Five Ways to Save Money on Your Gas

Retail gas prices affect everybody and everything, from individuals to big businesses. Most people (and companies) suffer the consequences of rising gas prices. Everybody in your morning and evening commutes is affected by the cost of rising gas prices. If your family is thinking of taking a road trip for your summer vacation, you might think twice before you hit the open road if gas is over $4.00 a gallon.

Big businesses are deeply affected by the cost of fuel. Transportation companies such as the airlines or trucking industries are susceptible to the cost of energy. If the cost of fuel goes up, it will reflect on the ticket prices and the cost of services, which will likely hike up the cost of the merits of their tickets and will not only have an effect on the company’s bottom line but the consumer’s bottom line as well. If ticket prices are too high, people won’t take vacations and wait until prices come down to take breaks.

HISTORICAL GAS PRICES:

For the everyday consumer, the rising fuel cost will affect their monthly allotted gas expense. If you’re commuting five days a week, gas can be a significant part of one’s budget, so saving money on gas should be a major priority if you take your budget seriously. There have been some critical studies that have gone into what and what doesn’t affect your car’s MPG (miles per gallon) and before we get into how to save money for gas, let’s get into some myths that involve gas mileage:

1. Air Conditioning: Studies have shown that rolling down your windows vs. cranking up the AC shows no significant difference in your MPG.
2. Tire Inflation: Studies show that keeping your tires over-inflated or under-inflated shows no significant changes in your MPG. Over-inflating your tires can cause more wear-and-tear to your tire, and-if anything-keeping your tires under-inflated will affect your vehicle’s performance (you won’t be able to go as fast) but won’t have a dramatic effect on your gas mileage.

FIVE GREAT TIPS TO SAVE MONEY BY SAVING GAS

• Use Technology. If you’re a proud smartphone owner, then you’re in luck as far as saving money on gas goes. A great iPhone application mashes up Google Maps and a service called GasBuddy and will locate the cheapest gas within a certain radius of your location. Use common sense when using this application because driving 12 miles to save .01 per gallon is probably not efficient or economical. GasBuddy.com is also a website you can visit and check out local prices within your area; for example, you call the GasBuddy.com website and plug in your zip code, and you can see the gas price per gallon for that specific location. Just a little heads up, we did a ton of searches for gas prices here in Southern California, and there, more often than not,t Costco had the lowest prices by at least a couple of dimes, comparatively speaking.
• Slow down. Driving the speed limit is not only safer; it saves you money on speeding tickets, but it will also save you money at the pump. Unless you’re going on a long road trip, driving faster will not cut any significant time of your drive time. So, moving more quickly unless you have a super tight schedule doesn’t make sense. Driving 75 miles per hour vs. driving 80 mph is only going to save you five minutes on an hour trip.
• Use cruise control. Here’s another misconception, many people think cruise control decreases yours, and that’s not t. If you’re looking to save money on gas, you should use the cruise control as much as possible.
• Weight. Basic math says that 30 lbs of extra weight will increase your miles per gallon from one-hundredth to a percent. You’re mistaken if you think that’s not a significant amount to worry about, especially if you have a daily commute because those miles will add up.
• Putting the brakes on the brakes. Finding cheap gas is only half the battle. Conserving your gas is just as important, and if you’re doing a lot of accelerating and hard braking you’re not only putting a lot of stress on your vehicle but also wasting a lot of money.

Some other great tip to keep a rein on your gas bill is to keep track of your mileage; if you don’t keep track of your mileage, you’re never going to know how much time you spend on the road. Some trips are unnecessary. For example, if you’re a mile away from getting your coffee on a Saturday morning, take a walk instead of taking your vehicle.

Not everybody can own a hybrid vehicle, and for those of us who don’t own a car that gets excellent gas mileage, utilize these tips; hopefully, you will save money in the long run. Another thing that might save you a lot of money is investing in a bicycle. Getting a bicycle to get around town is going to save you a lot of money on gas, and it’s also going to keep you fit, but regardless of what you do, being more contentious about how much gas you spend is going to help your bottom line and help the environment.