After the doom and gloom of the Covid pandemic, it seems like the UK public, especially car drivers, have another crisis to overcome, the rapidly rising inflation rate and skyrocketing prices at the fuel pumps. To fill a 55-litre tank now with petrol can set you back a whopping £100.27 and £103.43 with diesel.
WOO Carz has done some research to remind or help you find ways to make your vehicle save on fuel costs and hopefully make life easier for you and your wallet/purse.
Avoid premium unleaded petrol
Its been widely agreed in the industry that there’s little or no benefit to filling your standard car with super unleaded unless you are driving a high-performance vehicle that has a manufacturer’s recommendation that states it requires it. So if you were under the impression that there’s a cost benefit or it makes your engine’s life longer, think again.
Stick to all speed limits
This is common sense, by driving slower we burn less fuel. As stated by The Department of Transport (DfT) study has shown that driving on the motorway at a speed of 80mph uses approximately 25% more fuel than driving to the speed limit of 70mph. And driving at 70mph in an open speed limit zone will use approximately 9% more fuel if you don’t reduce your speed to 60mph, and a further 5% saving if you reduce your speed to 50mph. It makes sense in this current economic climate.
Empty unnecessary items in the boot
We sometimes forget the amount of junk which can build up in the boot of our cars. In some cases, the weight can be quite considerable, which adds to increased fuel consumption. Good idea to cut down on drag by removing the roof rack, bike rack, and any unused heavy items. One big thing also to consider is driving with open windows causes quite a significant drag on the car, the outcome, higher fuel consumption.
Warming up your car is a no-go
With modern-day cars, most have the ability to be available to drive instantly without the need to start the engine, keeping it running to heat everything up. It actually heats the engine faster to just start and go, plus uses less fuel in the process. The biggest bonus to this cost-saving method is, that it reduces engine wear and tear too.
If it’s freezing and the windscreen of your car is iced over, using a windscreen heater greatly increases the energy from the engine and battery. Better to use an ice scraper or de-icer to save on fuel.
Switch stuff off / on
Some things in the car are only switched on purely by habit and muscle memory. Such as air conditioning, unneeded fog lights, and rear windscreen heaters. Might be an idea to only use these if they’re really required. By using the sat nav for journeys, you’ll be less likely to get lost or run into heavy traffic jams, which can normally be avoided by warning signals from your car sat nav or smartphone sat nav app. Constantly doing this, will help navigate the quickest and most economical routes.
Keep your car and tyres up to spec
Common sense for safety and fuel economy reasons, tells us to check tyre pressure at least every two weeks, to be sure you are not driving with under-inflated tyres. Getting your car serviced as scheduled will help fuel economy by changing filters and having fresh oil, as well as wheel checks to make sure they’re not misaligned, which is another cause of increased fuel consumption.
Consider going electric or hybrid?
One surefire way to start saving drastically at the pumps is going electric. Studies have shown that you can save approximately 50% of the cost of refuelling your car, simply by using a mixture of home charging and public charging stations. As it stands, there is no better way to start saving on petrol and diesel than switching to either electric or hybrid cars. A lot of investment is currently being made to build a robust network of charging stations, and more and more drivers are switching to electric purely of the fact that the sale of new petrol and diesel cars will cease in 2030.
Even if you own a car which still has outstanding finance on it, a reputable used car dealership like WOO Carz, based in Southampton, can assist you with helping you switch over to a quality used hybrid or used electric car. Even if you are not quite ready the switch over to a used electric or used hybrid car, you can still consider a more fuel-efficient used car and WOO Carz will be here to upgrade your car around the two-year mark, even if you still have outstanding finance on it through us.
Don’t worry about where you live because WOO Carz delivers free of charge anywhere in the UK to your home or place of business. Pick the right used car for you, we arrange the finance and everything else you need, then simply relax and await delivery. As with all our used car stock, your chosen used car will come with a full warranty, detailed inspection, HPI check and up-to-date MOT.
To find out more about our current deals on used hybrid cars, used electric cars and a vast range of other used cars, call us on 02380 225 666 and speak to one of our friendly advisors.
If you want to get an understanding of your credit score, click here for us to do a soft credit search and you will then know the affordable amount you can spend on your new, used dream car.
WOO Carz Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority under registration number (626798). We work with a number of carefully selected credit providers who may be able to offer you finance to purchase a used car from WOO Carz.