With the oil companies sticking it to us every time we fill up, how about some gas saving ideas that you either know of or use.

Riding the bus or Max doesn't count as a gas saving tip. Whatever $'s you save in gas are certainly made up for in taxes you pay to support it.

There are tons of gimmicks out there on the market. Some of them might even work!

Anyway, here is one I've seen a couple of times on the internet. I don't know how much gas it saves, but with the way the morons have the traffic lights set up here in Vancouver, not making left turns will save a bunch of time. I guess less time sitting idling at a red light might equate to gas savings.

Want to Save at the Pump? Make Right-Hand Turns

Sick and tired of the rising cost of gas? Take a tip from the guys in brown — make right-hand turns.

United Parcel Service advises its drivers to make right-hand turns on deliveries to save time and money, WEWS-TV in Cleveland reports, and Joe Sixpack can too.

"I always try to make right turns, especially with gas at $3," said Ray Rivera, a Cleveland-area UPS driver.

With 88,000 trucks on the road, UPS tries to save money wherever it can.

"They'll make right-hand turns only all up the street and they'll try to do the same coming back, especially on major streets," Phil Kane of UPS told the news team.

Angie Lau, a consumer specialist for WEWS-TV, tested the right-hand turn theory to see if veering right can actually help consumers' pocketbooks. Their test found that a right-hand turn trip actually took a bit longer.

Overall, drivers should try to make right-hand turns whenever possible, WEWS-TV advises, taking care to try to drive the shortest distance possible to save gas.

When exiting the freeway, take your foot off of the accelerator and begin coasting to a stop instead of racing to the exit and running to the stop and smashing on the brakes. This not only save fule costs but extends the lifespan of your brake pads.
This applies to red lights as well....why race to a red light only to slam on the brakes? When you see the light changing just take your foot off of the pedal and coast as much as possible. Pay no attention to the uptight asshole behind you biting his nails and cursing you for not rushing to the red light!

If your going less than a mile, walk, or ride a bike (following all traffic laws).
Combine trips, Keep your tires properly inflated, Keep your engine tuned, use lowest quality gas approved for your engine.

When you drive to the gym, park in the first available spot. (My daughter works at a gym, and I have sat in the parking lot watching people drive around 3 or 4 times looking for a close spot).

Doesn't anyone see the irony in driving to the gym ... and then looking for the closest spot!? LOL

BTW - I've been running 87 octane in my 'Teg since gas prices started climbing some time ago. I thought the anti-knock sensor was going bad because it seemed to rattle a bit when cold. The other day I filled the top half with 92 octane and guess what? No more knock. So... mid-grade may work, but Costco doesn't offer that choice.

Still averaging ~32 mpg.

I feel like I drive the Space Shuttle or something.......Every time I fill up I just wanna ask the attendant if I need a co-signer or something! SHEEET....$65.00 to fill last time!

Cheapest place for gas in PDX has always been Frank's 76 on the corner of Killingsworth and Interstate Ave.

My older Toyota runs fantastic on Premium. The difference between mid-grade and ordinary regular unleaded gas is not significant. It pings like no other on either one, even with an octane booster.

So, I run the Premium. Even with the extra cost, I find the better tolerance for low RPM driving more than makes up for the cost in that I can get really great milage.

On regular unleaded, the car runs around 30MPG (mix of hwy and city). On the Premium, it regularly hits 38-40MPG. If I work at it, I can get 42.

Most of that comes from in-city driving high gear / low RPM driving. eg: 4th gear @ 35 kind of thing.

On the freeway, the premium delivers well over 40 at your usual 60-70 cruise.

And that's a well maintained '89 automobile, with a carb, no less! I've no doubt we could be seeing gas powered cars exceed 50MPG with little effort...

I'm very reluctant to upgrade the car as dollars per mile is just unbeatable where I'm at right now.

Geo.

I'm so sorry for you!

Its ok, I wear a helmet in the thing!

I have flash-backs about them days. Had a 90 GEO metro 4-door 1.0 squirrel motor and I always felt like I was taking my life in my hands every time I drove it! I always think of the dude smashing a beer can on his forehead and think of those cars! You got good insurance? BTW...not for the car....life insurance!

