the following tip:

35. Trucks, drop the tailgate.
You will get more mileage if you put down the tailgate due to less wind resistance.

Is not true.

That one was actually tested by mythbusters (and confirmed by the manufacturars) that it increases your fuel consumption.

When you drive with you tailgate up you have a vortex of air moving around between the cabin and the tailgate. This is air your dragging along during you driving and it deflects the air moving over the cabin of your car (it doesn't drop behind the cabin to fill the 'hole' you make during driving, aka drag).
When you drop the tailgate that vortex collapses and the drag increases dramatically. Wich ofcourse isn't good for your milage.

[thanks mjo]

Good stuff! Printed it out for my staff to use.
One note about tip #35- the pickup tailgate down to save gas. I know it's counterintuitive, but tailgates up are better on gas than if they are down on pickups. It's an aerodynamic phenomena where a pocket lf low pressure is created behind the cab in the bed with the tailgate up. The negative pressure is in the bed helps the wind to actually flow better over the entire truck than if the tailgate were down. I've noted it on my own experience and the "MythBusters" show actually proved it with a good demo on fluid dynamics. If you have to have a pickup this is a good tip. I didn't believe it until I tried it myself. However, a bed cover, preferrably a rigid one, works even better.

re: #47 - I can't imagine NOT using the right foot for break and gas. That's why the pedals are adjacent rather than separated on either side of the floor. People aren't being taught to drive correctly if we have to actually mention that.

I have to comment regarding the choice of more expensive brand-name gas. I have experience in the industry, and in general, I agree with the statement that all gas is the same. However, intensive R&D on additives in recent years seems to be changing that. For the first time, my auto log shows that the increased fuel efficiency using a brand name diesel in MORE than the extra cost for the "premium" brand. I save money by paying more. Presumably it is good for the environment as well.

All I can say is: if the manufacturer's claims seem to be supported by testing/R&D rather than just marketing, give it a test in your own tank. Drive close to empty and you should be able to see the difference in the first tank if you driving patterns are consistent. Calculate $/mile rather than gallons per mile and see where you come out best.

I drive a Prius, I do a lot of the gas saving tips. Here in N.J. 10% of ethanol is added to gas so my milage is only around 50,51 MPG, but I can live with that.

Bookmarked it...sent the link in an email to my friends and relatives....printed and pasted in the noticeboard of our society.

This website lets you enter your zip code and it tells you which gas stations have the cheapest prices (and the highest) on gas in your zip code area. It's updated every evening.

http://autos.msn.com/everyday/gasstations.aspx?zip=&src=Netx

It works for me!!

These are very great tips.
I think change to use Alternative Fuel is a good idea.
Please read Altenative Energy blog

Fabulous tips. However and like the other commenters said. The tailgate thing is a bust.

Under planning your route:
UPS routes, I have heard, are planned such that vehicles avoid making left-hand turns. I know this sounds weird, but makes sense if you consider that left-hand turns across oncoming traffic don't have the right-of-way (unless it is a trafic-light protected turn), leading to increased idle time on the route.

[good one mjo]

Thank you for bringing more attention to this topic. I recently covered it myself in Fit Life 36. I've added this post to my show notes! ~amy mac

I was going to write in about the tailgate one, but it looks like most people beat me to it.

I also wanted to point out that the cruise control one is really only true on fairly flat roads. If you drive on hilly roads, or are going up a large hill on a highway, the cruise control will actually do the opposite of what you should be doing. You want to slow down up hills so that your car is applying a constant amount of power even through your speed decreases, and accellerate down hills to take advantage of gravity. Cruise control does the opposite.

Nice list!

For some others, check out http://ecomodder.com/forum/EM-hypermiling-driving-tips-ecodriving.php

The UPS route comment: Even if you did make all right hand turns, there are still those people who wait in the right lane at a stop light and if your behind them, you still have to wait to turn right, which would leave your car in idle, so therefore it may save you some gas efficiency, but your still idle...

