Gas – Traffic School Online

There’s a lot to keep an eye on as a driver – the road, your mirrors, your speedometer… and, of course, the price of gasoline. This is the last post in a three part series on what’s driving gas prices, and how you can save at the pump.

With gas prices so high, every drop of fuel counts. Here are seven ways to make the most of the fuel you buy.

1. Don’t Top Off Your Tank

You’ve probably seen warnings about topping off your gas tank before, but it turns out that topping off is harmful to the environment, your car, and your wallet.

Overfilling makes it easy to spill gas. Not only is this a fire hazard, but gasoline vapors are harmful to breathe, and you’re still paying for the gas you pump, whether or not it ends up in your tank.
Your vehicle’s vapor collection system could become damaged. As your car warms, the gasoline in your tank will expand, and if your tank is overfilled, it could be forced into your vehicle’s vapor collection system, damaging or ruining it.
You could end up paying for gas you don’t even use. If you add more gas after the pump clicks off automatically, it may be drawn into the gas pump’s vapor recovery system and fed back into the station’s storage tanks.

2. Check Your Fuel Cap

To prevent evaporation, make sure your fuel cap is on tight and isn’t broken or cracked. Fuel caps are easily replaceable at an auto parts store.

3. Don’t Pay for Premium Unless You Have To

Check your owner’s manual to find out what grade of gas the manufacturer recommends. If your car doesn’t require premium gas, there’s no reason to use it. It won’t provide better performance – it’ll just cost you 20 to 30 cents more per gallon.

Find out more at CarTalk and Edmunds.com.

4. Keep Tires Properly Inflated

The decrease in fuel economy caused by underinflated tires results in more than one billion gallons of wasted gasoline annually in the U.S. alone.

Make sure you learn how to find out the correct pressure for your tires, check your current tire pressure, and add or remove air.

5. Rethink Where and When You Drive

To prevent unnecessary idling, and boost your gas mileage, AAA recommends:

Driving during cooler parts of the day when possible
Avoiding congestion
Planning your route in advance
Planning where to park

6. Don’t Speed

Speeding might get you to your destination a little faster, but it’s not very fuel-efficient. Fuel efficiency usually decreases rapidly at speeds above 55 MPH. Driving 65 MPH instead of 75 MPH would reduce fuel costs by 13%, and driving 55 MPH would save you 25%.

And that’s besides the cost of a ticket or an accident!

7. Look for the Best Prices

Websites such as GasBuddy.com offer gas price listings that you can search by zip code. While it’s probably not worth it to drive out of your way for cheaper gas, you can easily get an idea of where in your area has the best prices, and plan your fuel-ups for times when you’re in those areas.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, in 2013 transportation was responsible for 27 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. Given that the U.S. is one of the top two countries in the world with regards to emissions, that’s not a small number. For drivers who want to do their part to cut down on emissions, though, a few simple green drivng tips can go a surprisingly long way.

Tip #1: Clear Out That Junk in Your Trunk

Have you ever cleaned out your car, and when you were done, thought, “wow, how did I fit all of that in there?” If you’ve got an extra suitcase in your backseat, and boxes of stuff you never got around to unpacking, chances are good the weight is taking a toll on your gas mileage. If you unburden your ride, then you’ll drive further on less gas, which will pump fewer emissions from your tailpipe.

Tip #2: Pump it Up

Keeping your tires inflated to their full volume is important for driver safety, but it also saves energy when you’re driving. If you’ve ever pulled a wagon or pushed a wheelbarrow with tires that weren’t filled to capacity, you know exactly how much more work you needed to put in. Full tires are easier to move, which means you’re using less overall fuel than you would driving around on half-inflated tires.

Tip #3: The Need For Speed is Killing Your Mileage

While it might be thrilling to put the pedal to the floor and burn rubber out of the stop light, that sort of behavior eats up gas. Ditto for braking hard, and reducing your speed quickly. If you increase or decrease your speed gradually, then you’re going to burn less gas, as well as putting less overall wear and tear on your ride. So, if it’s possible, let your car coast to a slower speed from further back to save gas instead of hitting the brake when you get too close to an intersection, or a slow-moving truck.

