9 Effective Ways to Save Money on Gas Amid Soaring Fuel Prices

Post-pandemic, supply chain issues, and rising demand have contributed to the 8.6% of the inflation rate. From daily commuters to road trippers, pretty much everyone with a vehicle wants to know how to save money on gas.

As per data from the U.S. Labor Department, the price of gas is showing a rise of nearly 50%. And we understand the surge in gas prices is a real concern to several business owners, as their businesses cannot function properly with such soaring gas prices. 

However, there’s always a solution to it. Here, we will tell you how to save money on gas effectively and show you how you can get gas at the lowest prices ever.

9 Effective Ways to Save Money on Gas

The best 9 tips to save gas have been divided into three categories: vehicle care, driving habits and purchasing habits. While these tips make tiny impacts on fuel consumption, they can quickly add up over time and save you a lot of money on gas purchases.

Save gas with different driving habits

1. Don’t drive aggressively

Aggressive driving habits cause cost you a lot of gas money. This is because an engine delivers the most optimal performance when it is in its powerband. Powerbands come at different rev ranges for different vehicles but as a rule of thumb, you should not be driving at very high or very low revs.

Cruise control can come in handy during highway trips where you can make the car run at a consistent speed in the best rev range to deliver better gas mileage and engine efficiency. Though note that cruise control should not be used in areas that have uneven terrain or high pedestrian activity.

Even a gas guzzling car can be surprisingly fuel efficient if driven economically. Again it is not what you drive, it is how you drive that matters. You must learn techniques such as  engine braking to operate your vehicle in the most fuel efficient manner. 

2. Avoid excessive idling

The federal government says, keeping the vehicle idle for longer can empty a quarter to half a gallon of fuel per hour. Therefore, it is advised to turn off the engine to avoid gas consumption while you are in a long line or waiting for longer than 10 seconds.

Modern cars have engines that automatically turn off when the car is idle; the reason is to conserve fuel. For example: waiting at a red light takes an average of about 45 to 120 seconds while starting your car only requires about 10 seconds of gas.

Though this should be practiced in moderation as engine startups are what put the most stress on any given engine. Turning off your vehicle in stop-and-go traffic will in fact return worse fuel economy.

3. Minimize usage of AC 

On the one hand, heat can help to warm the engine, and causes less aerodynamic drag than cold wind, increasing fuel efficiency. On the other hand, using air conditioning in hot weather can reduce fuel efficiency by 25%.

Similarly, driving with your windows down can increase the vehicle’s wind resistance resulting in the wastage of gas. Therefore, below are some tips that can help you to solve the above issues:

• Don’t idle the air conditioner when turning on your car as most AC cool faster while driving
• Try using AC while driving at high speeds and prefer rolling windows down when driving slower
• Optimize temperature and fan settings instead of setting it to the maximum as default

Save Gas with Vehicle Care

4. Drive with well-prepared tires

Having the right tire pressure is crucial to getting good gas mileage. This is because underinflated tires create more rolling resistance and makes your engine work harder to move the vehicle. The harder your engine works, the more fuel it consumes.

Tire pressure is lost over time, so you should keep your tires properly inflated. Underinflated tires will deliver poor gas mileage by about 0.2% which would require more trips. This would cost you extra gas costs for the day, month, and gradually year.  

You should get rid of chunky off-road tires in favor of smoother tires that are optimized for better fuel economy. Not only are they lighter but they also let the vehicle move with the least amount of resistance possible.

5. Remove excess weight from the vehicle 

The delivery driver should avoid keeping unnecessary items in the vehicle, especially heavy ones. The reason is that the heavier the vehicle is, the it consumes more gas thus reducing the fuel economy.

According to the federal government, an extra 100 pounds of weight in the vehicle could reduce the vehicle’s mileage and fuel efficiency by 1% approximately. So, check engine size before keeping items in the vehicle.  

6. Get your car regularly serviced

The best way to save gas for your car is to maintain it and get it serviced regularly. A well-maintained car can use 10-20% less fuel than a non-serviced one. The majority of drivers ignore the impact on vehicles that proper maintenance can make.

Some other benefits of timely maintenance of your vehicle are that the engine troubles are identified at an early stage, and it is easier and cheaper to fix them. Also, a well-maintained car is worth more when you plan to sell it.

Additionally, the service record of your vehicle is also essential when you want to claim any warranty on the vehicle. This is why having a maintenance schedule is so important to achieve the ideal fuel economy.

