Gas Saving Tips

Here are a few fuel economy tips we may all want to implement:
* A little extra maintenance certainly keeps the repairman away. Unless you like the rugged good looks of your repairman. Then, by all means, keep doing what you’re doing. But, if you keep your engine properly tuned-up, it is one of the most important gas saving tips.
* Tuning up a car that is noticeably out of tune or has failed an emissions test can improve its gas mileage by an average of 4 percent. Something more serious, such as a faulty oxygen sensor can improve your mileage by as much as 40 percent.
* Keeping your tires properly inflated can improve your gas mileage by up to 3.3 percent. The proper tire pressure for your vehicle is usually found on a sticker in the driver’s side door-jam or in the glove box. It will also be in your owner’s manual.
* Use the recommended grade of motor oil, too. You can improve your gas mileage by 1 to 2 percent by using the manufacturer’s recommended grade of motor oil.
* Also keep your vehicle properly aligned. If your vehicle’s wheels are not perfectly aligned, they cause additional friction with the road. This increases fuel consumption. Aligning your vehicle will also increase your tires’ tread life. Replacing tires is yet another expense you certainly don’t need. Just ask your repairman/boyfriend how he feels about alignment. But first, lock the door so he can’t run away.

The most important way to save gas while driving is to drive the speed limit. I know it’s hard to do, especially when the flow-of-traffic is traveling much factor that the actual posted speed limit. If you’re driving the speed limit and everyone else is going 10mph faster, people act as if you’re driving like a little old lady. Speeding or rapid acceleration wastes gas:
* It can lower your gas mileage by whopping 33 percent at highway speeds and by 5 percent around town.
* Driving the speed limit will also save you in speeding tickets.
* Use cruise control whenever you can to help maintain a constant speed, which will use considerably less gas.
* If you have a car with an overdrive gear, that will also help save on fuel consumption.
* And remove any extra weight you may be carrying. But not the repairman/boyfriend…you may need him.

But all joking aside, the best way to save gas is to stay out of the left-lane (aka: the “Passing Lane”) on the freeway. Why? Because if you’re clogging up the passing lane and the flow-of-traffic is traveling faster then you, then you are impeding the masses and they will spend more gas trying to accelerate around you. Now you’re waisting other peoples gas as well… I mean, its not like everyone is going to slow down because you’re out there driving the speed limit! So be smart, stay as far to the right as possible… and know you’re doing your part to save gas.

Until next week…

Daun T.
Writer / Comedienne / Artist / Exgas-o-holic

Gas Saving Tips for Comedy Defensive Driving

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Drive sensibly. Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration and braking) wastes gas. It can lower your gas mileage by 33 percent at highway speeds and by 5 percent around town. Sensible driving is also safer for you and others, so you may save more than gas money. Use cruise control whenever possible and avoid excess idling. Also, using overdrive gears will help. Removing excess weight will help (not your spare tire…you may need that). And observing speed limits will also help. Not to mention saving you money that you don’t need to be giving away to Johnny Law.

Keep your engine properly tuned-up. Fixing a car that is noticeably out of tune or has failed an emissions test can improve its gas mileage by an average of 4 percent. Fixing a serious maintenance problem, such as a faulty oxygen sensor, can improve your mileage by as much as 40 percent. If you can’t afford it all at one time, make a plan to do a few things each month. It will pay off.

Keep tires properly inflated. You can improve your gas mileage by up to 3.3 percent by keeping your tires inflated to the proper pressure. The proper tire pressure for your vehicle is usually found on a sticker in the driver’s side door jamb or the glove box and in your owner’s manual (you know…that cute little booklet that is probably still in its factory sealed bag).

Use the recommended grade of motor oil. You can improve your gas mileage by 1–2 percent by using the manufacturer’s recommended grade of motor oil.

Keep your vehicle properly aligned. When your vehicle’s wheels are not perfectly aligned they cause additional friction with the road increasing gas consumption. Not to mention the wear on your tires. And, unlike hair, you can’t just “comb” the tread over the bald spots. Aligning your vehicle will also increase your tire’s tread life, thereby saving you money on replacing them sooner than expected.

A little extra maintenance keeps the repairman away. Keep your car running well for a long time to come by obsessing over the little things…one thing at a time.

