Winter Strategies To Improve Gas Mileage

Winter doesn't just bring cold weather and snow, it also brings it's own particular problems to maintaining and improving gas mileage. Here are two specific things you should to do in the winter to sustain good fuel economy.

The most basic and possibly the most important step you can take is to ensure the oil in your car is the proper grade for cold weather. As temperatures fall it thickens your oil. If oil gets too thick it will not lubricate your engine the way it was designed to. A car engine that isn't properly lubricated will loose fuel efficiency as it has to burn more gas to move it's parts. If that isn't enough, oil that is too thick to properly lubricate your car's engine, can damage your engine so much you may have to have the engine replaced.

Check your owners manual to determine the proper grade of oil for the winter. Generally cold temperatures require a thinner oil then you would use during warm weather. If you are using a multi-grade oil it might work just fine in the winter. Again, check your manual or ask your car dealer what the proper grade for your car is.

Winter weather brings a second common obstacle to improving gas mileage, a change in tire pressure. In the winter the air pressure in your tires drops. It is one of those things you studied in chemistry class but may have forgotten. One of laws of gasses is gas compresses as temperature drops. When the air in your tires compresses, the air pressure in your tires is reduced. If your tires were inflated to the proper pressure at 75 degrees, those tires will be 5 to 10 pounds too low at 25 degrees and will be 7 to 14 pounds too low at five degrees.

Low tire pressure is one of the most common gas robbing conditions. It has been estimated that more than 25 per cent of all vehicles on the road have at least one tire with low pressure. You will be decreasing your fuel economy by 4 percent if your tires are 5 to 10 pounds under inflated

For every 10-degree drop in air temperature, your tires will experience a one to two pound reduction in tire pressure. If you inflated your tires to the proper pressure in November temperatures, they'll be too low in February temperatures.

To correct and prevent the problem of low tire pressure you need to check the tire pressure on a regular basis. Check them every month at a minimum. Also check them when there is a significant fall in temperatures.

Winter conditions bring unique fuel robbing conditions. You can stop the detrimental affect of winter on your fuel economy cold! Knowing about these conditions and knowing how to avoid them will keep your fuel economy at it's peak.

Article Source: http://www.rightarticle.com

Scott Siegel has written a 143 page manual of automotive industry insider secrets on saving gas and money at the pump (beatthegaspump.com). Visit us to discover how you can get better gas mileage. Find out how to increase gas mileage.

Please Rate this Article

5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5 

Not yet Rated