Drive 'n' Save

Top 5 Fuel-Saving Tips:

Service your vehicle properly

It’s tempting to miss vital services, especially when finances become tighter. Failure to change filters and fluids is not only reducing the life of your engine and risking damage, it will also cause you to use more fuel. Dirty filters can cost you money. If dealer prices are a problem, then find a good alternative local garage.

Check your tyres

Check tyre pressures, preferably weekly. Incorrect tyre pressures will worsen your fuel economy significantly. Consult your handbook for correct pressures. Abnormally worn or misshapen tyres are just as bad. Replace these as soon as economically possible.

Reduce drag

If you have any add-on extras such as roof racks or extended mirrors, then remove these when they are not being used. Windows being open will cause a tremendous amount of drag as well, although they’re not likely to be open often in our current freeze.

Avoid short journeys

These use the most fuel because they involve many gear changes. Starting the vehicle is a large drain on energy. Driving with a cold engine will use more fuel because all engines are designed to work most efficiently at normal operating temperature. Plan to stop many repeat and stop-start journeys.

Performance tune your vehicle

Performance tuning your car may seem odd if trying to save fuel, however it is shown that efficiency and power run hand in hand with fuel economy. In a recent university study the Tunit product was shown to not only improve fuel efficiency, but also reduce the smoke particle emissions of diesel engines by 27 per cent.