#7: "Buy the lowest octane available" is not always true. There are instances where an engine may be advertised as "requiring only 87 octane fuel," but it may run much more efficiently on mid-grade or premium fuel. Current engine management electronics can make the engine run acceptably on lower octane fuel, but frequently those same electronics can squeeze more efficiency (both power and fuel mileage) out of the engine if a higher octane fuel is used. Personally, I'd recommend learning how well your vehicle responds to a couple of tanks of the more costly fuel; once you know which fuel nets you the best results, you can purchase fuel accordingly.

#31:" Are your tires fat or flat?" The manufacturers recommendations are generally a compromise between tire life, ride comfort, and vehicle handling. Check the tire sidewall for the "Maximum COLD inflation pressure." Inflating the tires to the indicated pressure will reduce rolling resistance (and ride comfort, unfortunately :-( ) but will increase fuel mileage.

#7: Use the lowest octane you can.

I would like to point out that not only will this not save you anymore gas, it will cause your car to run very poorly- both immediately and in the long run. This leads to more toxic levels of CO2 emmisions.

Lower octane gas is dirty, cheaply refined, and full of impurities which get burned off by the engine when you run your car. This causes your car to run poorly because of the buildup of impurities in the engine and other systems that require the use of gasoline.

A car engine wasn't meant to have an accumulation of impurities attached to every cylinder and hose and exhaust system and etc... This clogs up the system. Your car's engine was meant to use high quality, highly refined, CLEAN gasoline.

Your car will effectively use less gasoline if you put high test/ high octane gasoline b/c the engine doesn't have to burn off other impurities it wasn't meant to, therefore keeping your engine more clean and efficient, lasting you a longer time.

[do you have a source? mjo]

While some of these tips are helpful, others are contradictory: #14 and #15.

Wow what a great website

brand name gas does matter i am a tech with 10 years of experiance for lexus and so many customers use cheap costco or sams gas and it causes so many problems with our cars!!!!!!!! performance issues, shifting issues, poor fuel mileage, etc. do not use cheep gas on any newer vehicles it just builds sludge gum and varnish due to the fact that the gas has no cleaners or detergents in the fuel. this problems is so common that there is bullitins to advise customers not to use cheap fuel!!!!!!!!! please!!!!!!!

[do have a source? mjo]

I go out of my way to buy CITGO gas and encourage other treehuggers to do the same. The profits are being used to fund a revolution (by and for the people) in Venezuela and latin America. Hugo Chavez is probably the best thing that's happened to Latin America in many decades. Naturally, the insanely greedy capitalists in Washington hate him.
http://www.venezuelanalysis.com/

I've tested the # 12 myself, and I find that over here in The Netherlands the best places to get diesel are at the Shell and Total gas stations, not the cheap ones. We were got approximately 3 to 5 km's more per liter in our Citroen Berlingo 1.9D. Different cars and different engines may give different results, but for us it worked. Best to try it for yourself I guess?

"24. Could you walk or bike?" Why drive at all if you can bike or walk. I can go 3 months without having to fill up when I practice this trick.

"9. Wait until you're near empty." -this could be wrong do to gasoline evaporation. There was a chain letter going out about how to fule your car with gas and how you should avoid driving till empty because the more air in the tank, the more gas evaporation when you fill up do to the large amount of air. the evaporating gas that you pay for either gets recovered buy the gas pump or leaks into the air as emisions.

OTher things are fill up when it is cold, denser gas, and fill up using the lowest pump rate for less evaporation

#21, whether they are bringing it to you, or you are going there it's still gas burned.

And shipping, or pizza tip, are usually more than the gas that you would use to go there. I love online shopping but having something shipped individually from kansas is going to be less efficient than going to your nearest book store and getting it. And if they don't have the book at your local store, many large stores will have a "ship to nearest store" option when shopping online, then they will just send it to the store with there usual shipment, increasing efficiency.