Tip #4: If You Have Cruise Control, Use It

You probably never think about all the little corrections you make while you’re out on the road. Add some gas to pass someone, slow down when the motorcycle pulls out in front of you, it’s all just one, big dance. If you’re on a long trip, or if you’re driving on the open road, you should get your car up to speed and hit the cruise control. Keeping your vehicle at a steady speed so that you only have to drive will eliminate a lot of adjustments that can eat into your fuel efficiency, and it will result in overall fewer emissions while you drive.

Tip #5: Remember to Try and Drive 55

Did you ever wonder why 55 miles an hour is the posted speed limit on so many roads? Well, one reason is that it’s a sweet spot that lets most vehicles get the best mileage. While most cars are capable of going faster, if 55 is the optimal speed (as it is in most common vehicles), an increased speed is going to lead to a decreased fuel efficiency. Just remember that your safety, and those of your fellow drivers, takes precedence over any green driving practices. Only follow this tip if it safe to do so; if posted speed are at least 5 miles above 55, stick with the speed limit and keep pace with others on the road.

Tip #6: Trade Up

While an expensive solution, more modern vehicles get better fuel efficiency (with all other factors being equal). Part of that is because legal standards have changed, forcing manufacturers to build more fuel-efficient cars. Part of it is that miles per gallon has become a legitimate selling point, which means drivers who want to look out for the environment have options. You don’t have to buy a hybrid or electric vehicle; just invest in something that’s more efficient than your current car.

In this age of fluctuating gas prices, it is useful to improve your vehicle’s fuel efficiency. Thankfully, there are several basic car maintenance procedures that you can perform that will immediately increase your fuel efficiency. Alone, they may not save you a lot of money, but combined, you may be able to save several dollars per tank of gas.

Get Your Car Regularly Tuned Up

If you haven’t gotten your car tuned up in the last year, you’re doing great damage to your fuel efficiency. Tuning a car engine helps it fire more efficiently and eliminates dangerous emission problems. Just how much it will help depends on how poorly your car was tuned before the repairs.

Generally speaking, a good tune-up should improve your mileage by about 4% or $0.09 per gallon. However, in severe cases, an improvement of up to 40% is possible. That kind of huge improvement will be noticeable immediately.

Inflate Your Tires Perfectly

Obviously, under-inflating your tires will eliminate fuel efficiency by decreasing the surface area that touches the road. However, people who overcompensate by over-inflating their tires are also doing themselves a disservice. Too much pressure may give you a slight increase in efficiency, but also puts your tires under a higher strain and increases their chances of blowing.

Instead, look at the sticker on your door jamb to find the proper tire pressure and inflate to that. Never inflate to the maximum pressure! Keeping your tires properly inflated can increase efficiency by 3%, which is about $0.07 per gallon of gas.

Always Properly Change Your Oil

The wonderful thing about motor oil is that it has become so efficient that it can last far beyond the three-month or 3,000-mile change time suggested by mechanics. Unfortunately, that doesn’t mean it stays efficient: beyond that change date, old motor oil gets increasingly thick, and murky, and can decrease your fuel efficiency drastically.

Just how does old oil interfere with your engine’s efficiency? It starts by causing more friction in the engine, which creates more heat. With more heat, your fuel burns at a higher level. This means that more fuel will burn with each stroke of your engine. Getting your oil changed (with the proper suggested brand) can increase efficiency by 4% or $0.08 per gallon.

Clean Out Your Air Filter

When you’re getting your oil changed, make sure to always get your air filter changed. Why? A clean one is necessary for eliminating pollutants that can otherwise damage your engine. Dirty air filters no longer filter efficiency and all sorts of damaging items can get into your engine and decrease its efficiency.

However, this is only true of vehicles with carbureted engines: Installing a new air filter can increase its efficiency by as much as 14%. Newer vehicles with computer-controlled engines don’t really get an efficiency benefit, as such. That said, it will still increase the life of your engine and make it run more smoothly.

Don’t Max Out Your Speed

The temptation to drive as fast as you’re legally allowed is understandable psychologically, but aerodynamically, it is seriously impacting your fuel mileage. There is as a delicate balance between speed and efficiency: up to about 60 miles per hour, your vehicle generally burns less gas as it drives quicker.

However, as your car’s speed increases beyond about 50 miles per hour, the drag on your vehicle starts to force your vehicle to burn more gas. Generally speaking, your vehicle will start to lose fuel efficiency. Often, this can be as high as $0.25 cents per gallon of gas for every 5 miles per hour you drive.