Really want to increase your millage? (This only applies to liberals). next time your on the freeway, and an 18 wheeler passes you, get behind it, close, real close, and let the airstream just pull you along.

Somehow, I just knew you'd be all FOR a draft. ;)

"Angie Lau, a consumer specialist for WEWS-TV, tested the right-hand turn theory to see if veering right can actually help consumers' pocketbooks. Their test found that a right-hand turn trip actually took a bit longer. "

Excellent example of the media's powers of reason.
Question: "Which method uses less *fuel*"
Answer: "This method takes less *time*".

Two wrongs don't make a right......

But 3 rights make a left!

I think I need to quit driving for a while. I've developed a serious condition and currently there is no hope for it, "Road Rage Finger", the damn thing just keeps popping up!

DT - there would be a lot less road rage ... if there weren't so many &$^(&@^# drivers out there!

Unload the finger on the Hummer owners. You know they appreciate it, and you are not alone!

That'd be like flipping myself off in a mirror...right back atcha dude! I drive a Envoy Denali with the V-8 327 in it. It probably does about as good as an H-3 but no were near the hog as the H-1!

This picture always made me wonder why people go to a gym and really how lazy Americans are.

Maybe you guys can explain it...
http://www.funnyhub.com/pictures/img/24-hour-fitness.jpg

What would they do in a power outage?

I don't know.... I'm sure they'd find a way to make it solar powered. It's in California of course.

Maybe they have some sort of body builder who turns the gears when the thing dies?

I have to put Premium in the Yugo, I feel guilty putting regular in it. The girlfriend says I baby the yugo too much. Shes just jealous!

Hey Timberfake. Take a look a this then go drown your sorrows with another drink!

http://freeweb.deltha.hu/zastava.in.hu/bomb.htm

Gonna make parts a little hard to get!

Looks like there is some light at the end of the tunnel. According to the Article, the Yugo will be making a comeback and will be imported into the US!

I knew there was a god! You can't knock a Yugo until you try one.

I thought Yugo's just "KNOCKED" on their own! LOL

The bombing of the Yugo factory was by NATO forces in 1999. Was Yugo considered a military threat?

Okay, I've been running Premium in the 'Teg. Today I filled up and am getting 35 mpg. That's about as good as I've ever gotten, but on regular unleaded. At least it doesn't knock now like it did, especially when cold.

Down here in the Mid-Valley, gas has come down 10 cents a gallon since the end of last week. Whoopee! Now I can make that down payment for KXPC!

Known good ideas:

Pretend you get one set of brakes for the life of the car and drive accordingly.

Perform your regular maint. (clean oil, air filter, timing, etc..)

Do not start fast.

Use higher gear at lower speeds on flats and downhills, if your car is capable. It's against the law, but coasting on downhills works great too.

Don't carry a lot of crap around in your car.

Instead of an extended idle up time, drive off very slowly and easily, letting the engine come up to temp in motion. No matter what, perform a short idle up --this is just good for the car in general.

Make sure your tire pressure is correct. If you are bold, run it a shade high. This is good for up to 5 mpg, on some cars.

Avoid high traffic times.

Combine trips for fewer start up cycles.

Run specialized engine lube to both cut down on idle up / start up time wear, and overall engine drag in general.

Make sure bearings, etc... are all in good shape and running properly to reduce drag.

Drive with windows up.

Limit AC use to in motion, crusing speeds only. Stop and go, with AC on, in many cars, essentially doubles the consumption.

If you have a manual tranny, skipping gears, on downhill grades saves gas too.

On steep grades, drive at the speed your car wants to go without having to seriously apply the gas. This varies by car, with smaller engines most effective at less than the limit most often posted.

Anyone else have anything. We had this discussion a while back and somebody mentioned acetone as an additive. I broke down and tried this. Noticed no difference.

I've been thinking a lot about this lately.

There is a big car meet in Michigan I really, really want to attend this summer (50th anniversary of the Edsel). I'm dialing in my '58 Edsel right now, getting it ready for a big trip. I will be towing my restored '62 Shasta camp trailer. I've wanted to take an extended car camping trip across the U.S. for years now, and this seems like the perfect opportunity. The kids are not too old yet, there is a destination, lots of cool things to see along the way, I have the time off, I even have some money set aside.

