Money Saving Tips at the Pump

With today’s economy, it’s no surprise that we’ll never see gas prices dip below $3.00/gal. in the near future.  Car manufacturers are seeing this as an opportunity to sell cars that boast 40+ mpg (miles per gallon) to help with those rising gas prices.  But the truth of the matter is, some of those vehicles can be expensive.  And the average car driver is keeping their current vehicle for a longer period of time.  Some of the cars on the road can only get 20-25mpg, and some are even less than that.  So to help combat that issue, here are three money saving tips you can do while at the pump.

Higher Octane Fuel

You see this all the time when you pull into the gas station.  There are three different prices for three different types of gas, and these prices vary significantly.  The reason for this is due to the octane of the gas you put in your vehicle.  You’ll probably see numbers like 87, 89, 91, 93 or 95 right above the nozzle itself.  This is the octane number and in short, it’s the ease of which the fuel will combust.  The higher the octane number, the easier it is for the fuel to combust.  This can help with your gas mileage as it requires the engine to need less fuel to get up to or maintain speed.  Be careful though, it also increases your horsepower slightly as well, which can have an adverse affect.  So if you have a heavy foot, you might want to attach a few helium balloons to lighten the load.

Get to the Right PSI

After you fill up at the pump, you want to put air into your tires.  Think of your tires as a sharp knife, and the road as a piece of paper.  When you take a sharp knife and cut the paper, it glides right through it.  But if you have a dull knife, the paper tears rather than cuts.  The same concept goes for your tires.  If you’re tires are under-inflated, they grip the road too much and your engine needs to work harder to maintain that grip.  But when your tires are filled to the proper PSI (Pounds per Square Inch), the engine can take a bit of a break.  You can find the proper PSI along the outside wall of the tire, along your wheel.

Adding a Little Something Extra

This is one item you may have to get at an auto parts store, but you still do this at the pump.  One of the better ways to increase your gas mileage is to get a fuel system cleaner.  Usually you add this right before you fill up your gas tank and when you’re close to the “E” mark on your fuel gauge.  As your fuel is burned up when the engine is running, carbon is emitted from the expelled fuel and can clog up your fuel injectors.  Along with carbon build up, contaminants in the fuel can, and will, clog up any fuel lines and your fuel filter.  With both issues at hand, your car needs to work harder to get the required amount of fuel that it needs to use.  When you add a fuel system cleaner at your next fill up, the cleaner will remove these contaminants from your fuel system, expel them with the exhaust, and make your engine a little less thirsty.