Bad Driving Leads to Bad Gas Mileage

Every time you start your car, you probably think about where you're going and which roads to take. One thing that may be in the back of most American's minds is how to efficiently drive to get the best gas mileage. It's something that we all need to start putting in the front of our minds and think about before we even start the car.

Gas prices are soaring, and driving isn't slowing down. Public transportation is an option, but most of us don't have the time to research public transportation, or don't want to wake up an extra 2 hours early to get to work on time. There are many rumors why gas prices are going up, and many theories of how to stop it. Some say, don't buy gas from the most expensive places, and others think that everyone should take a day off and not buy any gas. Problem is, there are quite a bit of jobs that require us to drive, and gas prices aren't going to go down after just one day of only some American's not buying gas.

A small step towards bettering ourselves and helping lower gas prices, is to eliminate bad driving. There is many ways to do this, and small simple steps that only take a few seconds sometimes can help you save a dollar, or even up to hundreds at the pump. Here are some that you may or may not have heard yet, but I'm going to lay it on the line for all of you. Start conserving!!!

1. Check your tires. Make sure they are at the right PSI, check for balding and wear/tear. Having your tires pumped to the right PSI can help keep your car elevated which reduces the amount of friction on the ground, making you a little bit faster. You will want to check on your tire pressure once every couple of weeks. Make a note if there is a consistent loss of pressure in a certain tire; it may be a sign that your tire is slowly leaking.

2. Chevron isn't all talk. I'd say, within 10 cents more of the average gas price, you may want to upgrade to Chevron gas. I've personally tested their gas versus Vallero, 76, and other normal gas stations, and it has proven to give me a good extra 25-30 miles extra per tank. If it seems worth it to you, go for it. Not to mention, it cleans you're system while you drive. And no, I do not work for them or am affiliated with them in any way.

3. Turn the AC off! Air conditioning eats gas, and when you need it, it's nice, but if you're traveling less than 35MPH, you may as well crack the windows and have the cool air in your face. If you travel faster, you may then want to just turn on the air, but without the AC. The wind will cause resistance when driving which can then also reduce your gas mileage.

4. Have a remote start? Don't use it! Well, for obvious reasons... sure it's nice to get into a nice warm car on those cold days, but while your car sits idly, it's eating gas.

5. Sitting at a light for more than 30 seconds? Turn your car off. Sound crazy no? Well, typically if your car is on idle for more than 30 seconds, you just started wasting gas after the 30 second marker. Tips to do this: Pay attention to the lights in your home town or places you travel quite a bit. Watch and learn which lights turn when, and try it out. It may be illegal in your area, so consult with your local law enforcement, or just keep an eye out for the cops. (Note, I do not condone that activity...)

6. Don't "hunt" for parking. I know that you may like not having to walk that far just for convenience, but it's wasting gas. You drive, you sit, and you patiently wait for that spot. But you are also starting to create a hazard. The people behind you better have enough room to go around you. If they don't, you are going to have some unhappy people waiting for you. Also, make sure if you do decide to be the most hated person in the parking lot, to turn on your blinker! I've sat behind someone who is just sitting in the middle of a lane, no blinker, and I can't pass him because there isn't enough room on either side. I wasn't sure if he was OK, on drugs, sitting there waiting for someone, or just being rude. I honked my horn, and he finally put his blinker on and moved over a bit. Also, it's very dangerous to be waiting for a spot such as that because the people behind you won't know if the car is backing out yet or what. They will try to pass you, and if the person you are waiting for is backing out, you may have just caused a major accident. Great job! Get some exercise, and park anywhere there's a spot.

7. So you parked a little to the left or right, you're the biggest jerk in the world! Unless you parked on the line marking the spots between the cars, or you or your neighbor don't have enough room to get out of your car because you are too close, you don't need to back out and back in again and again. Just accept you need to work on you're driving. Not now, save gas.

8. It's not a race to the stop light. Seriously, it's green, go go go! You're in a rush! You need that extra 30 seconds to get the perfect parking spot right in front before anybody else gets it! No... I think you can do with slowly and lightly putting your foot on the pedal. Take it easy, reduce your breaking, and try to smoothly find the red, and gauge when it will turn green. Perfect! You just passed that jerk on your left who sped past you and beat you to the stop light! Read, learn, and put this into practice! If you see the red light ahead, it doesn't mean keep your foot on the gas.

9. Press lightly on the gas pedal and brake pedal. This means the engine doesn't push as much to pump more of you precious pennies through the system giving you boost. Push hard enough though, and those little copper pieces turn to paper... green expensive paper.

