TEN GAS SAVING TIPS

1. Use cruise control if you have it.
It’s a 4mpg savings. Continuous up and down acceleration and braking lowers your gas mileage. Use your cruise control on the highway to help maintain a constant speed.

2. Turn off the AC
If you don’t have to use air conditioning, don’t. (City driving will save you more with AC off. Highway Driving is a toss up, windows down causes drag)

3. Don’t idle and don’t make jack-rabbit starts.
It will take a couple extra minutes, but you’ll save another couple mpg.

4. Travel at the speed limit.
Stick with the speed limit and shift to the higher gear. Every 5 mph over 60mph will cost about 21 cents per gallon, so if you spent 2.83 per gallon, it will be as if you paid $3.04 a gallon at 65mph or $3.25 at 70mph, etc.

5. Get the junk out of your trunk.
The rule of thumb is for every extra 100 pounds you consume an extra 1 mpg.

6. Tune it up, fix it up.
Get regular tune-ups and change your oil. An improperly tuned engine hurts gas mileage by an average of 4.1 percent Changing the oil could save you up to three percent and something as simple as replacing a faulty oxygen sensor can boost gas mileage up to 40 percent!

7. Fresh air.
A clogged air filter can decrease gas mileage by up to 10 percent. The air filter helps protect the inside of the engine from impurities. The potential gas savings from keeping a clog-free air filter can be up to 31 cents per gallon.

8. Fill those tires.
Make sure your tires are properly inflated. Poorly inflated tires create rolling resistance and reduce fuel economy. Properly inflated tires can improve gas mileage by around 3.3 percent.

9. Watch your wheel alignment.
Going in a straight line, instead of wobbling will save gas.

10. Anything you can turn off, do so.
Radios, fans, all these new great technologies put a load on your engine which decreases your gas mileage.

For a long time, Americans have only looked at our miles per gallon ratings on our cars.  Today, though, we must look at how far we can drive for just $1.00. 

This figure may have surprised you, and it certainly does hit home with today's price of gasoline. 

Here are some examples of how much a vehicle that is rated at 18MPG can go at $3.75 per gallon of gas:

• From Autoland  to Costco in Oxnard and back ( 7 miles X roundtrip= 14 miles): $3.03
• From Autoland to Home Depot in Santa Clara and back (2.7 miles X roundtrip= 5.4 miles): $1.17
• From Autoland to ShorelineTheaters in Mountain View and back (7 miles X roundtrip= 17 miles): $3.35
• From Autoland to the The Great Malls ( 17 miles X roundtrip = 34 miles): $7.35

Just a few quick stops around town can really add up and cost a few dollars that we didn't even think about.