26. Should you get a rental car?

As a frequent road tripper, I've found that renting a small car is a lot cheaper than paying for all the gas that our big old SUV uses—that's even including young drivers' fees!

For tires, the rule of thumb is maximum air, maximum wear. Check the side of the tire or your tire pressure specs in your manual. Check them often.

I have been trying to ascribe by the "two mile" rule: Anything under 2 miles, I hoof or bike it. I also downgraded by truck 2 years ago to a Volksagen Jetta which runs on diesel and gets about 50 to the gallon. Find out what the economics are with dumping the gas guzzler for something more efficient, though I do realize that getting rid of bigger trucks and SUVs are very hard these days. Thanks for the great tips (as I go and check my tire pressure).

Glad to see you're back from the CRV scandal Mark !!
Hahaha !!

[I survived mjo]

My 2c:

The car or motor vehicle should be warmed up at least a little (first mark on the temp gauge) because the moving parts are meant to be stressed at a certain operating temperature range. Oil is less likely to get sludgy at higher temps.

Tire pressure- I put more air in the tires- closer to the max on the sidewall, I noticed decreased traction in the rain (almost slid through an intersection) ... So I just slow down, no harm in that!

@ JOHN - Citgo, Chavez? are you serious? Then you like Government controlled media. And about the support for FARC? And schmoozing with Amadinejad? No, Citgo is not the way to go. What next (a murderous) Che Guevara for president? Revolution ? That's not change I can believe in.

vsk

@TJ

Who do you think delivers the books to the book store? Right, UPS. Why not just have the UPS man travel a little further to your door? The book traveled the same distance. You might be right that you could put 2 or 3 books in an amazon box, but they also will most likely drop of 3 or 4 other boxes along the way to your door. Put another way, 100% of their truck capacity is being used to ship stuff. Consequently, pollution per package is way in their favor. Less than 1% of your car capacity is being used to move the book. So, because UPS is in the efficient delivery business, your 1 trip to the book store is very inefficient. The pizza guy, unless he is delivering more than 1 pizza is no better than you getting it.

Biking to the bookstore would be the better recommendation.

I love the list compiled here. Only thing I think could be added, but the jury still appears out on it, is nitrogen filled tires. Some places do fill them up for free with nitrogen but not sure if it's worth paying for. Supposedly its better for aging of tires and also less air leakage.

Dear Editor,
I love this page, it's so helpful! I would like to give my input for something that helped me. I'm not sure if you mind but here goes...

In your tips for saving gasoline, you should add that the fuel injectors for should be changed every 75,000 miles. A lot of auto shops don't inform their customers to change these!

I had a little over 75K miles and purchased rebuilt injectors, my husband installed them really easily. When we turned the car on, I could tell it even sounded smoother. But better yet, we saved $10 a week on gas expenses from daily commuting to and from work. I just looked them up on google and ebay ads came up. The set only cost me a little under $125 for my Crown Victoria.

Leila Manson

re Tip # 45: Shifting to higher gears sa soon as possible. I have an automatice tansmission and have found that by letting up on the gas at the right speeds I can shift into higher gears sooner. This increased my gas milage around town by 10%.

I'm a big believer in the concept that every little bit helps - from eating habits to recycling, from exercise to helping out around the house, any action you take toward the betterment or advancement of the cause can be viewed as a positive.

And this article is similar - every little thing can help in saving $$$ on gas. However, there are 2 that you can do rather easily that will probably have the biggest impact with the least effort:
- Alter your acceleration and braking to make them gradual rather than rapid
- Drive the speed limit rather than going 20 MPH over.

I'm trying to get my family and friends to make this small jump in the hope that they can cumulatively make a big impact to their pocketbook and the environment.

RK
http://www.drivethespeedlimit.net

Your car will effectively use less gasoline if you put high test/ high octane gasoline b/c the engine doesn't have to burn off other impurities it wasn't meant to, therefore keeping your engine more clean and efficient, lasting you a longer time.