by Dr. Himantha Atukorale
(June 25, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Everyday I drive out of Colombo to my workplace at Radawana, and the rising cost of fuel was one of the main problems that hit me recently. Unable to cut petrol costs and spending several weeks in search of a solution, I thought of seeking advice from the internet. Here are some of the useful tips I found out about reducing fuel costs, and I am placing them before readers for their information.
Make sure your tyres are inflated to the proper pressure. One tyre that is under inflated by only 5 psi will reduce fuel economy by 10%. The proper tyre pressure for each tyre is marked on the label fixed near the driver's seat door. I use a portable pen like device to measure tyre pressure - it comes very handy when checking tyre pressure at home.
Eliminate all unnecessary weight from your vehicle. Every 90 kg. of extra weight reduces fuel economy by 0.42 km per litre. That extra seat you fixed in your van, the portable car refrigerator or the heavy toolbox that you never needed can be removed to save fuel.
Avoid long idling. Restarting the engine uses about the same amount of gas as idling for 30 seconds. If you are going to be sitting still longer, turn the engine off.
Buy gasoline in the morning when the temperature is coldest and the fuel is densest. Fuel is sold by volume, not density. As the fuel warms up during the day it will expand in your tank. Don't completely fill your tank allowing the fuel to expand and overflow.
Keep the air filter clean by replacing it every 30,000 miles. What you can do more often is to get it cleaned at your service station, which I learnt, costs very little. A dirty filter limits the engine's air intake causing it to burn more fuel.
Only use the A/C when really needed since it is one of the biggest drains on engine power and fuel economy. It can reduce fuel economy by 5 to 20% depending on the vehicle and how it is driven. Vehicles with automatic climate control have an advantage because it automatically switches the A/C off when the desired temperature is reached.
Changing speeds uses more fuel. Travelling at a constant speed uses up less fuel.
Avoid racing starts especially at traffic lights here in Sri Lanka! A car uses more fuel when accelerating. Try to limit hard acceleration and fast braking.
Don't drive aggressively. Drive at the specified speed limit. All vehicles lose fuel economy at speeds above 88 km per hour. This is much above the allowed speed limit in Sri Lanka. Driving at 104 km per hour instead of 120 km per hour reduces fuel cost by 13%. Driving 88 km per hour would save 25%.
Know about the octane rating
The octane rating of gasoline tells you how much the fuel can be compressed before it spontaneously ignites. When gas ignites by compression rather than because of the spark from the spark plug, it causes knocking in the engine. Knocking can damage an engine, so it is not something you want to have happening.
Then does higher-octane petrol reduce engine knock? Yes it did in older engines using carburetors to regulate air/gas mix. However, since the middle to late '80s, engines are designed to use fuel injectors with computers to accurately control the air/fuel mix under all types of temperatures and environment concerns.
Most cars are designed to burn regular unleaded fuels with an octane rating of 87. If the vehicle needs a higher octane rating, there is documentation in the owner's manual, as well as possibly under the fuel gauge and by the fuel fill hole. Usually you will see this rating for high performance engines only.
So the take home message is that switching to high-octane petrol gives no real benefits, other than the gasoline manufacturers making more money off you.
Have a safe and more budget friendly ride!
- Sri Lanka Guardian
Make sure your tyres are inflated to the proper pressure. One tyre that is under inflated by only 5 psi will reduce fuel economy by 10%. The proper tyre pressure for each tyre is marked on the label fixed near the driver's seat door. I use a portable pen like device to measure tyre pressure - it comes very handy when checking tyre pressure at home.
Eliminate all unnecessary weight from your vehicle. Every 90 kg. of extra weight reduces fuel economy by 0.42 km per litre. That extra seat you fixed in your van, the portable car refrigerator or the heavy toolbox that you never needed can be removed to save fuel.
Avoid long idling. Restarting the engine uses about the same amount of gas as idling for 30 seconds. If you are going to be sitting still longer, turn the engine off.
Buy gasoline in the morning when the temperature is coldest and the fuel is densest. Fuel is sold by volume, not density. As the fuel warms up during the day it will expand in your tank. Don't completely fill your tank allowing the fuel to expand and overflow.
Keep the air filter clean by replacing it every 30,000 miles. What you can do more often is to get it cleaned at your service station, which I learnt, costs very little. A dirty filter limits the engine's air intake causing it to burn more fuel.
Only use the A/C when really needed since it is one of the biggest drains on engine power and fuel economy. It can reduce fuel economy by 5 to 20% depending on the vehicle and how it is driven. Vehicles with automatic climate control have an advantage because it automatically switches the A/C off when the desired temperature is reached.
Changing speeds uses more fuel. Travelling at a constant speed uses up less fuel.
Avoid racing starts especially at traffic lights here in Sri Lanka! A car uses more fuel when accelerating. Try to limit hard acceleration and fast braking.
Don't drive aggressively. Drive at the specified speed limit. All vehicles lose fuel economy at speeds above 88 km per hour. This is much above the allowed speed limit in Sri Lanka. Driving at 104 km per hour instead of 120 km per hour reduces fuel cost by 13%. Driving 88 km per hour would save 25%.
Know about the octane rating
The octane rating of gasoline tells you how much the fuel can be compressed before it spontaneously ignites. When gas ignites by compression rather than because of the spark from the spark plug, it causes knocking in the engine. Knocking can damage an engine, so it is not something you want to have happening.
Then does higher-octane petrol reduce engine knock? Yes it did in older engines using carburetors to regulate air/gas mix. However, since the middle to late '80s, engines are designed to use fuel injectors with computers to accurately control the air/fuel mix under all types of temperatures and environment concerns.
Most cars are designed to burn regular unleaded fuels with an octane rating of 87. If the vehicle needs a higher octane rating, there is documentation in the owner's manual, as well as possibly under the fuel gauge and by the fuel fill hole. Usually you will see this rating for high performance engines only.
So the take home message is that switching to high-octane petrol gives no real benefits, other than the gasoline manufacturers making more money off you.
Have a safe and more budget friendly ride!
- Sri Lanka Guardian
 Everyday I drive out of Colombo to my workplace at Radawana, and the risin...){kind=link}
Thanks a lot for your advice.
very good informations, easy to understand, Hopefully you can do more researches on some of the other day today general living, and help us to understand. Thank you very much.
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