But, then gas climbs to $3.50 a gallon. I take my Edsel and Shasta on a test run to Prineville this weekend. I get 11 mpg...ouch. About what I expected, but still ouch. Granted, I was dong some good hill climbing coming over the pass, whereas I'll be mostly cruising the flats on the trip, so I'll be able to drop it into O/D...maybe I can get the mileage to 13mpg or so...?

The upshot is that this 5000 mile round trip will likely cost me about $1600 in gas - and that's if gas stays at about $3.50. If it climbs to $4.00, then I'm in for probably over $2000 in gas. Hell of a summer for the price of gas to skyrocket.

I'm not really asking a question here. I'm just trying to figure out what I'll be doing this summer. Should I live my dream, cost and greenhouse gas emissions be damned? Of should I be reasonable and frugal as my wife wants me to be (BTW, she is *not* riding in an Edsel for 5000 miles, so it's me and two kids) and stay closer to home - still get some camping in but here in the PNW? Decisions, decisions...

"Should I live my dream, cost and greenhouse gas emissions be damned?"

If you drive to work in a Geo or take TriMet, I'd say go for it. But if you drive to work in a Suburban and its a daily 45 mile round trip, I'd feel a bit guilty.

My commuter is a '67 Dart slant six. About 16-18 mpg. I keep 'em and use 'em till they drop.

I'd say you've a guilt-free release. Just hand out a few Al Gore videos along the way and you're set!

I would do it, given the following:

-you've got the money to burn. If spending this amount will not make a significant life change, you've no worries there.

-that fuel you consume will make absolutely no difference. IMHO, this is true.

-doing it later might raise the burden, invoking the money to burn bit.

-you are ok risking the car. Accidents can and do happen.

-the car will make the journey with no worries.

Why not? You only live once and cannot take anything with you. If there is an afterlife, you can take experiences --those have a lot of value.

Frankly, you could do both, given money is not too big of an issue. And the camping bit can always be done in the future, the Edsel event really can't.

As long as you feel you've a few summers left, focus on the primary goal and get some serious life closure things done. Those Edsel conversations are gonna be just great and you will make some friends to talk with later.

What's the good in having something you feel has a lot of value, unless you can share?

The best method to save huge dollar's in gas is to use "OP" gas. Very cheap and sometimes very easy to acquire!

It only has a small one time cost and then huge savings from then on!

For about $2.95 you can get a startup kit like this one:
http://www.nexternal.com/armynavy/images/538GAS.gif
and from then on it's "OP" gas for you!

BTW in case you ain't quite figured it out yet OP gas is the same as OP Cigarettes and OP Beer. OP---Other Peoples!

Pick on the Dudes with the Escalades or the H1 Hummers....they won't know any different!


PS...I hope you know I am only kidding. These days I think if busted it would now be considered Grand Theft! And you'd probably get shot ta boot!

H1 Hummers are diesel powered. Its the H2 Hummer crowd you want to pick on.

We just did a remote at a Scooter dealership in Coos Bay. I am 6 foot 5 - 398lbs, and the damn things did fine in a test drive. 60 to 100 miles to the gallon only 1700 bucks.

If it can haul my fat ass around, well....

Not a chick magnet though.

I thought you could get the H1 with a gas option. Hmmm I guess I won't try thinking, it hurts to much when i'm not in the hospital with my little blue wonder pills! HA

"SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - A woman was held up during a fill-up. The woman was pumping gasoline Sunday morning when a man stuck something in her back, told her it was a gun and ordered her to start filling up his sport utility vehicle instead of her own car, said Salt Lake City police Detective Jared Wihongi."

"This is definitely not common," Wihongi said Monday.

The woman put $15 worth in the other vehicle's tank before her debit card reached its limit.

Wihongi said surveillance video at the station showed two men in a large, white sport utility vehicle with Wyoming license plates. They could face aggravated robbery charges.

The woman was so shaken up by the incident she didn't call police until about three hours later.


Watch out if a Hummer, Escalade, or Navigator pull into the gas station next to ya......ya might get gas-jacked!

LOL! Gas-jacked...a new term for the late 00's.

