Whether you have been driving for years or have just passed your driving test with petrol and diesel prices at record highs as well as increases in other prices, most of us are feeling the pinch. Making the most of the fuel that you put into your car is now more important than ever. The fluctuating cost is a source of frustration for car owners and businesses, below are our top tips on saving money when filling up and driving economically.

Avoiding expensive petrol stations and looking around for the best deal is the most obvious way of saving money, but you can also reduce the cost of running your car by making a few small changes and driving smarter.

  • As part of your normal driving look at the petrol prices, so that when you do need to fill up you can choose the petrol station with the cheapest prices. Supermarkets are typically cheaper than at other fuel forecourts. Try to avoid filling up at expensive motorway service areas.
  • If you fill up regularly at the same petrol station, use their loyalty scheme if they have one, lots of petrol stations and supermarkets offer loyalty cards. The points you accumulate can be exchanged for discounts at a later date, this can add up over time!
  • Unless you drive a high-performance or imported car that specifically requires premium or super unleaded avoid the premium pumps. There is no harm in using these fuels, but they typically cost more per litre than normal unleaded and there is usually no benefit. This can often save between 10 to 15p per litre!
  • Driving in hot weather is not always comfortable, opening a window or turning on the air conditioning can make it more tolerable. If you are driving at speeds of 30mph and over then you should use your air conditioning as this will be more fuel-efficient. At lower speeds, air-con increases the fuel consumption, but at higher speeds, this is less noticeable.
  • Speed and your driving style can be a big factor in fuel consumption, not travelling too fast and the way you drive can play a big part in fuel efficiency. The faster you drive the higher your fuel consumption will be. Driving smoothly, accelerating gently and avoiding unnecessary braking will increase your mpg and save you money. Braking sharply or accelerating hard when you set off will use much more fuel than you need to. Keeping a constant steady speed will not burn as much fuel. Look out for hazards and make sure you are prepared, this will give you plenty of time to change your speed gradually and avoid braking sharply.
  • Pay more attention to when you change gear, every car will be different, if you don’t have a gear-shift indication that informs you of the most economical point to change gear, listen carefully to the engine and change up as soon as you can.
  • Regularly check your tyre pressure, underinflated tyres develop more rolling resistance than correctly inflated ones, so your engine will need to work harder. An incorrectly inflated tyre will also affect your car’s braking performance and is likely to wear prematurely or unevenly, meaning you will need to change them more often.
  • Remove all unnecessary equipment, especially roof boxes or racks and bicycle carriers, and empty the boot, only keeping the essentials.
  • When it’s cold use an ice scraper or de-icing spray rather than leaving your car running and relying on the heating.
  • When you don’t need them, turn off the heated rear screen, demisters and headlights.
  • Ensuring your car is regularly maintained, it will run more efficiently with clean oil and fresh filters.
  • If your car has a low mpg you could consider changing your car to a more fuel-efficient one or swapping to an electric or hybrid car.