Earn money or reduce debt with our advice and tips.

Tips for saving on your ballooning gas bill

I recently set a record that I’m not happy about. I was actually able to put $53.00 worth of gas into my mini-van. Holy smokes, that really hurts! I’m sure you are setting similar records on a weekly basis. At this rate, it’s going to cost more to fuel up your car than to pay for the car itself!

Well, unless you walk everywhere, you’re going to have to keep buying gas, but there are some things that you can do to reduce your fuel expense. Some of these you’ve probably heard before, some of them may be new!

1) Don’t jump off the starting line. Your car is a mass which has to be accelerated (by gas and your engine) and decelerated (by your breaks). Rapid acceleration uses more fuel than more gradual acceleration. If you’re a city driver and you have to start and stop frequently, try accelerating more slowly than you’re used to. You don’t want to hold up traffic of course, but you don’t need to jump like a stock car racer when the light turns green. For city drivers, this technique can increase your MPG by 10%

2) Keep your car tuned up. An engine in tune, with good spark plugs and plug wires, good ignition timing and a clean fuel filter, runs better. More of the chemical energy stored in the gasoline actually gets converted to motion and less gets wasted. Get your car tuned up annually. A car that is poorly tuned can get 25% LESS gas mileage than the same well tuned car. That kind of waste will easily pay for an annual tune up.

3) Make sure your tires are properly inflated. This is actually a very important tip. If tires are under inflated, the tires present a much larger surface area to the road. Larger surface area = more drag and resistance that the engine has to compensate for. Over inflated tires can actually increase mileage because they present the lowest rolling resistance, but can be dangerous and will wear poorly. So make sure your tires are inflated right to where they’re supposed to be inflated. Look an the sidewall for a PSI rating. You should check this monthly. Any full service gas station will do it for you as well.

4) Turn off the Air Conditioner and use your windows or vents if it’s cool enough. The AC is driven by an AC compressor which places a large drain on your engine when it is engaged. It can reduce milage by 4 or 5%. Some may argue that having your windows open to the cool the car is a bad idea, because it changes the aerodynamic shape of your car, and this is true at higher speeds. Below 40 MPH, open windows will have a negligible effect on your cars aerodynamics.

5) Slow down. As a car goes faster and faster, it takes more force from the engine to push the car through the air. At lower speeds, this extra force doesn’t really matter, but when you approach highway speeds, a 60 MPH cruise will be much more efficicent than a 70 MPH cruise. Now be careful when using this technique. You don’t want to block traffic, but you don’t want to be driving along in the left lane doing 85 MPH either. It’s a waste and it doesn’t really get you to your destination that much faster. Did you know it takes 30% more gas to drive 70 MPH then 50 MPH?

6) Consider a different vehicle. A HumVee gets 8 MPH, a Ford Aspire gets 47! (I had a Ford Aspire and loved it). If you’re a single driver going back and forth to work daily, consider a more practical vehicle. My ‘other’ car is a 500 cc Honda motorcycle which gets 55 MPG. I’m no SUV nazi, so if you need a big car, by all means have one. But if you don’t, then be a good steward of your money and consider something smaller.

7) Don’t use the expensive gas. Most people think that if high octane gas is more expensive, then it must be better. Right? No, that’s wrong. High Octane gas burns differently and can be used in cars that ‘knock’, but all modern cars are designed to use the lower octane fuels. Do yourself a favor and use the cheap stuff. If your car is knocking badly, then instead of using the expensive gas, get your car tuned up because knocking is an indication of a condition called, ‘detonation’ and this is related to an engines timing.
Plan your travel. Wow, this one is simple and can have a dramatic effect on savings. Try to get all your errands done in one trip. It can save a lot of time as well as gas and money.

9) When you see a red light ahead, don’t maintain your speed then brake quickly at the last minute. Instead, take your foot off the gas and allow your car to decelerate slowly. Your engine will be at idle during those extended decelerations and your brakes will thank you.

10) Use your cruise control when on the highway. The cruise control will assure that you use continuous gas pressures all the time and you’ll avoid the speed up / slow down / speed up / slow down patterns of drivers that don’t use cruise control. Avoid the accelerations is what saves you gas. Set it and forget it.

11) Visit www.gasbuddy.com, enter your zip code and find the gas stations in your area that are selling the cheapest fuel, then buy from them. This is a great service and can easily save you .10 or more on each gallon of gas.

Using these 11 tips, it’s reasonable to expect that you can save 10%, 20% or more on your gas expenses. Until the US starts drilling for oil here in the states, we’re all going to have to learn ways to save on gas.

Lowest Rates Vs. A Good Bargain

The thing is, Car Rental market is very competitive one and rates differences for comparable quality and service are relatively small, sometimes as small as $10 to $20. These minuet price differences are going to vanish in the wind when you consider the long lines and lost time at the cheapest renter counter, drop charges for remote destinations, late return fines, and gasoline inflated rates as well as other service charges you didnt think about when you shopped for the best deal.

Dont get us wrong, we dont like to pay higher prices more than you do.
We do recommend to shop around and check the various rates available,
especially when its so easy to do it via the Internet at comparison sites.

All we say here you need to consider other things beside the price and when
you compare please make sure you compare apples to apples and not apples to pears.

Things to consider when ordering a rented a car

Who is using the car, are you by yourself on a business trip or you are traveling with the whole family? How much luggage are you going to have, does the car you are thinking about is big enough to have you all plus all your hand luggage and big suitcases? If not, consider to change to a mini van or a car with extra large trunk.

Do you need an Infant seat or a child booster? make sure it is mentioned clearly with your order, usually there is a shortage of these seats and they are provided for extra charge. Check the state laws for where you are traveling.
A new law in Denver for instance, requires Booster Seats for all 4 and 5 year olds who are not 55 inches tall.