I've also been thinking about this subject quite a bit lately as I recently purchased a 2007 mid-size sedan.

First thought, I drive this new car so much more carefully than my older vehicle. I don't gun the engine, I use the brakes very carefully. I use the cruise as much as possible. Hey, if we all did these things with even our older vehicles, it will help. Oh, and one more thing...my owners manual says don't use 85 octane gas. The dealer said basically that is BS, so I'm thinking it must be some sort of conspiracy between the auto manufacturers and the oil companies. 85 is fine. (Of course, I'm not in Oregon right now, so not sure if 85 octane is even available in OR)

But the biggest lesson I've learned over my 30+ years of driving is it simply doesn't matter to drive faster than the car next to you. Means nothing, although many under 30 seem to think it does. Biggest gas savings: ignore your male hormones about speed and beating the other guy, and while certainly maintain a reasonable speed, remember it ain't the Indy500 out there on the 205.

"so not sure if 85 octane is even available in OR"

at ARCO -- watered down 87 octane available everywhere.

seriously, if the engine is not pinging, you ought to go as low as you can, however, the air control equipment MAY not function as well causing the car to pollute more than it should -- I'm thinking this is an "out" clause if the manufactor runs afoul of the EPA rules.

You can sure smell it on the drive anymore. People are buying the cheapest Arco Crap gas they can and you get a bunch of rotten eggs rolling down the freeways. Newer model cars when not performing properly smell like rotten eggs!

So, what are you saying...don't use 85???

Go ahead if you wanna smell like a rotten egg. If you have a car which is Carburated of Throttle Body Injection the lower Octanes may be OK. Antything Port Fuel Injected stay away from Arco any grade but I find that lower grade fuels from either Shell of Chevron work just fine.

Well, I live in a higher altitude city, snd I was told thst 85 octane is perfectly fine. I don't smell rotten eggs after filling, and if I don't, I guess others don't either. BTW, it's a 4-cylinder Nissan product. Any further advice?

You would not smell it after filling only one who would smell it was the poor soul behind you driving down the road. The smell as caused by the emissions systems not performing and raw fuel hitting the catalytic converter.

I've read the rotten egg smell was the result of failing catalytic converters. once upon a time the rotten egg smell occured on certain newer cars because of poorly designed converters but I thought we were beyond that now.

Yes it has gotten better with the low sulfur fuel iniciatives. Raw fuel hitting it was were the rotten egg smell came from especially with the older high sulfer content gas. Bad cat's just caused performance problems.

85 octane is only available in high-altitude mountain states. Less octane rating is required, of because less atmospheric pressure(which equals less heat of compression, so less tendency to ping).

As for the Arco-is-crap BS, it's an urban myth(think about it, gas and water do not mix!). All the gas comes out of the same pipe, the only difference is what additive package gets put into it... which is not to say that the additives don't make a difference, they *might*.

I'd always take the manual's instruction over the dealership's not-so-well-informed advice.

How to improve the performance of your catalytic converter;

1 - Remove it from the vehicle.
2 - Ram a broomstick through the center of it.
3 - Shake all the loose crap you just busted out in the trash can.
4 - Re-install it on your vehicle.

Instantly better performance and better gas mileage!

On my previous car, a Honda Accord, I had some damage to the catalytic converter and was told that unless it was repaired I would lose 4-5 miles per gallon. True? OR just another sales job?

skybill is right about performance and mileage, although it will contribute to signifcant more pollution from the vehicle. I wouldn't dump the contents into the trash either as it is toxic. Unless one lives in Texas, take your catalytic converter contents to a converter recycling center.

red, i'm not sure a catalytic converter can be "fixed." usually when something goes wrong with a converter, it clogs the stystem causing mpg to drop -- replacement is the only sollution, unless you're gonna do a "skybill fix."

Yah, my mistake...replaced was what they said, not repaired! I did. Then traded it in a year later. OMG how cars drain our bank accounts!!!

just thank god you don't have a large late model GM SUV, -- replacing the fuel pump requires removing the gas tank. $800.

In your dreams.....the part alone is close to $600 retail. Then you pay 4 + hours of labor to replace it! It's no longer just a fuel pump...they call them "Modular Units". Fuel pump, tank sending unit, and strainer all in one.

