You can improve your gas mileage just by changing the way you park your car. It is one of the many easy and simple things you can do to increase your fuel mileage.
Here is the normal scenario when pulling into a parking lot. You pull into the lot and immediately head for the row of parking spaces closest to the entrance to the mall or the store to which you are heading. Of course, since everyone does the same thing, there are not any parking spaces available near the entrance.
Since you did not find any spaces initially you drive up and down the closest rows to see if you can find a parking place that is reasonably close to the entrance or you sit in one place and wait for a parking space to open up.
Both of these behaviors will cost you gas mileage and will cost you money. When you sit and wait to see if anyone will vacate a space you are running your engine but not moving. You are getting zero miles per gallon when you are sitting and idling like that.
Alternatively if you are slowly cruising along the parking rows still hoping to find a close spot, you are burning fuel at a tremendous rate relative to the speed you are going. Inevitably you have to stop behind another car that is waiting or you stop at spaces that you think are opening up. Once again this causes you to idle and again you end up getting zero miles per gallon fuel economy.
If you spend just 60 seconds in any given day waiting for or cruising for a parking space, think how much gas you will use in a year. For a quick calculation, if we assume an average month of 30 days and you are wasting gas for 60 seconds or one minute each day that means that you would be burning gas for 30 minutes each month.
At a half hour per month, you would be burning fuel the equivalent of an extra 6 hours per year. Now, think about that, would you ever think about leaving your car to sit and idle for six hours doing nothing but burning fuel? Of course not. But that is exactly what is happening if you park the way I have just described.
In what way can you change your habits to prevent this wasteful burning of gas? You can improve gas mileage and stop burning extra fuel with this very simple and very easy solution. Your goal should be to park far away from the store or mall instead of trying to park as close as you can. The farther away from the entrance you go, the more empty parking spaces you will find. If you head to the parking rows far from the entrance, as soon as you enter the parking lot, you should find a parking place right away.
By parking far away you save all the fuel you would have wasted waiting for and looking for a parking place close in. There is an another benefit to finding a parking place far from the entrance. Not only will you improve gas mileage and save money but you will get more exercise as you walk the additional distance from your car. It's great for your wallet and great for your body.
Scott Siegel has written a 143 page manual of automotive industry insider secrets on saving gas and dollars at the pump (beatthegaspump.com). Visit us to learn how you can get better gas mileage. Find out how to improve gas mileage.
