Gas Saving Tips For That Summer Driving Trip

Gas prices are setting records. You realize the cost of the driving vacation you had planned will be a lot more than you thought. The trip is going to be so much more expensive you are thinking of not taking it at all. You don't have to cancel your trip! You can travel and control your costs of gas by following some simple tips.

You can control your gas consumption. Remember, you the owner and operator of your car, are the best fuel saving device. There are some basic tips that you can follow to ease your gas burden while traveling.

An easy thing to start with is to lighten your load. Get rid of all the extra things you have in your trunk. Take out that 60 pound bag of cat food you bought three weeks ago. Remove your surplus tool kit. Run that box of paper to the recycling center right now, instead of leaving it your car for another few weeks. 100 lbs of weight reduction from your vehicle will save you around 1 to 2 percent of your fuel usage. If you can reduce your load by 200 lbs then your savings is 2 to 4 percent. The lighter your car is the more fuel efficient it will be.

Buy gas before you leave on your trip. You already know the best places to buy gas near your home. Chances are it will be priced lower than the stations along your travel route. In fact you will be best off buying your gas the day before you leave. The day you leave you will most likely be rushed and hurried. You may not have time to go to the outlet with the best price. If you fill up the day before you will be able to do it without worrying about any deadlines.

Don't use luggage racks. This is a very important tip. The wind resistance created by loaded luggage racks will drop your fuel economy a lot. Try and pack your travel gear inside the car. The wind resistance of a loaded luggage rack will get larger and larger at higher speeds. That means any freeway or highway driving will have a big impact on the fuel efficiency of your vehicle if you are using racks.

On the turnpikes and freeways use your cruise control. The more you can maintain your vehicle at a constant speed, the more gasoline you will save. Your cruise control will do a much better job of keeping a fixed speed than you can maintain manually.

By following these simple suggestions you will be able to take that trip without upsetting your gas or travel budget. These few tips will let you control your costs and take that driving vacation in spite of the cost of gas!