Now that you know how to improve your fuel efficiency with these simple maintenance tips, you should implement them as soon as you can. Shaving off an extra $0.05-$0.10 per procedure will add up quickly.

If each of these procedures eliminated $0.10 per gallon, you’d be saving $0.50 per gallon. In a 15-gallon tank, that is $7.50 per tank. Over time, that can add up to real savings!

There’s a lot to keep an eye on as a driver – the road, your mirrors, your speedometer… and, of course, the price of gasoline. This is the second post in a three-part series on what’s driving gas prices, and how you can save at the pump.

In our last post, we talked about how seasonal factors like increased demand and the switch to summer blend gasoline combine to push gas prices higher in the spring and summer than at other times of the year.

But gas prices vary even more dramatically over the years and decades, as we can see in the graph below. Why do prices rise and fall so dramatically over time, and can we ever expect a return to lower gas prices?

To answer these questions, we need to find out what affects the price of crude oil. The cost of crude oil accounts for 67% of what you pay at the pump, compared to just 12% for refining, 9% for distributing and marketing, and 12% for taxes.

Demand and Prices Rise and Fall with Economic Growth

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), world economic growth is the biggest factor driving demand for oil. Increased economic activity brings an increase in energy-intensive activities like manufacturing, personal and commercial transportation, and increased vehicle ownership.

Worldwide demand grew so quickly in the years leading up to 2008 that suppliers had a hard time keeping up, bringing crude oil prices to record levels and driving the U.S. average retail gas price to its record high of $4.11 per gallon in July 2008.

But by the fall of 2008, the global economy was weakening. As economic growth stalled, global petroleum demand decreased, and in December gasoline prices fell to $1.69, or $1.89 in today’s dollars.

Geopolitical Events Disrupt Supply

Oil and gas prices are also affected by events that could disrupt the supply of these materials. Sometimes these events cause supply disruptions, creating a shortage. But even just a sense of uncertainty can be enough to cause a price change.

To show just how drastically geopolitical events can affect the price of oil, the EIA provides this graph of crude oil prices with major world events since 1970 marked on the timeline. For example, the Arab oil embargo in 1973, the Iranian revolution in 1978, the Iran/Iraq war in 1980, and the Persian Gulf War in 1990 all caused crude oil shortages, and all correspond to an increase in prices.

This summer, increasing tensions between Russia and Ukraine could threaten the movement of Russian natural gas and petroleum products through Ukraine and into Europe, and may cause an increase in prices.

OPEC Manages the Oil Market

The twelve member countries of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) produce more than 40% of the world’s crude oil, and hold at least two-thirds of the world’s estimated crude oil reserves, according to the EIA.

Because of this, OPEC can exert significant influence on oil prices by setting production targets for its member countries. Lower production targets typically mean an increase in oil prices.

OPEC countries also have “spare production capacity” – the ability to bring oil into production within 30 days and sustain it for at least 90 days. Spare production capacity provides a cushion for fluctuations in supply. When spare capacity is low, the market is less able to respond to potential supply disruptions, and oil prices tend to rise.

U.S. Oil Production and Exports Increasing, But No Return to $2.00 Gas

In the last presidential election cycle, candidates argued back and forth over the reasons behind high gas prices and how best to lower them. The idea was put forth that by increasing domestic oil production, we could get back to the low gas prices we had in 2008 in the midst of the Great Recession.

U.S. oil production is now climbing at its fastest pace since the late 1960’s. According to the EIA’s most recent report, oil production is expected to rise to its highest annual level since 1972 next year. With such a booming business, drivers may be hoping for relief at the pump.

Unfortunately, the experts at AAA say we’re in for disappointment.

Many U.S. refineries are sending their products overseas, to countries like Mexico and Brazil, where demand is rising and prices are better – total U.S. petroleum exports are up 25% compared with last year, and is expected to become a net fuel exporter by 2015. As a result, the supply available in the U.S. is relatively low, and prices remain high.

The possibility was even raised this week that the U.S. could start to export the crude oil it produces, which has been prohibited since the 1970s. While concerns persist that allowing crude oil exports could cause gas prices in the U.S. to climb, U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz has said that the nature and quantity of the oil we’re producing “may not be well-matched to our current refinery capacity.”

Looking for More Information?

