Historically prices of petrol and diesel were always going up so it’s good to know how to save fuel. Years ago driving a diesel car was like a dream. Lower price than petrol, lower consumption and much cheaper car servicing than nowadays. Furthermore many tend to think that diesel burning was also more ecological thanks to lower emission of CO2. Currently indeed diesel engines still need less fuel to run the car as this is more calorific type of fuel. However, everything else changed and also petrol engines became more efficient resulting in getting overall better MPGs. Apart from this it doesn’t matter which engine you have in car. Anyway you have to always follow a few rules which help you to save 100s of pounds annually.

5 ways how to save fuel

1. Operate with gas and brake pedal gently. Also try to predict what will happen on the road in next 2-3 maybe even 5 seconds. Don’t accelerate if you know the city and think that traffic lights will change to red soon. You will waste your brake pads and fuel at the same time. Also avoid hard accelerating. Change gear as soon as you feel that accelerating on higher gear will be still smooth. Remember – lower revs, lower fuel consumption.
2. Don’t drive on neutral gear. While driving on neutral your car still burns fuel. If you are driving around 40 MPH and you see that traffic light ahead just turned red, reduce to 3rd then 2nd gear gently. Your car will stop burn fuel. At the same time you will save on your brake pads as car will gradually slow down. You also have more control over your car while in gear.
3. The less your car weight, the less it burns fuel. Clearly it’s not a good idea to remove back seats or spare wheel if you don’t use them just to save fuel. It just doesn’t make a sense. However, if you keep a lot of unnecessary and heavy things in trunk, you just lose money every time you drive.
4. Inflate your tires. You should check them every 2-4 weeks. Under inflated tires are both dangerous and non fuel efficient. Just open driver’s door and you will see the label showing how much you should inflate your tires. You will find air compressor on most petrol stations. What’s more, it costs you almost nothing. 1 minute of compressor using is something around… 10p. Not much even just for your safety, isn’t it?
5. Look for the cheapest petrol station around your workplace or home. I use PetrolPrices.com. It’s free and prices are updated very regularly. In most cases supermarket petrol station are the cheapest. Also they offer same fuel quality as famous ones. Furthermore you should tank only regular unleaded petrol or regular diesel. There are no proofs that premium fuels can really lower your MPG as stated by some people and brands. However, they can significantly slim your wallet.

The best answer for how to save fuel

Of course the best thing you can do is to change your car for the one with smaller engine and low fuel consumption! Maybe it’s worth considering?

Your annual savings on fuel

So how much money can you save annually following above 5 most important rules? I would say that in most extreme cases your savings can reach as much as 20-30%! Let’s say you pay 1500 for fuel every year. It means even 300-450 pounds may stay in your pocket every year. It can be above 50% if you also change your car for more fuel efficient one!

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Please keep on mind that I’m NOT a financial adviser and you shouldn’t treat above post as any kind of financial advice. This is just my blog where I share my knowledge but I can be wrong while doing so! Also please remember that any financial decision you will make might affect your finances either positively or negatively. Your capital is always at risk when you invest. You should always read T&C (Terms and Conditions) to make sure you know all the rules.