WITH oil prices hovering around the US$80 a barrel mark and possibly hitting US$100 a barrel by year end, consumers will have to dig deeper into already depleted pockets to pay more for gas. Luckily, there are many ways to conserve on your fuel consumption and improve the gas mileage of your vehicle.

Slow Your Roll

Trevor Barnes, head of the Jamaica Gasoline Retailers Association (JGRA), says driving at moderate speeds can conserve your gas. “Not only that, it will help you save lives, which is also what you want to do. Be mindful of the pedestrians, drive at a moderate speed and you will save some gas,” Barnes says. This is because accelerating and decelerating burns more gas. Speeding, rapid acceleration and hard braking can lower your highway gas mileage by as much as 33 per cent and your city mileage by five per cent, according to the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). Consider this, if you spend $2,000 on gas, you will be throwing away $660 worth on the highway, and $100 worth in your trip around town every time you drive aggressively. The ACEEE also recommends that you drive in a straight line if you can and at a constant speed. Any speed above 60 mph and your gas mileage drops even more rapidly. Maintaining your speed at 55 mph is 15 per cent more efficient than driving at 65 mph. “Do not do any jack-rabbit starting either,” says Barnes, who argues that the practice of accelerating too quickly uses up too much gas. “Maintain an average speed. If you maintain that for a long time you will save some fuel. That is more easily done on the highway,” he says.

Drive efficiently

Do not drive around too much. Combine errands into one trip. Several short trips can take twice as much fuel as one trip covering the same distance. At highway speeds, also keep your windows closed. Windows open at highway speeds increase drag and result in decreased fuel economy up to 10 per cent, according to gasbuddy.com.

Cool it

Some experts suggest that the best time to fill your gas tank is when the weather is coolest, usually early morning or late evening. Gas is more dense at these times and gasoline is sold by volume, so you will actually get more gas for your money. Barnes confirms that this is true. He says that while you will not get much more for a small tank full, overtime it will result in more savings if you buy ‘cooler’ gas. This tip is especially useful for businesses which buy gas in large quantities because they would realise more upfront. Barnes says service stations can also benefit from getting their supply in the early morning. “Even the service stations sometimes can’t get the gas in the morning. When we get it in the day we lose more at that time,” he says.

Do Not Idle

It’s simple, idling, while it burns gas, gives you zero miles per gallon. Shut off if you have to wait for more than two minutes. Restarting burns less fuel than idling for that long. “I don’t know who would be idling their car now,” says Barnes. “If you are going to be stopping for any amount of time, you need to shut off your engine,” he says.

Carpool

Can you compromise on the luxury of your own car for a cut in mileage and car maintenance costs? It makes sense to do so, says Barnes. “No matter how much you save, the gasoline will still be at a very high cost,” notes the JGRA head. Therefore, you can ramp up your savings by carpooling. Organise carpools with friends or co-workers. If you live and work in the same area, schedule carpools. One friend can provide the transportation this week, another person the following week. That way everyone gets a chance to save on fuel and maintenance costs and the reduction in traffic can result in less travel time, fewer starts and stops and hence less fuel consumption.

Maintenance

Ever heard the adage: a stitch in time saves nine? Well, it applies to your car too. Get regular engine tune-ups and car maintenance checks to get better fuel efficiency. Worn spark plugs, dragging brakes, low transmission fluid, and clogged air filters can reduce your gas mileage as well. Replacing a clogged air filter can improve your gas mileage as much as 10 per cent according to the US Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) and it protects your engine.

Barnes also recommends a simple, obvious but often ignored rule: “Make sure you buy the right grade gas because a lot of people are buying 90 grade (gasoline) which they don’t need to, 87 is a little cheaper,” he says.

Other less obvious maintenance tips such as using the correct grade of motor oil recommended for your vehicle and keeping your tyres properly inflated and aligned can improve your gasoline mileage by around 3.3 per cent.

Enjoy natural air

While the air conditioner itself does not use gasoline, when it is on, it puts extra load on the engine, which can use up to 20 per cent more fuel as a result. Roll down the windows when possible and turn off the AC, especially early mornings and late evenings when it is cooler.

Walk, ride, or take public transportation for your regular daily commute depending on where you live, the distance to your destination and the time of day. You will save gas and wear and tear on your vehicle and might get healthy in the process. However, do not compromise your safety.

Get rid of the baggage

Dragging around a lot of baggage wears you down and saps your energy, right? Same goes for your car. Extra weight decreases gas mileage by one to two per cent for every 100 pounds.

Barnes says conservation is everyone’s business, even the gas station operator who may see his margins decline following efforts by the public to cut back on fuel consumption. “It will eat into your sales, but we are all Jamaicans and we all have a say in what happens. Our burden is to have some reduced sales at this time, which we already know will happen,” he says. Barnes says in anticipation for the decline in demand of the commodity, gas station operators have had to diversify their offerings. Selling “from a pin to an anchor” at their service stations. “You do everything because the margin on gas is small and the margin will decrease even further as people cannot afford to buy,” he says.