Car driving tips to save money

Here, we just want to focus on the way we operate our cars and how that can influence out of pocket expenses. Here are the areas of discussion: •  Acceleration •  Using the clutch •  Deceleration The idea here is to identify how to reduce the money we spend as a result of operating the […]

Here, we just want to focus on the way we operate our cars and how that can influence out of pocket expenses.

Here are the areas of discussion:

•  Acceleration

•  Using the clutch

•  Deceleration

The idea here is to identify how to reduce the money we spend as a result of operating the car. Let’s discuss several key areas that hold promise of saving us some money in operations, maintenance and repair.

Acceleration

We must accelerate in order to get anywhere with the car. This is clear. The way we accelerate either saves us money or costs us money. Here is the first of the car driving tips: driving conservatively saves money.

We’re talking about operating our vehicles in a steady, calm, less assertive and non-aggressive manner. It can mean a lot for our bottom line in many ways.

Most certainly, we get better gas mileage when driving in a conservative manner, because we avoid rapid acceleration. But, it goes much deeper than that.

Rapid acceleration stresses mechanical parts like our transmission and universal joints. A sharp increase in energy to the wheels has to be transmitted somehow and that puts undue stress on drive train components that can lead to early failure.

If you have to stomp on the gas to get out of trouble, then do so to avoid a problem. But, giving yourself and others a “power show” is just asking for an early major failure that will cost way more money than what you’ll be willing to spend.

Lastly, rapid acceleration puts more wear on your tires that can be unnecessary. Tires have to grip the pavement in order to do their job of getting your vehicle moving. Some wear is unavoidable, but excess wear is created when you ask your tires to push hard against the pavement to get you moving sharply away from a standstill.

Using the Clutch

For those with manual transmission vehicles, learning to engage and disengage the clutch smoothly takes a little time. When you slip the clutch, you’re causing it to heat up and wear a little. Some slip is necessary as you get to the “friction point” where the clutch can be fully engaged to start the car moving.

Each time you disengage or engage the clutch, there is a little bit of wear. This is normal and can’t be avoided. It is the unnecessary slipping that wears out an expensive clutch relatively quickly.

Learn how to smoothly and quickly get your car moving. Learn how to smoothly change gears so that the clutch isn’t subjected to unnecessary slipping. This is one of the car driving tips that you can apply in many areas of your life: a change in how something is operated is where you’ll find higher risks of failure.

Again, call the transmission shop and ask them what it costs to replace a worn out clutch on your car. You’ll say “ouch” once again, I am certain of it.

Deceleration

Slowing down and stopping your car is another area where you can apply conservative car driving tips to help you save money. The focus here is to avoid both rapid and unnecessary deceleration.

Unnecessary deceleration causes normal stress and wear on drive train components, brakes and tires. Rapid deceleration causes more stress and wear on these elements.

Tires must grip the pavement to get you going. They must do the same thing to slow you down. You’ve seen skid marks on the road and other places where vehicles have driven into kerbs and concrete dividers. You see the characteristic black marks left by tires.

This is a small part of the rubber compound that makes up our tires. It is a form of stress and wear on the tires. Just think of it as the color of money left on the road.

Brakes are also worn out quickly by frequent and rapid deceleration. Why speed up just to slow down? In each case, you’re using energy and converting that to work and heat. Some of the heat is associated with unnecessary application of the brake. Coast when you can instead of braking sharply.

When I replaced the brakes on my car at 130,000 miles they were original equipment and still had plenty of life left in them. That tells you how much I use my car for highway miles, and how conservatively I apply the brakes.

Brake when you have to, but careful driving can help reduce the need to apply the brakes often and unnecessarily. This saves money in vehicle maintenance and repair.

Cars are expensive to buy and service. They are potentially dangerous and can easily cause damage to property and people. Use good sense and care with your driving, and you’ll be glad you did, and your bank account will be happy too.