10. Driving slower may eliminate your need to use your brake pedal at all. If you keep your speed at the speed limit or slower, you may be able to gauge stop lights and green lights a lot better and help get you more greens. It also practices patience, which is a much needed virtue in our world today. A lot of drivers have no patience and cause distress on themselves and others. Practice patience, and you're practicing peace of mind.

11. Slow drivers, use the right lane! You're as slow as a truck sometimes, so instead of making the speeders in the fast lane mad, just move over. If you think there's not much room, just turn on your blinker and watch the patient people practice patience! Staying in the fast lane (the left lane) will cause the fast drivers to get mad, and in retaliation, they will cut across as many lanes as needed, and push their way past you. They will almost clip their neighbor and you as they pass. This then causes distress in other drivers as they can only sit back and watch as no police get involved.

12. If you have a hot rod, a mustang, a fast cheetah like car, cool! Why not drive the speed limit? It's nice to have those extra horses of power built into your engine, and it's cool to show it off to your friends, but seriously, vary rarely do I hear people say, "Oh wow, look at that car. He's driving so fast and dangerous! I'd like to know that guy and hang out with him!" Normally, I hear, "Wow, look at that idiot. He needs to slow down before he hits someone. Oh well, maybe he'll hit the wall and kill himself." And you know what? Everyone you're driving by really fast are thinking that. They don't like it, appreciate it, and you now just made a lot of enemies. Watch you're back, and get a killer car alarm. It may not prove well when someone hurls a rock through your windshield though... Let me just say, I have an 08 mustang, and it's got a ton of horse power. I'll rev the engine in my driveway sometimes to enjoy it, or push it to the limits getting up to 65 on the freeway ramp. It's nice to hear the engine, but I'm careful. So I don't want to hear any comments or feedback regarding me not knowing how it feels to have a fast car. And one last comment, I'm really impressed and really enjoy being around the drivers of cars like Lamborghini's, Vipers, Mustangs, who actually driver the speed limit or the speed of cars around them. Keep up the nice driving!

13. Bad Drivers immediately means bad gas mileage. Not just for them, but for everyone. Here's some things that maybe you do that makes you a bad driver:

-Passing slow drivers - What's the point? Unless this person is going 5-10 miles under the speed limit, you'll just end up meeting them at the stop light. Freeways however, are another story...
-Cutting others off - When you do this, you not only make them mad, but you make others who spotted you do that dangerous and careless maneuver mad as well. There is also the fact that you now created traffic. Not a lot, but enough to start others behind that person slow down.
-Remember common courtesy? Letting others go before you? Not going at the 4-way stop sign because it looks like it's you're turn even though you know it's not. (Pay attention! You'll end up getting T-boned and it'll end up being you're fault for going on someone else's turn. Hello higher insurance!
-Pedestrians - As a pedestrian, we all know we have right of way. But maybe instead of walking out in front of cars without looking, stop and actually make sure the people will stop for you. You'll end up getting hit one day and the driver will just speed off because he will know you didn't even look at the color of their car...

Also! Note to drivers, stop trying to drive through intersections where pedestrians are already walking in. It's illegal, and sooner or later, you'll piss off a pedestrian on a bad day, and end up with their leftover food at the restaurant they just came out of all over your car. Quick story behind that. I was about to walk across the street when I had the green, when someone who wasn't paying attention to their right, making a right turn, drives right into the pedestrian crosswalk nearly hitting me if I hadn't taken a step back. I looked inside the vehicle, and no it wasn't a grandpa, or a big thoughtless jerk, it was just a soccer mom. That made me so mad, as it made me think if I was with my own son and she did that, who knows what may have happened. I made sure she learned her lesson, I started walking behind the huge SUV, and banged on the side of her car with my ring hand, rather loudly. She saw me in her rear view mirror and took off into traffic nearly clipping a guy. It was a scary sight, but I'm sure from now on, when she approaches an intersection, she will look both ways. And this isn't the first time it's happened. I've banged on several cars and gotten some strange stares, but nobody ever had the guts to roll down their window and say something. They knew they did wrong.

14. Get you're car maintained often. It really helps changing the oil, spark plugs, and getting your battery checked out. It may be the difference between a passed smog check, and better fuel economy.

Keep these in mind when you hit the road today, and if need be, by all means, type up some bullet points from this article, print them out, and try to train yourself on all this information. Teach it not just to yourself, but show your neighbor, your friends, your children, parents, grandpas and grandmas. If we can reach enough people, we may be able to stop road rage and help keep the cost of gas down. If we don't learn for ourselves, we may have to teach ourselves the hard way in the future when our price for gas is as high as Europe's.

Drive safe!