With the economy in some turmoil, fuels costs up and business revenues down, many people are looking for ways to save on the cost of running their business. One way is to reduce your fuels costs by improving driving and maintenance habits. If you have a delivery business or have sales people on the road, there is not a lot you can do about the number of miles you drive. Here are a couple of tips to help save on fuel.
1. Drive smoothly. Avoid rapid acceleration and braking. In town this can reduce your mileage by 5%, on the highway, up to 33%. That does include the wear on the vehicle.
2. Plan your trip. Map out a sequence of visits that reduces the number of miles you need to drive.
3. Replace dirty or clogged air filters. A clean air filter can improve mileage by up to 10%.
4. Keep your tires at the right pressure. This can improve mileage by up to 3.3%. Many stores still offer free air.
5. Minimize drag. If you have vans full of equipment, remove unneeded heavy equipment. Have the crews examine what they will need for the day or the week and put heavy unneeded tools and equipment in the shop.
6. Avoid idling. Shut the vehicle off before going in the deli for the cup of coffee. You get 0 miles per galloon while idling.
7. Think about where you can fill up. If you have drivers filling up the vehicle, make sure they are doing so intelligently. If they have a multi-state route make sure they plan their route to full up where gas is less expensive. IF you have many vehicles contact the fuel company to see if you can get a discount by using their credit card and gas for your fleet. Some may offer cash back based on monthly consumption.
For more information on ways to improve your fuel economy go to http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/drive.shtml
Chris Clark of Sprague and Killeen Insurance put the information together for this post. You can contact Chris at chrisclark@sprague-killeen.com he can help you with your business insurance needs. You can also find out more about Sprague and Killeen at http://www.sprague-killeen.com.