This crap is exactly why I drive older cars.

Heck...you can't even change the fuel filters without costly specialized tools from Kent Moore. You'll break the retaining clips for sure without them. New parts are designed so only service facilities can remove and replace them.

I'm with you, Missing...but gotta admit that NCS, (new car smell) is rather tempting, and something I'm enjoying right now! Plus, I have to admit that there is a certain mood elevation driving a new vehicle...it makes no human sense, but it exists! (I'm sounding like a new car commercial, I know...)

It's never worth it.

Been there a coupla times. It all wears off, then you've got an annoying and sometimes expensive car.

Want to know what's cool about a well used and reliable car? You've got almost no worries! Small scratches, etc... are just not that big of a deal, once the newness has worn off. Give the thing a nice detail or two per year and drive worry free.

I may swing back the other way, but not until some more common sense engineering returns to vehicles in general.

I get a serious mood elevation when I compare dollars per mile, and the expected pay off for that new vehicle too! Usually it's mine, watching them think hard about just what it is they are paying for!

I need a nicer car than the one I currently drive. I'll shop for a while, snag a nicer looking one and that's it. I'll pay cash and start getting my return on investment as soon as is possible.

Another option, although not a "Free" fix like I mentioned above is to replace the stock cat with a "high Flow" cat.

Less back pressure = better mileage and performance.

Someone once told me to think of the engine in your car like a big air pump. Anything you can do to help the airflow in and out will result in better performance.

which is why aa/funny cars run blowers, severely ported heads and a 30" exhaust pipe per cylinder. Think of the poor fuel mileage a funny car would get with a muffler system.

the only cars I would by new are the ones I know I would keep until it turned 200,000 miles.

here are a few:

a VW TDI Jetta

a 09 VW Scirocco (unfortunately won't be sold in the USA)

a GM SUV with a turbodiesel (but not the Suburban because its a bit too long).

Best off to buy a car with 20 or 30 thousand miles on it and one with a transferrable warranty. The instant new car depreciation is gone and it is valued at what it is worth. Why do you think when you take out a loan on a new car you should always get "GAP" insurance? Because if you total it the insurance is only gonna pay book and not what you owe leaving you with a payment on scrap iron! So look for that pre-owned low mileage vehicle and you would do good.

Skep...forget the turbodiesel and pony up for one of these! Pretty state of the art stuff!

http://www.gmc.com/yukonhybrid/index.jsp

I'd have to see some real world results to pony up for that, but somehow, if it was a turbodiesel I'd go right for it. As for GAP insurance, I'm not in the business of totaling cars . . . last time that happened was . . . never!

It's not all that expensive and a one time fee is buried into the loan. I only do that on new vehicles as the second you sign the papers they lose 20% automatically. I know extra insurance is a gimmick but on something of that value I do it. I think on a loan for about $23,000 it only costs $350. So if you stand to be out of pocket $4,600 in a total situation $350 or right close to what one car payment is, is a pretty good deal. Remember you may not be in the habbit but that idiot in the 87 K Car that's about to T-Bone you might be!

Yup, nothing like hauling around a bigass battery pack and two large electric motors to improve your fuel economy... oh, wait...

If you drive nothing but stop-and-go, get the hybrid. Otherwise, the diesel will always win, especially after you factor in the added maintenance costs of having "the state of the art".

Plus, with a diesel you get true renewable fuel flexibility(biodiesel), not that pathetic joke E85.

They claim an estimated 25% "composite" increase over 15 city/21 highway. That's tricky, because the hybrid improves the city figure but hurts the highway... So in the real world, you'd be lucky to see 20 MPG from your hybrid? LAME.

Oh and Skybill- for the past decade or two, a non-clogged cat can be expected to make virtually zero difference in power and economy. Also, cats are full of platinum, which A) is worth money(people will buy old cats), and B) is toxic to you when inhaled.

IMHO, hybrid cars do not make much sense until we evolve better fuel cells.

The battery packs wear as well and will need (expensive) replacement. I suspect a fair number of hybrid cars to be running with batteries removed at some point.

I too really like the biodiesel. I like it largely because it can be a community fuel, produced near where it is comsumed. Going forward, distributed energy processes are the future.