Words: Alex Schultz
Published 30 March 2026
Here are some top tips to save fuel when you are out on the roads.
Driving Habits
Drive Smoothly: Avoiding rapid acceleration and hard braking can save up to 15% on fuel.
Anticipate Traffic: Look ahead to maintain momentum, allowing for coasting instead of constant braking. Keeping a safe following distance will help avoid sudden fuel-wasting braking.
Reduce Speed: Driving over the speed limit (e.g. 110km/h vs 100km/h) can increase fuel use by roughly 15 per cent.
Use High Gears: Shift up earlier to avoid over-revving. If you drive an auto, your vehicle may have an eco mode.
Limit Idling: Turn off your engine if you are waiting for more than three minutes.
Vehicle Maintenance & Load
Check Tyre Pressure: Underinflated tyres increase rolling resistance, decreasing efficiency. Check your tyre pressures regularly. An underinflated tyre could cost you three per cent in efficiency. If your tyres are nearing the end of their life, you could also consider switching to a more fuel-efficient tyre like the Bridgestone Ecopia, which can be 4.2 per cent more efficient than a conventional tyre.
Reduce Vehicle Weight: Remove unnecessary items from your boot and take the roof racks off when not in use. Every extra 50kg adds roughly two per cent to your fuel consumption. Flags hanging out the windows are a massive anchor to fuel economy. If you’ve got a Ute or 4×4 with bull bars and larger off-road tyres, switching back to the stock wheels and bumpers could save you a lot. Larger wheels and tyres increase rolling diameter, which can reduce fuel efficiency by 4-10 per cent. Aftermarket accessories also add drag, spoiling the vehicle’s drag coefficient.
Service Regularly: Regular servicing, including changing air filters and engine oil, keeps the engine running efficiently, reducing parasitic drag. Ensuring your spark plugs and Mass Air Flow (MAF) Sensor are clean will also help.
Operational Choices
Combine Trips: Short, separate trips with a cold engine burn 20 per cent more fuel. Avoid heavy congestion periods when possible (although this can be hard when you have a job to get to).
Use Air Conditioning Wisely: Using your air conditioning can increase fuel usage by up to 10 per cent, but at higher speeds, it’s more efficient than driving with open windows.
Shop Around: Use apps like Gaspy to find the cheapest fuel available in your area. Or get a loyalty card to save more on fuel.
Cruise Control: You may think that using cruise control helps save fuel, and you’re particularly right on long, flat open roads; it will save you gas, but on hilly roads, cruise control will burn more fuel.