7. Inspect the EVAP system

The EVAP system in a car is responsible for making sure that no fuel vapors get out of the gas tank.  Without the EVAP system in place, manufacturers claim that nearly 2% of gas in the tank can evaporate away in storage. 

This is why most modern cars come with a very advanced EVAP system for greater fuel savings. Another key aspect of fuel evaporation is the gas cap. You must always make sure that you have fully tightened the gas cap so that you don’t waste gas. 

Save Gas with Better Purchasing Habits

8. Compare the gas prices 

Before going out for delivery or traveling a long distance, you would want to instantly find cheaper gas from a local gas supplier. To do this you need to compare the prices of the gas stations near you and see where you can get cheap gas.

Instead of driving around town and wasting both time and fuel, drivers can consider using an app to compare gas prices around their locality. For example, gas apps like GasBuddy and GasGuru will help you to find the cost of gas from different gas stations in just one click.

Also, using a gas card will help you to save a little extra money. 

9. Do not fill your tank to the brim 

Even the cheapest gas stations have pumps that can detect an overflowing tank. When a fuel pump detects that your tank is full, it sucks a little bit of fuel out of your tank to prevent it from overflowing. 

While the amount of gas taken out is relatively small it can still add up over time. This is especially true if your car requires premium gas. 

Best Gas Saving Apps

With high gas prices everywhere it is no wonder why people would switch to a gas rewards program that helps customers cut costs wherever possible. These apps function in different ways. Some give you nice discounts while others give you gas rewards. Depending on your preferences, either could be very beneficial. 

1. Fuelio

Fuelio is a truly unique app, as it encompasses almost all of your vehicle related costs. It is beneficial for those that not only want to get cheaper gas but also accurate vehicle cost data. Fuelio tracks your gas consumption, mileage, auto service expenses, and more.

This versatility is what makes it better when compared to most gas price apps that solely focus on delivering gas discounts.

2. Gasbuddy

Gasbuddy is a very well-known app that helps you save fuel costs in multiple ways. Being one of the earliest players in the game they have established their reputation as one of the best apps for drivers for gas price savings. 

Gasbuddy lets you compare the gallon prices at local gas stations while you’re on the move. Though the accuracy of these prices is variable as they rely on customer reports and data submitted by the gas stations. Though with Gasbuddy Premium you could potentially save 40 cents per gallon.

3. Waze

Waze is a multifunctional app owned by Google. It is primarily used for reasons other than gas savings. These reasons include advanced navigation and reporting road-related issues. Though this does not make it any less capable of saving you some money on gas.

Waze shows you all the gas stations that are near your vicinity with their gas prices. They also allow you to wirelessly pay at certain Shell or ExxonMobil gas pumps.

4. Gas Guru

Gas Guru is an app that allows you to see all the gas prices at gas stations that are around you much like any other gas app. Though where it differentiates itself from other regular apps is by showing you what else is around the gas station.

This allows you to plan and integrate any other errands that you might have in your fuel trip. It also sources its data directly from the Oil Price Information Service, making it quite a reliable way to know fuel prices at various gas stations.

5. Speedy Rewards

Speedway is a convenience store chain that often operates with gas stations. They have their own grocery store rewards program called Speedy Rewards which lets you earn points for every purchase. Unlike other apps, you do not get an actual cash discount.

You can spend these points at their store at your convenience. This could be a great deal if you shop from Speedway frequently.

Perform Fuel-Efficient Deliveries with Upper

A business that conducts regular deliveries on gas-powered machines is the most affected during a fuel price hike. Even a single cent increase in the average gas price can be grim news to a delivery business because of how reliant they are on fuel.

A way to start saving money on fuel is essential for such a business, which is why Upper has entered the area with the perfect solution. Upper’s route optimization not only makes your delivery routes faster but also reduces the overall trip distance making you burn less fuel.

Such time-saving abilities provided by Upper are what make it so great for delivery businesses. Without Upper, businesses have to spend a lot more money on fuel and a lot more time on route planning and optimization.

Final Words

All in all, the rising costs of fuel affect us all. This is why we must reflect on our usage of this commodity and recognize where we can cut down on the usage of fuel. Though this is not possible for entities such as delivery businesses.

It is because delivery businesses work around the clock to keep the world stocked with supplies. If any industry needs fuel the most then it is undoubtedly the industry that is involved with logistics and the supply chain.

The saving grace for such businesses is software like Upper that offers multiple features that greatly benefit the user. Though these features are best known when you try them yourself. Thankfully you can do that quite easily with Upper’s 7 days free trial.