With the ever-increasing petrol prices in India, it's essential to find ways to save money on fuel. From adopting fuel-efficient driving habits to keeping your vehicle maintained, there are various ways to cut down on petrol expenses. In this guide, we will explore some practical tips and tricks to help you save money on petrol and reduce your overall fuel consumption.
From Mileage to Maintenance: 6 Money-Saving Petrol Hacks for Car Owners
While fuel-efficient cars certainly do help keep costs under control, not everybody can afford to drive a car due to the rising petrol prices. With these top tips, you can reduce your spending on petrol while commuting.
1. Avoid Unnecessary Idling
Leaving your engine running even when the vehicle is not moving is called idling. It wastes a lot of fuel and causes carbon dioxide emissions, which reduces atmospheric quality, hurting both you and the planet.
To ensure it doesn't translate to a hefty fuel cost, turn off your engine while you're waiting in traffic or are stationary at a red light to save fuel.
- Pro tip: Avoid turning off your engine at every red light; do it only when the wait time is more than 10 seconds. This is because the car takes up a lot of energy and fuel to restart, which can be detrimental to your cost-saving strategy.
2. Drive Sensibly
When you drive at high speed, your engine has to work hard to overcome wind and tire rolling resistance, which increases fuel consumption. Driving sensibly and at a steady speed could help you save fuel.
Just make sure to tweak your driving speed depending on the conditions of the road; follow the rules, but also use your judgement to err on the side of caution.
Other tips that help:
Instead of using brakes, allow your car to slow down naturally to conserve fuel.
Avoid riding the clutch as it increases fuel consumption, damages the engine, and reduces the lifespan of your clutch plate.
3. Regular Maintenance
Regular maintenance can extend the lifespan of your vehicle. So, if you're spending more on fuel than normal, but are following good driving practices, it's likely because there is substantial wear and tear on one (or more) parts of your vehicle.
If that's the case, consider:
Changing the engine and gearbox oil at regular intervals to keep the car functioning smoothly.
Clearing the dirty air filter to improve the acceleration of your engine.
Maintaining proper tire pressure to reduce wear and tear.
This due diligence will lead to fuel efficiency, helping restore your car to its optimum condition while helping you save big money at the petrol pump.
4. Keep a Lighter Trunk
While it may seem convenient to you at the point, to have everything you could need in your car, it might increase your car's fuel intake. Keeping unnecessary items in your car's trunk clutters your car and decreases your vehicle's efficiency, which translates to poor mileage.
So, make it a point to travel light; it will take the excessive load off your car, resulting in a much more organised car and less fuel consumption.
- Pro tip: Remove the roof-top cargo box. It cuts your highway mileage � even if it doesn't have any weight.
5. Limit the Use of AC
Air conditioning uses fuel, much like any other feature of your car. When you use it while driving, it increases the load on the engine, which increases our overall fuel consumption. Hence, it would be wise to limit its use, switching the AC only on when driving a car.
6. Make Your Vehicle More Aerodynamic
Rolling your windows down on a highway makes your car less fuel efficient. It causes drag and at high speeds, it causes your vehicle to use up about 10% extra fuel. So, make sure to keep your windows closed to make your vehicle more aerodynamic and save fuel.
Drive Smart and Save More with Park+
These money-saving petrol hacks will give you some relief, but it's also important to keep an eye out on the fuel price and fill your tank when the odds are in your favour for maximum savings. To learn more about how you can make the dynamic fuel prices work in your favour, download the Park+ app or visit our website.