Do you actually need the car in the town or city at the first few days? If not, consider to take a taxi, a bus, a train or the hotel shuttle into the city and when its time for you to go out of town and travel around, then, rent the car from the city location and by that save up to 15% on Air-Port charges as well as on city parking fees.

Are you going to a very warm and humid destination? If yes, its recommended to order a car with air conditioning, usually the price difference is negligible, the problem is that its not available in all destinations like in some European countries.

Most major rental car companies allow for unlimited mileage in the same state, but it’s a good idea to check their policy before confirming. Many smaller local independent companies charge mileage after 100-200 free miles per day.

As mentioned before price is not the only factor to consider when choosing a car rental company. If you choose a very small, no-name company, dont expect them to provide you with service across all nation or continent, what would you do if the car is needed to be replaced or serviced for some reason?

Frequent or Preferred Renter Programs and affiliations

Frequent renter programs, Like airlines and hotels, major car rental companies track their customers rental histories and offer preferential service to loyal customers. Most of the major companies offer frequent renter programs that are similar to airline frequent-flyer programs and hotel frequent-guest programs.

Preferred renter clubs, Most major car rental companies also offer preferred renter programs or clubs (one example is the Hertz #1 Club). When you belong to one of these clubs, you get preferential treatment, including automatic upgrades when those cars are available. You can join these programs at any time, even if you are a first-time renter with that company.

While basic-level club memberships are often free, higher-level memberships (as in the Hertz #1 Gold Club, which allows you to bypass the rental counter) generally come with a price tag. What most people dont realize is that its often possible to avoid the membership fee by simply writing or calling your car rental company and asking them to waive it. They will do it because the car rental industry is very competitive, and they want your business

If you’re still faced with a steep rate, try getting discounts based on your affiliations with organizations like AARP, AAA or others. These discounts are usually not great, but they are better than nothing.

In addition, always check for corporate rates if applicable to your situation.

Car Rental Insurance

Some of the Insurance terms seem to be confusing, lets try to clear them out first.

CDW – Collision Damage Waiver.

LDW – Loss Damage Waiver.

PDW – Physical Damage Waiver.

PAI – Personal Accident Insurance.

PEC – Personal Effects Coverage.

ALI – Additional Liability Insurance.

Many of the Credit Cards have most of these coverage, therefore its not
mandatory to purchase excessive coverage. Its better to check this issue
with your travel agent, insurance agent and your credit card company a head of time. Some Car rental companies require that you show proof of insurance.

Also be aware that your personal insurance probably doesnt apply to your rental car when traveling overseas. All this is somewhat complicated and at times confusing because there are no industry standards for terminology and policies vary by locations.

Important things to check and do before leaving the Air-Port

After a long flight and the waiting in lines for your luggage and afterwards for
your keys at the car rental counter, it is understandable you just want to take the rented car and drive away to your hotel, but wait! Here is a list of things you must check first.

Start by making a careful check around the car, look for any small dents or scratches, in case you find some, dont be lazy, go back to the office and ask a representative of the rental company to write down all of these dents, ask for a copy of that report. Other wise you might be responsible for damages you didnt perform.

Open the trunk, make sure you have a spare tire, a jack and set of tools, there is noting more irritating than to find out in the middle of nowhere that you dont have a jack when you need to replace a flat tire.

Many car companies will provide you with an extra key if you ask for one. This can come in handy for some of us who are absent minded.

It is recommended to spend some time to get acquainted with the cars features and switches, make sure you know where the lights switches are, how to operate the windshield wipers, the air conditioner and even set your favorite radio stations as well as set your side mirrors. It might be quiet frustrating to fight with the new switches while driving, when all of a sudden it starts raining.

Make sure you have a map and its better to spend few more minutes and plan your driving route.

Last but certainly not least, If you have a lot of luggage, dont park the car in the parking lot and go for lunch, in many countries, this is an easy target for
the thieves, Its better to buy some sandwiches and beverages in the air-port, or stop somewhere along the way for refreshing but never leave the car unattended.

In case you are involved in a Car Accident

These are the most important pieces of information to collect from the involved parties: full name, mailing address, telephone number, insurance details, and drivers license number.

Also try to get the names and contact information of anyone who witnessed the accident. Make a note of the vehicles make, color, brand and license plate number.

Try to pinpoint the exact time and location of the accident. If the police get involved, ensure that you receive a copy of their report. Don’t forget to inform your insurance agent immediately and notify the car rental company.
They will let you know about their accident procedure.

If you purchased insurance through the car rental company, they will have to make the claim. If there is damage to the rental car, there will be much paper work to complete

Make sure any involved parties are ok. Any injuries should be taken care of ASAP.

Call the police and/or ambulance (if necessary), and then call the car rental agency. Be as cooperative as possible. The car rental agency will have its own policies regarding accidents.

Exchange information with the affected parties. Try to record everything on the scene. Your notes should include details of the accident, identification of the autos and people involved, and the names and badge numbers of all emergency personnel.

Take pictures if possible. If you are on vacation, you will probably have a camera handy already.

File an accident report with the police, and report the claim to your own credit card company or insurance company.

When returning the Car

Make all necessary arrangements to return the car on time, that includes looking the location in the map especially if you return the car in a foreign city.

Late return charges are high and arbitrary, secondly, if you are late, you probably wont have the time to fill the car with gasoline yourself and the rental company will charge you exorbitant inflated gasoline rates.

In case you return the car in a city location on Sunday, it might be that the station will be deserted, it will let you in via automated gate, make sure to take the card and leave it over the dashboard, this is your recorded time of arrival.

In addition, lock the car, take the keys plus your rental contract and insert them into the designated box.