When braking, my gas mileage is lowered by 33% at highway speeds and by 5 % around town.
Yes the wheel alignment and tire pressure can both affect gas mileage.
Well braking will drastically reduce your fuel economy, as of course this is taking the inertia energy of the vehicle which you built burning fuel in the engine and then reducing that and changing that inertia into heat.Your tyres do pretty much the same thing as they are a trade off between low rolling resistance and grip which helps you turn and brake. The reason trains have steel wheels is because they turn on tracks, although their braking distance is severely affected. You need to stop quickly in a car and corner safely enough to not end up in a ditch each time you take a corner, and this is why you have high grip rubber tyres on your vehicle.Typically the best way to reduce rolling resistance with your present set of tyres, is to keep them inflated up to pressure, or even slightly over pressure, which most vehicles can afford to do. (arround 5 P.S.I. will do)Other fuel saving techniques which can drastically improve performance are:
1) Remove excess weight such as the spare wheel, jack, wrench etc. Carry a can of tyre sealant instead for minor emergencies.
2) Remove any excess baggage which doesn't need to make permanent home in your car.
3) Remove any unused bike racks, roof racks and spoilers from the car.
4) When driving keep plenty of room between yourself and the car in front. This allows you to use lighter braking force when cruising at speed and also allows you to get off the gas earlier when stopping.The same goes for looking well ahead in the road for red traffic lights or stop signs. Get off the gas early if you are going to be stopping up ahead anyway!
5) Best fuel saving tip overall; plan your route ahead of time. If it's a route you are unfamiliar with then driving around in circles trying to find it is not going to save any fuel at all. Planning ahead and travelling during low traffic volume periods can save a huge quantity of fuel.
6) Share your supermarket/shopping mall trip with a neighbor or friend. You can share the cost of fuel and reduce the number of vehicles on the road at the same time.
7) Manage several errands in one long trip. Cars by far use the most fuel on cold start and during cold running, as well as suffer around 80% of engine wear during cold start only. By keeping your car up to temperature on a longer journey, you can improve your average fuel economy and reduce wear and tear to the engine internals.
8) When accelerating up to cruising speed, use around 75% of the available engine power. Only reserve this method for times when there is little traffic ahead and you can maintain safe braking distances ahead. Getting up to speed more quickly actually saves fuel in the long run. I really don't mean burn the rubber off the wheels and burn your clutch out kind of acceleration though, so take it easy!
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