Green Driving Tips
1. Don't drive - instead of using your vehicle for short journeys, try walking, cycling or hopping on a bus.
2. Before you start on a trip, ask yourself two question: Is this trip really essential? Can I combine this trip with other trips in the same direction?
3. Work from home whenever possible.
4. Plan your route. If you can, avoid main centre rush hours and road works. Buy a map - getting lost costs UK motorist an incredible 350000 gallons of fuel a year, says the AA.
5. Remove any unnecessary weight and roof racks from the car when you're not using them (flags make a big impact too).
6. Remove vinyl tops - they cause air drag. Rough surfaces disturb otherwise smooth air flow around a car's body. Bear in mind when buying new cars that a fancy sun roof disturbs the smooth air flow and causes additional fuel use.
7. During cold weather watch for icicles frozen to the car frame. Unremoved snow and ice cause high wind resistance.
8. Check the pressure on your tires - flat tyres use more fuel. For every 6psi pressure a tyre is under-inflated, fuel consumption rises by 1%.
9. Share your journeys with other people where possible.
10. Leave early on your journeys. Relax behind the wheel instead of hurrying. No need for heavy feet and hands on the controls.
11. If you make a cold start, don't sit around idling. Move off as soon as you can and stay light on the accelerator until the engine has warmed up.
12. Be sure the automatic choke is disengaged after engine warm up. Chokes often get stuck, resulting in bad gas/air mixture.
13. Accelerate slowly when starting from dead stop.
14. Drive smoothly and consistently using higher gears and don't speed. You can improve your fuel economy by 25% and reduce your car's emissions by driving at 50mph rather than 70mph. And by accelarating and braking gradually you'll improve fuel efficiency by a further 30%.
15. Switch off your engine if you're not moving.
16. Use your air conditioning and other on-board electrical devices (for example, mobile phone chargers) sparingly. Air-conditioning increases emissions and decreases fuel economy. Use air vents.
17. Shutting all the windows will make your car that bit more aerodynamic.
18. Look ahead three or more cars. If they're turning or slowing, ease off early rather than waiting and braking.
19. Don't tailgate. You have to brake harder to avoid hitting the car in front, lose momentum and have to accelerate harder to regain the original speed. A measured speed keeps fuel consumption more constant.
20. {{tip|Avoid rough roads whenever possible,} because dirt or gravel rob you of up to 30% of your gas mileage.
21. Traffic lights are usually timed for your motoring advantage. By travelling steadily at the speed limit you boost your chances of having the "green light" all the way.
22. Park your car so that you can later begin to travel in forward gear; avoid reverse gear manoeuvres to save gas.
23. Make sure your petrol cap fits tightly and buy a new one if your current cap does not fit snugly. Petrol can easily evaporate if the cap is not airtight
24. {{tip|Service your vehicle regularly (air filters, fuel filters, spark plugs, oil change, brakes, wheels, steering, battery).}
25. If buying a new car, buy a smaller one.
26. If buying a new car, consider a diesel engine instead of petrol for better prices and consumption.
27. If buying a new car, buy a cleaner one (petrol electric hybrids, for example, or LPG) - you save annual road tax too.
28. Existing petrol cars can be converted to run on cleaner fuels such as LPG. There are around 1300 cleaner fuel refuelling stations across the UK. The Energy Saving Trust provides grants for converting petrol cars into cleaner cars.
29. Buy Eco-insurance, for example from Co-operative Insurance (CIS)] or www.ecoinsurance.co.uk.] They offset 20% of your car's CO2 emissions by investing in reforestation, renewable energy and education in the developing world.
