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How To Save Money On Gas

Gas prices just keep going up, and our wallets keep decreasing

in size. This how-to will teach you many ways to save money at

the local gas station.

Steps

1. Take out a credit card. Some credit cards offer gas savings

when you use the card for purchases. This works in much the same

way that some credit card companies give you frequent flyer

miles when you use their card for purchases.

2 Get a gas membership card. Look for membership benefits. In

addition, department and grocery stores give discounts at the

fuel pump when you use their store membership cards. Shopping at

Giant Eagle grocery store and using their membership card, it's

possible (at the time of this writing) to fill a car's tank for

.79 cents a gallon, with savings of $1.36 per gallon.

3. Give your car a good tune up. While giving your car a tune up

won't actually save you money at the pump, it will save you in

gas. Using less gas saves you money over all. Have the oil

changed, and have a certified mechanic give your engine a twice

over.

4. Check the WWW for deals. Web

sites let you find the best deals in your area.

5. Buy a hybrid car. Not only do hybrid cars give you immediate

savings at the pump, the U.S. government and your local state

offer tax breaks for people that use gas saving cars. Federal

deductions for using gas saving cars can be as high as $2000. If

you can't afford the growing number of hybrid cars out there,

consider getting a regular car with good MPG (miles per gallon),

like the Toyota Echo.

6. Turn off the AC. Running the car's air conditioning puts

extra strain on your car's engine. This translates into you car

eating up more gas per mile. Use less gas, save money. Depending

on the car you drive, at highway speeds, the AC might put less

drag on your car than if all the windows are open. Therefore,

you might want to keep it cool on the highway.

7. Use the cheaper stuff. Most modern cars run just as well with

the cheap gas as they do with the more expensive gas. In fact,

engineers assume the car buyer is going to use the cheap gas,

and so, they design the car's engine accordingly.

8. Don't fill the tank when prices are higher. Gas suppliers and

gas station owners can charge high prices for gas because they

know people will pay for it. The owners monitor how much gas

people are putting into their cars each day. If they hike up the

price a few cents and people are still filling up their tanks,

this tells the owners that people are willing to pay the high

price. Adding only a few gallons to your car when prices are

high sends a message to the owners that people are not happy

about the high prices.

9. Don't drive. Don't drive when you don't absolutely have to.

Carpooling, walking, taking the bus, and riding a bike not only

saves you gas, but these are better for the environment and may

be better for your health. Do you really need to drive to the

store when it is only a couple of blocks down the street?

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10. Check the tire air pressures weekly. Buy an inexpensive

manual air pump and an accurate tire gauge (not a pencil gauge

as they are not accurate). Keep all tires inflated to the same

pressure as recommended for your car but not for your tire. Go

by the sticker on the doorframe and not the tire wall.

11. Drive at a consistent speed and keep the windows up tight.

Keeping the windows closed reduces the drag on your car.

Sticking to the speed limit also helps. So, will using less gear

changes and revving the engine less. Avoid accelerating fast or

braking suddenly. Use cruise control when you can.

12. Clean out any unnecessary items in your car. If you have

heavy objects in your car that you don't need - remove them. If

your car is lighter, it will use less fuel to get you to where

you're going.

13. Avoid leaving your car idle. If you are going to be stopped

for more than one minute, you will save gas by turning the car

off and restarting when you are ready to go.

14. Buy on cold days. Buy fuel on cold days and if you can,

drive on the hot days. When you buy on cold days, and pay for

volume, you buy more "mass" of fuel for the same price. Never

fill the tank completely or it will overflow when it becomes

hotter.

About the author:

Jodie Merrington is the webmaster of Fort Cash which a which is

a one-stop research center for all the very latest resources and

articles cash related. For more details please visit

http://www.fortcash.com