With the holidays right around the corner, travel planning is in full swing. Since volatile airline ticket pricing has made plane tickets for your family of five to visit Grandma way out of your budget, you’ve decided to hit the road and make the big drive instead. Spending more on gifts from Santa instead of on a seat next to a mouth breather in 10A sounded like a good idea, but with high gas prices, you realize how important it will be to get the most fuel efficiency out of your vehicle. Here are some tried and true tips to help you stay within your budget on your holiday road trip:
Check Tire Pressure
While slightly under inflated tires can make for a smoother ride, they make your vehicle guzzle more gas than necessary. Check the pressure on all of your tires to ensure it’s within the manufacturer’s recommended range listed on the tires. If the pressure is low, fill up your tires at a local gas station or visit a service station if you aren’t comfortable doing it yourself. Do this a week before your scheduled departure and check the pressure again a few days before you leave to ensure the tires are holding air and you don’t have a slow leak. If you do, you’ll need to replace the leaking tires before hitting the highway.
Evaluate Tire Tread
While many use the good old penny trick to tell if the tire tread is sufficient, the quarter test is actually more reliable for potentially bad weather. The test works the same, but using a quarter, you’re looking for a measurement of 4/32 of tread instead of the 2/32 of tread that the penny test measures. Simply place a quarter between your tire’s tread with Washington’s head facing down. If the tread covers the top of his head, your tread is substantial enough. But if you’ll be facing harsh road conditions you should replace your tires to avoid a costly accident. If you have time to wait for shipping, shop for tires online to get the best deal so you have more money to spend on fun activities at your destination.
Inspect Spare Tire
The last thing you want is for a flat spare tire to sideline you in the middle of nowhere, so be sure to inspect your spare before you leave. If it needs air or replacement, you have the time and flexibility to save money doing this locally instead of having to do so on the road and replace it at a higher cost.
Skip the Roof Rack
Resist the urge to pack luggage in a roof-mounted carrier to save space in the vehicle. Roof racks create drag on your vehicle, causing you to use more fuel to go the same speed. Instead, try to pack light so everything will fit in the trunk. If necessary, look into shipping things ahead of time to save space. If presents are taking up a lot of space, consider shopping online instead and having gifts shipped directly to your destination in advance instead of to your house.
I’m glad I would never travel with a roof rack. I would be too nervous to have my items up there.
This is just a reminder I suppose. What I I think everybody do to save is I avoid tailgating and constantly hitting the brakes. By not tailgating I save fuel. I’ll often be pressing the gas to regain the speed lost from braking which forces I to correct your following distance by applying your brakes, causing a vicious cycle. This constant up and down uses up more fuel that just driving steadily and at a safe distance.
What works for me is that I don’t let the engine idle too long. This is either when I warm it up or when I am at a standstill. I will consider other road trip you mentioned like checking the tire pressure. Thanks!