driving habits

7/31/2019 Driving Habits

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G ood D r iv ing H a b i t sHow to make every drop last longer

Drive between 45-55 Km/HDrive slow and steady. The faster you go, the more wind resistanceyour vehicle will face. If you go at speeds above 60 Km/H, you willwaste petrol. Tests on Indian cars prove that you can get up to 40 %

extra mileage at 45-55 Km/H as against 80 Km/H.Remember Avoid accelerating or decelerating unnecessarily.Avoid banking by anticipating stops and curves well in advance.Tests show that a reduction in speed leads to no appreciable rise incommuting time. Much less than what most people think.

Keep your engine healthyTests on a large number of cars prove that you can save as much as6% by tuning your car regularly. If your engine emits black smoke, haspoor pulling power or consumes large quantities of oil, get it checkedimmediately at a reputed garage. A delay, may prove more expensivein terms of petrol and oil as compared to the cost of an overhaul.

Remember Use of bi-metallic spark plugs saves over 1.5% fuel and reducesexhaust emissions too. Get your car serviced at every 5000 kms.

Drive in the Correct GearIncorrect gear shifting can lead to as much as 20% increase in fuelconsumption. Start your car in the 1st gear only, except if you are ina muddy patch or going downhill then engage the 2nd gear.

Remember For city driving, change to a higher gear when you are sure the enginewill not struggle. Get into top gear as soon as possible.Use same gear for uphill and downhill journey.It is advisable to follow the manufacturer's recommendation.

Don’t wait for your car to warm upInstead, drive in low gear till the engine warms up. Use chokebriefly only when necessary.

Remember At 10°C and below, your fuel consumption per kilometer doubleswhen you make trips of 5 kms or less. So combine trips.Do not park a car so that you have to reverse with a cold engineThis will consume more fuel.Install engine-heating system (in cold regions) in your car if itdoes not have one.

Good Braking HabitsStop-and-go driving wastes fuel. When you slam on the brakes, a lotof useful energy is wasted in the form of heat. A good driver alwaysanticipates stops.

Remember Test wheels for free rotation when your car is being serviced. Bindingof brakes restricts free wheel movement and the engine consumesmore petrol in order to overcome resistance.Check wheel alignment at regular intervals.



Keep your Foot off the ClutchUse clutch only when you change gears. Riding the clutch causes lossof energy and damages clutch-linings.

Remember Use your handbrake when stopped on an upgrade and don’t forget to

release it when restarting.Don’t manipulate the clutch and accelerator to stay stationarybecause it wastes fuel.

Clean Air Filter RegularlyAir filter prevents dust from Fouling the engine. Dust causes rapidwear of engine components and increases fuel consumption.

Remember Cylinder bores wear out 45 times faster in engines without air-cleanersClean air filters at every time-up.

Watch Your Tyre PressureUnder inflated tyres increase rolling resistance, which leads to higherpetrol consumption.

Remember Tests show that a 25% decrease in tyre pressure can cost you 5-10%more on petrol and 25% on tyre life.Use radial tyres for 3-7% fuel economy, longer tyre life and greaterriding comfort.

When you stop your car, stop engineAlways keep your car ready to start. Keep the battery, dynamo, self-starter and fan-belt in good condition. This will ensure a quick startwhenever you need it.

Remember

Switch off the engine at stops of over 2 minutes.

Use the Recommended grade of oilCheck the car manual and oil manufacturer’s recommendations,before using any particular grade of oil. Always use multi-grade oilequivalent to SPCC/SGCC type for added benefits.

Remember Engine oil that is thicker than the recommended oil can cause 2%increase in fuel consumption.Change oil filter along with engine oil.

Plan Your RouteRush hour, or stop-and-go traffic, can waste fuel excessively. You will



get more mileage from each litre if you take a less congested route,even though it is slightly longer.

Remember Fuel consumption in a highly congested road can be double thenormal.

