Filling up can be a painful experience these days. Why not try these small but effective changes to your driving to save fuel and cash, while doing your bit for the environment too.

TIP 1 – Travel light

In a lightweight car every item you add decreases your mileage. Keep your trunk empty when you can, when buying a sub-woofer, pick a lightweight option, most large boxes are very heavy.

TIP 2 – Cruise along

Try to move in a smooth and steady way instead of having bursts of speed. Driving at a constant speed and avoiding rapid stops and starts will save fuel.

TIP 3 – Raw Egg on Accelerator Pedal

Pretend that there is a raw egg between your foot and the accelerator pedal in your vehicle. You don’t want to break the egg so you’ll be less inclined to mash down the throttle pedal. The idea is to encourage gentle accelerations and avoid flooring or lead footing your vehicle.

TIP 4 – Check the pressure

It’s important to have the right tyre pressure for your car as under-inflated tyres increase fuel consumption while over inflated tyres have lower grip.

TIP 5 – Don’t pop the clutch

You often read tips to depress the clutch or drop the car into neutral downhill, but on most modern cars with fuel injection this actually uses more fuel than leaving it in gear.

TIP 6 – Turn off the heat for 5 minutes

In the winter, using the heater or defroster immediately after start-up may delay the engine’s full warm-up to its optimum fuel efficient temperature by a few minutes. If you have heated seats, turn them on and turn off the heater for the first 5 minutes so that the engine will warm up faster.

TIP 7 – Ease up on the air-con

Use air-conditioning sparingly, especially in the city where the air filters are likely to be set to the maximum setting, draining your car’s energy.

TIP 8 – Keep windows closed at high speeds

On the motorway, even one open window increases fuel consumption as the incoming air creates drag. 

TIP 9 – Change your air filter

A dirty filter can easily decrease your mileage by 4-5 kilometres. Also by doing this yourself you save more money. The dealer or oil change places charge a premium price for this service.

TIP 10 – Disconnect your gadgets

Plug-in electrical appliances, such as phone and MP3 chargers consume energy and fuel. Avoid using your electronic gadgets in the car.

Speak to one of our brokers today to get expert advice on your motor and household insurance. Visit www.indwerisk.co.za or call 0860 13