The EIA provides a detailed analysis of what drives crude oil markets, with data updated monthly. You can also check out data on energy produced and consumed in specific countries or U.S. states.

There’s a lot to keep an eye on as a driver – the road, your mirrors, your speedometer… and, of course, the price of gasoline. This is the first post in a three-part series on what’s driving gas prices, and how you can save at the pump.

According to the latest analysis released by GasBuddy.com, the national average price of gas is finally starting to fall after reaching a peak of $3.657 at the end of April, expected to be the highest price we’ll see this spring. While this year’s peak is about 18 cents per gallon higher than prices from this time last year, it’s much lower than last year’s February peak of $3.74.

Analysts predict that prices will fall another 3 to 10 cents by Memorial Day, and are expecting the lowest summertime gas prices that the nation has seen in several years.

But why do gas prices peak in the spring at all? Is it just because people do more driving in the pleasant summer weather, or are there other reasons for the increase we see each year?

Higher Demand in Spring and Summer

Demand for gasoline in the U.S. does increase by a few percentage points per month, beginning in February. To put this in perspective, a 1% increase in U.S. demand for gasoline is about 87,900 barrels – about the same as what a small refinery could produce in a day.

These increases seem small, but they add up quickly. NACS, the Association for Convenience and Fuel Retailing, reports that gasoline demand in August 2013 was 10% – that’s 836 billion barrels – greater than it was in January 2013.

This added stress makes the fuel distribution system vulnerable to supply disruptions caused by geopolitical events or severe weather, which could cause gas prices to rise even further.

Summer Blend Fuel

Demand isn’t the only factor driving higher prices. The fuel you buy in the summer is more expensive to produce, and the process of making the switch limits the supply of gasoline even further.

Summer Fuel is More Expensive

Refineries and retailers are required by law to produce a special blend of gasoline for the summertime. Federal, state, and local laws overlap to create a complex set of requirements for each area, but in general, summer production begins in April and ends in September.

Winter-blend fuel is made to evaporate at lower temperatures so that your car will start more easily and run more smoothly in the cold. To accomplish this, refineries can blend in cheaper materials that evaporate more readily.

But fuel that’s just right for cold temperatures can cause problems in the summer. Evaporating gas contributes to ozone and smog levels and can cause vehicle performance problems like vapor lock.

To avoid this, summer-blend gasoline has to be refined even further. This means that each barrel of oil doesn’t make quite as much summer gasoline as it would make winter gasoline. It also has to contain materials that don’t evaporate as easily – which tend to be more expensive.

The summer blend is the most effective option for warm temperatures – it contains 1.7% more energy than the winter blend – but it’s more expensive for refineries to produce. So while you may get better gas mileage, the prices you see at the pump tend to be higher than during the winter months.

Refinery Maintenance Limits Supply

Refineries have to comply with summer regulations by April 1. Switching from winter to summer blends requires significant work and “downtime” at refineries, so companies often schedule other maintenance work for the same period.

Since refineries can’t operate at full capacity during this maintenance “season,” the supply of fuel decreases temporarily, contributing to the rising price.

Low Inventory at Distribution Terminals

It takes several weeks for summer gasoline to travel through pipelines and reach distribution terminals across the country, so terminals have until May 1 to purge their winter fuel. Since failure to comply with the requirements results in a steep penalty, terminals are more willing to risk not having any inventory than being late to comply.

These low inventories at the terminals also contribute to higher prices, especially as demand continues to increase throughout the season.

What Can We Expect for the Summer?

This year’s deadlines for refineries and distribution terminals to switch from winter to summer blends have now passed, and GasBuddy.com reports that 90% of scheduled refinery maintenance for this spring has been completed successfully.

As refineries and distribution terminals return to normal operations, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) predicts that national gas prices will average $3.61 per gallon from April through September.

Keep in mind that prices can vary quite a bit across the country – while a gallon of regular might cost you $3.47 this week in a state on the Gulf Coast, if you’re on the West Coast you’ll be looking at $4.06 for the same gas.

Curious about what’s going on in your local market? Check out AAA’s Fuel Gauge Report, updated daily.

Up Next…

American oil production is at its highest level in decades, but it’s been more than three years since the national average price fell below $3.00, according to AAA. Why are prices still so high, and can we expect a return to lower prices in the future?

◉ 7 Ways to Spend Less on Gas

Tag: Gas