Reduce LoadsUnnecessary loads increase fuel consumption. Do you really need tocarry the luggage rack?

Remember A reduction of weight by 50 kg can lead up to 2% saving in fuel, whendriving in the city. Remember that overhead racks increase windresistance leading to higher fuel consumption.

Share Your car-for car poolsLook for people who go in the same direction as you. You can shareyour car and the costs.

Plan Your TripsBefore you start on a trip, ask yourself two questions:Is this trip really essential?Can I combine this trip with other trips in the same direction?

All those advertisements and hoardings you see on road about turning off your vehicle’s ignition atstop lights to save fuel are right. It’s actually a no brainer: you turn off your car and the engineimmediately stops using fuel.

Keeping your engine on idle while stuck in traffic or when waiting for the signal to turn green alsoconsumes more fuel than switching off the ignition and restarting it. According to studies, on anaverage you waste 0.098 litres of fuel for every 10 minutes of idling. That may not sound much but itall adds up over time. So as a thumb rule, turn off the car if you will be idling over 10 seconds.

Besides, it’s also a good practice to turn off the engine to show your care for the en vironment. Whileengines today emit considerably far less toxic gases, including hyrdrocarbons, carbon-monoxide andnitrous oxides, than carburettor-based cars of yore, cutting down on idling does help reduce CO2emissions.

Another tip to remember is to turn off or use the AC sparingly. Air-conditioning can dramaticallyreduce fuel economy if you’re driving at low speeds. The effects are not so apparent when thevehicle is driven at higher speeds. And while you might think that electricals such as defoggers,heated seats, etc use only the battery, one should remember that it takes that much more runningfrom the engine to recharge the battery again. So even these “gas -guzzling” devices should be



So how does one get around this conundrum and what really is the right practice to save fuel?While it’s true that air -conditioners consume a lot of fuel, you’d be surprised to know that astudy by US-based Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) found that driving with the windowsup and AC on is more fuel economical than driving with windows down! In fact, their testsshowed a 20 percent reduction in mileage with the windows rolled down. With the windows up

and AC on, fuel efficiency dropped by just 10 percent. Of course, these results vary dependingon the type of car (an SUV experiences higher drag than a small car), how aerodynamic it is,outside temperature, wind speed, etc.

In general, follow this as a rule of thumb: if you are driving in city and at speeds below 70km/h,roll down the windows and let in the natural air. That’s because at slower speeds, the enginedevelops less power and hence it has to work harder to generate enough power to run the AC andother components that rely on power from the motor. Besides, when you’re driving slowly, thedrag resistance is not strong enough to cause any significant dent to fuel efficiency. At higherspeeds, as on highways, turning on the AC would be a better option as the engine would anywayproduce enough power to meet the requirements of the AC. Also, the amount of drag on the car

will be substantially higher.While the jury is still on out on this argument with some experts still insisting on a windows-rolled-down approach, we suggest a combination of the two options to get optimum fuelefficiency. Of course, comfort is another important factor and with our kind of blistering hot,muggy summers, reaching out for that AC button will be a far more natural instinct.

Driving in higher gears

Any car, when driven at lower RPMs and at higher gears will juice out a fantastic average thatone can proudly boast of. This can be achieved by gradual but swift shifting from first gear to the

top. Remember, a higher gear shift lets you drive faster but it doesn’t necessarily mean that youhave to. You can continue maintaining your usual 45 - 55 km/h and engage overdrive withoutneeding to accelerate. The result is a much lower engine speed and, hence, less fuel is burnt.

Many a time, people drive in a lower gear and at a higher speed, causing the engine to strain athigher RPMs before shifting up. This is a wrong practice and must be avoided if you care aboutfuel efficiency.

In case of automatic cars, it is essential to keep a light foot on the accelerator to juice out a goodaverage as the automatic gearbox in a car will down shift a gear if you press the accelerator morethan necessary, which will be a lot of fun no doubt but will lead to really higher fuelconsumption

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