping you tyres inflated to the manufacturer recommended levels can not only save you fuel, it can save your life.
2. Drive with windows wound up – Open windows create drag. The more the window is open, generally the more drag it will create. Although this can be a little bothersome on hot days, it will save you on fuel.
3. Do not rev your engine unnecessarily. Although you might think the sound of your engine being revved up is awesome, it is unlikely to impress anyone else other than your nearest petrol station owner. Revving your engine at red traffic lights simply means that the power generated by the engine is wasted as you are not moving and uses a lot of petrol.
4. Turn off your air con. In most modern vehicles, the air conditioning pump in your vehicle is powered by a belt driven pulley. Engaging your air conditioning means that your engine has to work that little bit harder to keep you cool. Air conditioning can reduce engine efficiency dramatically and increase your fuel spend each month.
5. Don’t Speed. Driving fast might seem like it gets you from A to B quicker than anyone else, but the truth is that in built up areas, excessive speed does not save you much time, increases the fuel your engine consumes and is dangerous. Speeding also increases the wear and tear on your vehicle and you run the risk of being caught speeding.
