How Winter Lowers Your Fuel Economy And How To Prevent It

Winter can put a big strain on your car, on your driving, and on your fuel economy. To maintain good gas mileage you need to address specific issues that winter brings.

The main characteristic of winter, cold temperatures, can increase your gas usage significantly. A car that is cold uses more gas at start up than a warm car. The lower the temperature the more gas a car has to use when it starts.

A car's engine is harder to start at low temperatures. The cold causes the oil in engine to thicken. The thicker oil necessitates more energy to get it flowing. Any time more energy is required more fuel is also required. Even after you have started the engine, it will use more fuel until it reaches operating temperature.

Other parts of the car are affected by the cold. The joints, transmission, bearings, brakes, and steering mechanisms all need more energy to move them in cold temperatures. This is partly because they too use fluids in their operation that thickens in the cold. Subsequently more energy is needed to operate them which also burns more gas.

Many parts of your car will be stiff and may be frozen. Moisture from the air, from precipitation or from the road can freeze areas of the car. It will require extra energy to move them also. Suspension systems and wheel bearings, are some of the areas affected. As you might suspect more energy is required to move frozen parts and of course that means more fuel burned and a decrease in gas mileage.

Because the engine needs to overcome the effects of cold oil to lubricate itself properly it does need a short amount of time before driving to do that. It only needs up to 30 seconds of idling, not any more. That extra idle time does burn extra fuel.

There are a number of actions you can take to lessen or eliminate the affects of cold on fuel economy. If at all possible, park your car in a heated garage. If a heated garage is not an option even a non heated garage is better than leaving your car outside. It may be time to clean out your garage to make room for your car.

Always make sure you have the proper oil for operating your car in the cold. The right oil will be thinner and will flow easier in cold temperatures. The proper oil will require less energy to start and flow and therefore will require less fuel.

In very cold climates the engine and oil can be kept warm using an engine block heater. The warm oil eliminates the problems of cold temperatures causing oil thickening. All you need to operate an engine block heater is an electrical outlet.

You only need 30 seconds of idling to lubricate the engine at a cold start. Excessive idling longer than 30 seconds will rob you of fuel economy faster than anything else. Your car can complete the warm up as you are driving. This could be the most important cold weather fuel saver of all.

Although winter and the cold temperatures that it brings can greatly reduce fuel economy you can minimize it's affect. If you follow the simple steps outlined you can keep your gas mileage up at the level it should be.

Article Source: http://www.search4allinfo.com

Scott Siegel is the author of a 143 page manual of industry insider secrets on saving gas and money at the pump (beatthegaspump.com). Visit us to discover how you can get better gas mileage. Find out how to increase gas mileage. This article is available as a unique content article with free reprint rights.

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