How to drive smoothly to cut fuel consumption and save cash

The cost-of-living crisis has hit Britain hard as inflation has soared due to a dramatic rise in energy, food and other costs.

While gasoline and diesel prices are below their peak, fuel costs have also skyrocketed, making life more difficult for many motorists.

From apps for fuel efficient driving, avoiding cruise control and leaving the air conditioning off, here are the best eco-driving tips to help you save money.

Download a fuel efficiency app

If you have a car that doesn’t have selectable drive modes, ease on the throttle whenever possible.

Having a light right foot and making sure all accelerations are smooth is very important for economical driving.

When starting from a standstill, such as at traffic lights and intersections, try not to react as if you were on the starting grid at Silverstone.

If you want some extra help to drive more economically, there is a new free app that can help you with this.

Drive Key’s Karai can be downloaded to your smartphone and claims to cut your fuel consumption – and carbon footprint – by up to a quarter.

Don’t speed up

Excessive speed is one of the biggest fuel-consuming factors.

Statistics from the Department for Transport (DfT) show that driving on the highway at 130 km/h uses about 25 percent more fuel than driving at 110 km/h.

Traveling at 110 km/h uses nine percent more fuel than driving at 100 km/h, and 14 percent more than driving at 80 km/h.

Use eco mode if your car has it

Many modern motorcycles are now equipped with adjustable riding modes.

If yours does, it probably has an “eco” setting. Using this mode limits how fast the car accelerates and performs other fuel-saving measures.

Keep your vehicle in good condition

If you’re driving an older car that hasn’t been serviced in a while, now might be the time to get it booked in to make sure it runs as efficiently as possible.

Sticking brakes, aging tires, faulty sensors, old oil and general poor engine maintenance are just a few of the factors that can affect your car’s optimal mile-per-gallon performance.

One of the easiest solutions to make sure your vehicle is running at its best is to regularly check that your tires have the optimum pressure

Check the tire pressure

One of the easiest solutions to make sure your vehicle is running at its best is to regularly check that your tires are at the optimum pressure.

Underinflated tires are estimated to affect a car’s fuel economy by as much as 10 percent.

Consult your car owner’s manual to find the best pressure for your engine. Most models also have tire pressure information on a sticker on the driver’s door sill – while modern cars can also display the pressure in the instrument panel or warn you of an incorrect pressure.

> HOW TO LOWER YOUR FUEL RACK: Read our top 10 hypermiling eco-driving tips

Drive smoothly

The way people drive can have a huge impact on fuel economy, think carefully and you’ll be in the right mode for maximum fuel economy.

Smoother driving also means that unnecessary use of the brakes can be avoided, resulting in less acceleration.

Instant shifting from first to third gear can help reduce fuel consumption. Many new cars will also have a gear shift indicator, which informs the driver of the most economical time to shift.

Do not use air conditioning or heating

Only use your air conditioning when you really need it, as it consumes engine power and, depending on driving conditions, can increase fuel consumption by as much as 10 percent on shorter trips.

This shouldn’t be a problem during the colder months, although using a car’s heater will also have an impact, as will heated seats.

Drive at the maximum speed while using the highest possible gear

Driving faster results in higher fuel consumption, but so does driving around in the wrong gear.

Ideally, you want to be in the highest gear possible, as this lowers your car’s RPM per minute and makes the engine work less hard. Driving around at 100 km/h in fifth gear uses less fuel than driving around at the same speed in third gear.

If you have a sixth gear, use it on the highway or other suitable places.

The RAC says engaging cruise control regularly when not on level roads will result in an increase in fuel consumption.

It says, ‘This is because your cruise control would respond more slowly to changes in grade, so when you reach the edge of a hill – at which point you would normally take your foot off the accelerator to maintain a more steady speed. hold when descending – your cruise control keeps the power on a little longer because it can’t see the slope change ahead of you.

“Regularly driving this way would lead to poorer fuel economy.”

If you are a long haul driver who relies on cruise control it may be best to avoid it to improve your fuel economy

Do multiple errands in one trip

An engine runs most efficiently when it is fully warmed up, while multiple cold starts increase your fuel economy.

If you need to do several errands in one day, try combining them into one trip.

The AA says warmer temperatures should improve mpg “significantly” with an extra three miles to the gallon “almost guaranteed for most” in the summer months.

Free your car from clutter

While this may not make a world of difference, removing heavy junk from your car will improve fuel economy fractionally. Not driving around with, say, a set of golf clubs in the trunk will make a small difference.

This is something to consider, especially in the summer, as many people install roof boxes for extra luggage space when on holiday.

However, if you are not using the roof box or roof racks, it is better to remove them to improve air resistance.

According to the Energy Saving Trust, an empty roof rack adds 16 percent drag at a speed of 75 mph. At the same speed, a roof box adds 39 percent, making your vehicle much less fuel efficient.

Driving with a window fully open also has a similar effect.