Category: Fuel Economy

Restore Your Get-Up-and-Go (Fuel and Air Induction Cleaning)

You may have heard the old saying, “My get-up-and-go got up and went.” If your vehicle’s engine’s fuel economy is noticeably worse, your engine is idling roughly or stalling or your vehicle’s acceleration isn’t what it used to be, ask your service advisor if you might need your vehicle’s fuel and air induction systems cleaned.

As the hours pile up on your engine, carbon deposits can build up. It’s not unusual for some of the impurities and additives in fuel to leave behind a black residue that eventually will negatively affect your fuel economy and performance. Maybe you’re noticing your engine is harder to start, you hear knocking or pinging in your engine and your vehicle just doesn’t have the pep it used to.

While it’s a sophisticated process with a lot of components, a gasoline engine essentially produces power by drawing in air from the outside and mixing it with fuel in the cylinders where this blend of fuel and air is ignited by spark plugs in synchronized explosions.

The fuel and air enter your engine through the fuel induction system and air induction system. Because of things like high operating temperatures and impurities, carbon in the fuel can leave behind dark, sooty deposits in the fuel induction system such as the fuel injectors and the throttle body. These and other residue reduce your engine’s efficiency and performance. Our service center can use special fuel injector cleaners to remove those deposits from your engine.

The technician may manually clean some of the deposits and also put a fuel additive in the fuel tank that will get rid of other deposits that are still in the fuel system

Keeping the air induction system clean is also important. A technician can use a liquid cleaner specially designed for the job. Not only can this improve your fuel economy, it may also reduce exhaust emissions and help your engine last longer.

Most gasoline now contains detergents that help reduce or prevent these problems, but direct injection is now being used in more vehicles that are more susceptible to clogging. Ask your service advisor if your vehicle could benefit from fuel and air induction cleaning.

Autotronics of St. Peter
111 Jefferson Avenue
St. Peter, MN 56082
507.934.9290
http://autotronicsstpeter.com

Free Money (Almost) (Fuel Saving Tips)

You spend a lot of money on a vehicle, probably the most money you’ll spend on anything except a house. But the spending doesn’t stop after you’ve bought it. It goes into things like insurance, repairs and fuel. One good piece of news is that you can cut down the amount you spend on fuel if you follow a few tips.

Keep your speed under 50 mph/80 kph. Anything over that and your fuel economy will go down quickly the faster you go. Sure, you can legally drive faster than that, but practice this one tip and it can save you from 7%-14% on fuel.

Use cruise control. The steady speed increases fuel economy by avoiding unnecessary braking and accelerating.

If your vehicle is carrying unnecessary weight, unload it. If you can save 100 pounds/45 kilograms, it can save you 1% of your fuel.

Don’t idle. Let’s say you’re sitting in a parking lot with your engine running for 10 seconds. Any more and you’re wasting fuel. Turn off your engine and start it when you have to get going. You may have noticed that many newer vehicles automatically turn the engine off when the vehicle stops.

Avoid using a roof rack. A cargo box strapped on the top of your vehicle can reduce your fuel economy by 2%-8% in city driving, by 6%-17% on the highway and by 10%-25% at highway speeds over 65 mph/105 mph.

Also, if you have roof rails on your vehicle with crossbars, you can save 1% of fuel simply by storing them somewhere else. Some vehicles like Chrysler’s Pacifica minivan allow you to store the crossbars inside the roof rails to reduce drag.

Keep tires at their recommended inflation. It can save you 3% of your fuel bill.

Use the right motor oil for your vehicle. Using the wrong kind can cost you 1%-2% more money on fuel.

Sure, many of those savings are small on their own. But add them up and you’d be surprised at how much you can save. Also, keep in mind that a well maintained vehicle will also save you fuel, so make regular maintenance trips to your vehicle service facility.

Autotronics of St. Peter
111 Jefferson Avenue
St. Peter, MN 56082
507.934.9290
http://autotronicsstpeter.com