Preparing to Hypermile: Vehicle Check Up II
Along with checking on your vehicle's air filter, preparing your vehicle for optimum gas mileage through hypermiling should direct your attention to the vehicle's spark plugs, motor oil and fuel injection system. Dirty or improperly gapped spark plugs can lead to a poor fuel burn in your motor. Check your vehicle's manual and see if your spark plugs are due for replacement. If so, purchase the correct plugs and consider having a professional install them (or DIY if you are on top of this type of work). Not only may new spark plugs help your engine run more smoothly, but it may increase your gas mileage by 1 to 3 percent. At $4.50 a gallon, this could yield a 5 to 14 cent per gallon savings on every gallon of fuel you purchase.
Everyone knows to that oil is the lifeblood of modern engines. To get the most efficiency out of your vehicle, consider running synthetic oil in your motor and going with the most aggressive grade of oil appropriate for your vehicle. For example, most modern Honda vehicles run on 5w20 motor oil, but switching to 0w20 synthetic oil may yield both longer oil change intervals and more fuel efficiency for your vehicle. Savings could yield 1 to 2 percent more fuel efficiency, which may yield a 5 to 9 cent per gallon savings per gallon of fuel (at $4.50 a gallon cost).
Finally, consider having your fuel system cleaned. Carbon deposits can build up in your fuel system and rob your vehicle of peak efficiency. There are fuel systems that can be purchased for do-it-yourselfers or most service shops will be glad to complete a full fuel system cleaning for you at a cost of about $100 to $175. Aside from being good maintenance practice for your vehicle, a clean fuel system helps your engine burn fuel more efficiently and may yield a savings of 1 to 2 percent. This may yield a 5 to 9 cent per gallon savings per gallon of fuel (as calculated at $4.50 a gallon).
Once your vehicle is up to par, you are now ready to drive like a hypermiler and save like never before. Click Here to continue.
Everyone knows to that oil is the lifeblood of modern engines. To get the most efficiency out of your vehicle, consider running synthetic oil in your motor and going with the most aggressive grade of oil appropriate for your vehicle. For example, most modern Honda vehicles run on 5w20 motor oil, but switching to 0w20 synthetic oil may yield both longer oil change intervals and more fuel efficiency for your vehicle. Savings could yield 1 to 2 percent more fuel efficiency, which may yield a 5 to 9 cent per gallon savings per gallon of fuel (at $4.50 a gallon cost).
Finally, consider having your fuel system cleaned. Carbon deposits can build up in your fuel system and rob your vehicle of peak efficiency. There are fuel systems that can be purchased for do-it-yourselfers or most service shops will be glad to complete a full fuel system cleaning for you at a cost of about $100 to $175. Aside from being good maintenance practice for your vehicle, a clean fuel system helps your engine burn fuel more efficiently and may yield a savings of 1 to 2 percent. This may yield a 5 to 9 cent per gallon savings per gallon of fuel (as calculated at $4.50 a gallon).
Once your vehicle is up to par, you are now ready to drive like a hypermiler and save like never before. Click Here to continue.
