Ways To Improve Your Cars MPG!

The blog this week is about driving smarter to improve your cars MPG. Let’s be honest, with the current cost of living crisis here in the UK we are all looking at ways to save money. Below we give you some handy tips to help improve your Volvo or Toyota’s miles per gallon and the best news is these tips won’t even cost you any money. They are to help save you money and promote that tank of fuel getting you further than it currently is.  Read on to find out more:

1. De Clutter Your Car 

Your car has to work harder the heavier it is, thus using more fuel – de clutter your Volvo or Toyota. Remove everything from the boot – yes the golf clubs do not need to be in there unless you are off to the green. Everything else that is scattered around the car does not need to be in there either – get organised and lighten the load – every penny saved helps over the course of the year!

2. Accelerate & Brake Gently & Smoothly

The faster a car accelerates, the more fuel it uses. Also, if you brake suddenly, your engine has to work harder to get back up to speed, which guzzles even more fuel. As we have said in previous blogs be smoother in your driving actions – stop stomping on your breaks and then flooring the accelerator – this will save you fuel and will also save your pads and disks!

3. Slow Down – Less Haste

The faster you drive the harder your Volvo or Toyota’s engine has to work, resulting in more fuel usage.  According to the AA, they found that driving at 70mph uses 9% more fuel than at 60mph and up to 15% more than at 50mph.

4. Remove The Roof Box 

Having a roof box on your roof causes drag resulting in more fuel being used in your Volvo or Toyota. If you are not using the roof box take it off and store it for when you need to use it.

5. Don’t Miss Your Servicing

Your Volvo or Toyota needs regular servicing for a reason – to ensure that the engine etc are working at optimum. Missing out your regular servicing could result in your engine working harder than necessarily which encourages greater fuel consumption but also has a knock on effect on breakdowns and parts needing replacing quicker than normal because of additional pressure put on them. Switching from using a dealership for your servicing to using an independent will save you a lot of money.

6. Check Your Tyre Pressures Regularly

It's particularly important to make sure your tyres are at the recommended pressure. If you don’t know what these are then check your owner’s manual or ask your local independent garage. This is because under-inflated tyres force your engine to push harder and use more fuel. Under inflated tyres will wear unevenly also which will result in them having to be replaced much sooner than if they were correctly inflated in the place – costing more money unnecessarily.

7. Familiarise Yourself With Any Fuel Efficiency Gadgets 

Lots of modern cars are fitted with features such as a stop/start system which automatically switches the engine off when you're not moving, before restarting it instantly when you pull away. Or you may have a choice of driving modes. The ‘Eco' option switches the car to its most efficient settings. If you are driving on a motorway, use your cruise control. This enables you to drive at a steady pace, eliminating any subtle acceleration or deceleration that could cause the engine to work harder.

8. Plan Your Journey

Planning your journey will allow you to see if there are routes that are less miles or help you to avoid traffic jams and roadworks. Sitting in roadworks and traffic jams means that you are burning more fuel. Car Sharing is another option – maybe you can do this with people you work with? This would definitely help you both to save money. Happy Safe Motoring Folks!

Here at ACC UK Ltd, Winners of The Motor Trader Independent Garage of The Year 2015, 2019 & 2020, The IGA Big Awards 2022, The Inspire Customer Service Excellence 2016 Award, The Eagle Radio Customer Focus 2017 Business Award, The Workshop Magazine Workshop Manager of the Year 2017 Award, The LiveWire Excellence In Vehicle Servicing 2019 Award and The Aftermarket Excellence Award for Best Website 2019, The Eagle Radio Biz Award – Entrepreneur of the Year 2020 & the SME News Magazine Most Trusted Car Servicing Provider 2020, we pride ourselves on offering an outstanding customer experience for a fraction of the cost of a dealership. Give us a call and let us quote you for your next service or repair on your Volvo or Toyota. We service all areas around Farnborough, Fleet, Aldershot, Farnham, Guildford, Frimley, Camberley, Hook, Sandhurst, Crowthorne, Yateley, Hampshire and Surrey. We offer free collection and drop off services. We also have a fleet of courtesy cars to allow you to get on with your schedule whilst your Volvo or Toyota is with us. Happy Motoring from all at ACC UK Ltd – Independent Volvo & Toyota servicing, repair and MOT specialists based in the heart of Farnborough, Hampshire.