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Car maintenance can be expensive, and the rising cost of gasoline in the United States can really drain, so to speak, the funds available for car maintenance and related costs.

Contributing to poor fuel economy are missing or loose gas caps, worn spark plugs, under inflated tires, and dirty air filters and this is according to Rich White, the executive director of the Car Care Council.

Here are some tips to help you save money on gasoline, even as the prices continue to climb.

Don’t drive aggressively. Gas mileage can be lowered up to 33% on the highway and 5% on city streets because of this, which results to 7 to 49 cents per gallon.

Take care of your tires. A smart care maintenance tip in general, since driving with an under inflated tire is the equivalent of driving your car with the parking break on, and can cost you a mile for each gallon.

Watch out for worn spark plugs. Vehicles have four, six, or eight spark plugs, and these fire as much as three million times every on thousand miles, which creates heat, electrical, and chemical erosion. For proper care maintenance and gas conservation, replace your spark plug regularly.

Your dirty air filter should also be changed. Air filters that are clogged with bugs, dust, or dirt burns more gas than necessary and cuts off the air. Not only does this wastes gas, but the engine also loses power.

You need to watch those gas caps. Each year, about 147 million gallons of gas vaporize because according to the CCC, about 17% of vehicles have gas caps that are missing, loose, or damaged.

You shouldn’t idle excessively. You only need one or two minutes to warm up your vehicle and idling would get you zero miles to the gallon.

Watching that speed. Each mph over 60 results in an additional ten cents per gallon cost and as the speed of your car increases, the gas mileage decreases.

Losing some weight. By simply removing unnecessary items from your vehicle, you could reduce the weight by 100 pounds, which in turn will reduce your MPG by up to 2%, based on the percentage of extra weight relative to the weight of the vehicle.

The best way to get the most out of your car is proper maintenance and making sure that it remains fuel efficient. The health of your car depends on the regular visits to the auto mechanic so don’t skip them.

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