Fuel Mileage

Becoming More Critical Daily

Better fuel mileage is a win-win for our environment and for our economy.
And nowadays, there is no greater buzzword than fuel economy. Although people have been worried about fuel economy for years now, up until recently we assumed that our concerns were temporary.

We would become conerned about fuel mileage whenever there was a spike, of course.  But as soon as the prices went down again, we would get back into our gas guzzling trucks and go for a spin. Intellectually, most of us have known for some time that the fossil fuels are running out. We have known that sooner or later, we would have to switch to some kind of alternative fuel.  But this concern has always seemed remote to most people. But now it has become a much more immediate concern.

And when we guzzle gas in our big SUVs, we only help OPEC economies.  This is another reason to go after alternative fuels and buy hybrid vehicles.

Fuel mileage plays an important role in the everyday life of folks like construction workers.  They always love driving big trucks, both because of the "macho factor," and also because they are sometimes necessary for hauling construction-related material.  The horrible fuel mileage of most big trucks--especially when driven at 70 mph or faster--makes the monthly gas bill upwards of $500 or more...

This makes the idea of alternative fuels very attractive indeed. 

Unfortunately, it is tough to make a good informed decision about alternative fuels. They have simply not been available for that long. Bio-diesel sounds good in theory, but in the end, won't it pollute just as badly as gasoline?  As for electric and hybrid cars, although there are a few working examples, they are still far from taking over the market--due to their much higher cost and lower power.  (Americans have become spoiled by big-time acceleration.)   In the past, many of us imagined that electric vehicles would be used by everyone by now.   Obviously, this hasn't happened yet.

Short of switching to bio-diesel or some other alternative fuel like hydrogen fuel cells,  there are some things that you can do to improve your fuel mileage. One of the best things to do is to switch to a more conservative driving style; Your monthly gas bill will be far less if you slow to 65 mph from your habitual 75+ mph driving habits.  And remember that much of your fuel mileage (or lack thereof) is due to acceleration; So avoid doing "jackrabbit" starts and racing the car off the line next to you!