By Wendy Gabriel

GREEN TIP:  Drive smart and safe.  You’ll get to your destination in one piece and will be more fuel efficient. 

As I endeavor to live the green life while living within my financial constraints, I have been trying to make our current cars as fuel efficient as possible.  While I would love to run out and purchase a smart fortwo car, Prius Hybrid or Ford Escape Hybrid (maybe in vista blue metallic), I can’t just yet so I’m doing the next best thing by devouring every study on gas efficiency I can get my hands on.  One of the most comprehensive study I have come across is by Edmunds.com (although curiously, they didn’t include My Green Side’s tip about gas caps). 

First test, Aggressive Driving vs. Moderate Driving.  Enter one of my top ten pet peeves:  Maniac drivers.  Aggressive motorists who dart here and there, slamming on the breaks one moment and gunning it to tailgate the next.  The testing discovered driving like a safe, conscientious, normal person can produce a fuel savings of up to 37 percent.

Second test, Lower Speeds Saves Gas.  Another highway annoyance, those drivers who meander along five to ten miles under the speed limit but when you try to pass them they kick it into warp drive.  Just go the speed limit!  According to the test results your fuel savings will be up to 14 percent and you wouldn’t incur any of those other pesky charges.  Like speeding tickets.

Third test, Use Cruise Control.  Using your cruise control is a surprisingly effective way to save gas and can produce a fuel savings of 7 to 14 percent. 

Fourth test, Air Conditioner On with Windows Up vs. Air Conditioner Off with Windows Down.  This test was a wash.  It doesn’t matter which way you go, they just recommend being comfortable.  Well, I may need some therapy to digest this finding.  I vividly remember some very sweaty road trips with my family when I was young and knowing that discomfort was all in vain… well, those scars will take some time to heal!

To summarize, stop driving like a lunatic and not only will you save money and gas, you”ll be doing something good for our planet.