According to the department of energy, in 2008, the United States consumed roughly 137 billion gallons of gasoline. Of course, not all of that was used by your car (although I suspect the guy down the street from me is using more than his fair share) but let’s face it, anyone who drives a petroleum-fueled vehicle is a part of this problem. Gasoline has always been an odd thing to me. We take for granted that it will just be there, and be relatively cheap at that. We fill our tanks and drive off, but for the most part, never really think beyond that.
But of course there are ramifications to our petroleum addictions. Natural settings are destroyed and turned into oil fields. Young men and women are shipped across the world, and die protecting these oil fields. Pristine waters are ruined by oil tanker spills. Children the world over suffer from asthma attacks brought on in part by exhaust fumes. The list goes on and on, and beyond a small minority making a lot of money, it’s not a very good looking one.
So it seems like the least we can do is work towards using a little less, and eventually weaning ourselves off of oil completely. For now, maybe we can all start by consuming less and learning to make the petroleum we have go a little farther. You may have heard some of these ideas before, but if you are like most people, a little reminder never hurts.
Let go of your lead foot. Face it, gunning the engine to speed up and get to that next light where you’re still going to be waiting, isn’t doing anyone any good. Every time you pound on the gas pedal, you use more fuel than you need since the engine is working harder to quickly move that mass of metal you are riding in. Take it nice and easy, slowly get up to speed and slowly hit the brakes, maybe even coasting a bit in between. Studies show you can save up to 20% of your fuel by driving this way in city traffic, and as an added benefit, you won’t spill your coffee!
Kill the AC. OK, if you are living in the middle of the desert, this may not be a possibility, but let’s face it, not everyone needs the AC on all the time. When you hit that button, the engine needs to start driving the compressor, which requires more energy, which uses more fuel. Open those windows and let your hair down from time to time. Also, try to park in the shade so you don’t need the AC as much to begin with.
Inflate those tires. Remember when Obama said if everyone would simply check their tire pressure and make sure it was spot on, we’d save a heck of a lot of oil? Well, that may have gotten a few laughs, but it turns out he was right. Tires are designed to have a certain rolling resistance, and work best when properly inflated. Think about a tire that’s going flat. A lot more rubber is hitting the road right? Well, that translates to friction, which means the engine needs to work harder, which means, you guessed it, more fuel. Properly inflate your tires and you’ll see an increase of 1-2% in your gas mileage. Spread that across the nation and you’ve got a fair amount of conservation.
Drop the weight. Do you really need all the stuff you are carrying around in your trunk? Of course not. You shouldn’t be buying that case of bottled water anyway right? So why not clean out the car and shed a few pounds. Generally speaking, for every 100 pounds of weight, your vehicles mpg will decrease by 1%. Don’t have 100 pounds in the trunk? No sweat, 20 pounds will do and over time, will still add up. So ditch your collection of Victorian era bowling balls and leave it in the living room where it belongs.
Properly maintain your car. I know, we all do this right? Wrong. How many of you have checked your air filter recently? Fuel filter? Oil Filter? Timing? I could go on and on and I don’t even know my way around an intake manifold. Proper maintenance will keep your vehicle running efficiently and give you a crack at efficiency right off the bat. Think about just your air filter. If the engine needs to suck air through a sock that’s got 50,000 miles of road gunk on it, it’s going to have to strain to do so. Check these little guys regularly and keep your car happy.
Don’t think of your car as a climate controlled musical environment. How may times have you seen someone sitting in their car, windows up, engine running, talking on their cell phone? It’s shocking. Turn your car off and go sit under the tree over there, the one with the nice overhanging shade and the grass all around it. Yeah that one. Go ahead. It won’t hurt.
Turn your car into a planter bed. Probably the best piece of advice I can throw out there. DON’T DRIVE! Seriously. It’s the number one way to save on fuel - just stop using it in the first place. Now I know this isn’t the easiest thing for everyone out there to do (but if anyone has planted their Hummer I’d love a pic), but surely we can all make a concerted effort to drive less if not stopping completely. One thing I offer up in the seminar I teach is to take a map and draw a half-mile radius around your house. Then pledge to not drive anywhere within that radius unless you are coming or going to or from somewhere else. What this will do is significantly cut down those quick trips to the store that are so bad for your mpg. It’s not a major shift, but it will have an impact.
But the real answer to all of this, as far as I am concerned, is for all of us to get and ride a Conference Bike like the one in the video below. Come on, you know you love this. Just think, it’ll keep you in shape, slow us all down a bit, and make for better communication between friends and neighbors. Just look at how happy they all are! Conference Bikes, that’s the ticket.
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Dave Chameides is a filmmaker and environmental educator. His website and newsletter are designed to inspire thought and dialogue on environmental solutions and revolve around the idea that no one can do everything, but everyone can do something. “Give people the facts, and they’ll choose to do the right thing.”
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Lorraine here with a comment: I'm that proverbial "little old lady from Pasadena." I drive 60 mph, or less, and stay in the right hand lane. Yes, that's the "truck lane" but they have no trouble passing me!! ~~ I confess that I am guilty of hauling too much stuff in my KIA and Little Guy. Recent-ly, I've had an opportunity to sort through and weed out.
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