Slowing Down To Save Gas

Gas Prices Oil Prices Backing off the accelerator to get more mileage for your money one politician offers a solution to high prices.

by Diana Lucio

Published: Thu, July 17, 2008 - 9:35 pm CST Last Updated: Thu, July 17, 2008 - 9:42 pm CST

Are you willing to spend more time behind the wheel? It could end up saving you gas.
According to the New York Times, Virginia Senator John Warner is suggesting Congress lower the national speed limit.
Warner says it's one way to cut costs at the pump, while one mechanic we spoke with says it's true.
Mark Hendry with Southern Automotive says driving between 45 and 65 miles per hour stretches your gas mileage."Once you exceed that you're actually using more throttle to make the vehicle go at a faster speed. the only down side of that is the person that is trying to run 75 behind you is going to try run over you, you'll have to stay in the right lane,"Said Hendry.
But not everyone is ready to slow down."I mean on the interstate on the freeway I don't see that 70 is too fast, Said Brandon Branch while driving to Pensacola. "I don't think that's going to help, I really don't. Back in the 70's when they had it at 55, I don't see where it saved that much on gas,"Said Ronny Deville, another driver. If going slower than 65 miles per hour is unrealistic, Hendry says you could also save gas by keeping your vehicle in tune and always checking your tire pressure.

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Opinionwriter Says:

Fri, Jul 18, 2008 at 9:10 am

In general the power required to push a car through the air goes up with the cube of the velocity. So a car going 75mph versus 55mph requires about 2.5 times the power to stay at that speed even though 75mph is only 1.4 times as fast as 55mph. Mother nature isn’t so kind in this regard. It doesn’t mean we’d save 2.5 times the gas, but slowing down does have a dramatic effect on fuel economy at highway speeds.

Greg Says:

Fri, Jul 18, 2008 at 5:56 am

Driving at the speed limit really does cut down on fuel consumption and increases those mpg’s. I drive an ‘01 Jeep Cherokee and have noticed a marked increase in gas mileage(up 21 mpg from avg 19 mpg) since slowing down and taking routes with less stopping or fast moving traffic. 21 mpg may not sound like much, but for a Jeep, that’s a huge improvement. Proper tire inflation is key, coast down hills, and just use common sense.