Until next week…

Daun Thompson

The post My Crazy Fuel Obsession appeared first on Comedy Defensive Driving®.

Here are a few tips on how you can better your gas mileage and save you a trip to the human plasma center for gas money.

1. Drive more efficiently. Speeding, rapidly accelerating and braking wastes gas! When the light turns green, it’s not the start of a drag race, just ease on the gas pedal. Slow down and don’t drive so aggressively, easier said than done for some people…you know who you are.
2. Remove excess weight from your vehicle. This doesn’t mean don’t go anywhere with your spouse, it means remove unneeded items in your trunk but not the emergency road side kit!
3. Keep your tires rotated and balanced. Balance is the key to everything, Mr. Miyagi would say.

Keeping your vehicle in good shape also helps with increasing your gas mileage. Forget about diamonds! With gas prices on the rise, pretty soon premium unleaded will be a girl’s best friend.

Until next week…conserve fuel and preserve your bank balance.

Daun Thompson

The post The High Price of Haulin’ appeared first on Comedy Defensive Driving®.

Now, with gas prices at their all-time high, there are more motorcycles on the road. A lot of people bought a motorcycle to save money on commuting. Not to mention, a motorcycle is much easier on the environment than a car. Plus, you can get on the H.O.V. by yourself on a motorcycle. Not a bad deal, as opposed to being out there on the freeway, riding alongside a bunch of cars with drivers who are not paying one bit of attention and could take you out at any moment. So now, with more distractions in the car and more motorcycles on the road, it’s a lethal combination.

You may have noticed billboards and electronic signs that remind you to share the road and to look twice for motorcycles. It’s typically the driver of the car who is at fault and takes down the motorcyclist by not seeing them and cutting them off. Yes, you as the driver of a car may argue that some of those motorcyclists are popping wheelies and whipping in between lanes. But not everyone is. In defense of some of those bikers out there who are not hot-dogging it, but are lane-splitting, they’re probably just trying to get as far ahead of traffic as quickly as they can so they don’t put themselves in a bad situation. It is against the law in Texas to lane-split. But lane-splitting has been legal in California since the early 80’s. They are the only state that allows it. But don’t give up hope, Texas is looking into it. I don’t get on the freeway on a bike anymore. My sister Karla does. She’s got a thing for bikers. I was with her when she met her latest boyfriend. She pointed him out from across the bar. He was dressed in full leathers. Bandana on his head. Kinda cute. I had noticed him earlier because he had arrived in the parking lot when we did. He pulled up in a beat-up old Nova. The bumper sticker said “My Other Car’s a Porche” (Ya, right. And my boobs are in my other shirt). She said, “Check him out. Now he’s a real biker.” I’m like “He pulled up in a Nova. He doesn’t even own a bike. He’s a biker without a bike. He’s a loser.”

So, in Texas, if you are driving a car and you cut off a motorcyclist and they go down, it’s an automatic $500 fine. Me? I don’t think it’s high enough. I think the fine should be much higher and they should make people well aware that they need to be paying the heck attention out there! If the accident results in serious bodily injury or death to that motorcyclist, the fine is higher. Honestly, if someone goes down on the freeway on a bike, even if they survive it, there are other cars that may run over their body. So their chances of survival are slim. The Texas helmet law is another controversial subject. If you are 21, you don’t have to wear a helmet. But you must have proof that your insurance will cover a head injury. Most younger bikers I see are wearing helmets. It’s the burly old bikers, like my Dad that don’t wear a helmet. Guys my age and older. I’ve asked some of them that I know “Why would you not want to wear a helmet if you have a choice?” And some of them say the helmet messes with their peripheral vision or impairs their hearing. But the honest ones say they just don’t want to mess up their hairdoo. You ever see one of those old bikers and they have this long, beautiful flowing hair like a girl. From behind, you think they’re a girl. And when they turn around, they have this zz-top beard. And most of them my age have no hair where the helmet would go anyway. Typically, that part of their head is completely bald! Kind of like that Bret Michaels. You know there’s probably nothing under that bandana…just a bald head. He should just tattoo a bandana on his bald head!

We have a lot of motorcycles out there and we have to look twice for them. So look twice to save a life…motorcycles are everywhere.

Until next week…

Daun Thompson
( Daun Thompson is a comedian, writer and artist residing in Dallas, Texas )

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