The national average price of a gallon of gas has dropped below $2.00 for the first time since 2005. This is great news, and shows that people are actually starting to drive less, and think conservative when it comes to driving and gasoline consumption. But if you’re like me, the falling prices aren’t good enough, and you want even more savings. I recently did some research on gas saving tips, and here’s what I found:

1. Gasbuddy.com. This is a great resource. It has 2 main features that I really enjoy. First the ability to plug in your zip, and find the gas prices around you. But the second, and even better tool this site offers is the Temperature map. With this tool you can zoom in on your area and find out what stations have the lowest prices near and around you – very nice.

2. Metro/Vanpool/Carpool. Using this method cuts the amount of gas you use drastically, because you split the cost of the gas by the amount of people in the car. How many times have you driven on a crowded freeway, only to see a virtual “parking lot” of 4 passenger cars with 1 person in them?

3. Lose the excess weight. The more pressure your car has against the road, the more gas it will use to move it. So the lighter you can make your car the better. This doesn’t mean throwing out essentials like the jack and spare tire. But if you use your trunk and backseat as a storage space, this could save you a lot.

4. Use traffic tools on google, msn or traffic.com: using these you can find out where there might be traffic alerts such as accidents which you can go around. They aren’t always accurate, and properly updated. But if you know there might be an accident, or something else clogging up the free way, it’s worth it to check it out before hand and find an alternate route. This keeps you from sitting in idle traffic, wasting gas.

5. Proper maintenance and keeping it clean: Making sure your tires have the correct air pressure, making sure you change your air filter, oil filter, and oil on schedule, and keeping your car clean, and waxed can save a lot on drag, and air friction. Doing as much as you can reduce the friction your car has with the air the better. If your car is clean and smooth, there’s less air friction.

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Tags: Auto, gas, Saving Money