Whilst researching this month's challenge to save fuel by keeping your car tyre's pressurised, I found wildly varying estimates of just how much fuel can be saved. Some sources say 1%, others say 10%, most give no figure at all and none give their sources. I started wondering if you can really save fuel this way at all (perhaps I'm jaded because last month's challenge to turn devices off rather than leaving them on standby ended so ambivalently).
Then I came across a quote from The Independent's Motoring Section:
I still haven't seen any hard data but at least that makes sense.
(My dad has been complaining that my photos are boring so just for him there's a picture of one of his grandchildren today. I'll go back to photos of runner beans tomorrow)
Then I came across a quote from The Independent's Motoring Section:
Anybody who has cycled on under-inflated tyres will appreciate how much extra effort is involved.
I still haven't seen any hard data but at least that makes sense.
(My dad has been complaining that my photos are boring so just for him there's a picture of one of his grandchildren today. I'll go back to photos of runner beans tomorrow)
3 comments:
The actual amount that you save by inflating tires (tyres?) depends on a lot of factors. If you drive a lot of freeway miles, most of your gas is spent overcoming wind resistance. That makes a savings in rolling resistance less significant. Also, a heavier car will be more affected by tire pressure than a lighter car.
By the way, that's an incredibly cute picture. Sometimes, I wish we had gotten at least one girl, instead of all rowdy boys.
At 20pence at our local garage to test tyre pressure & inflate if need be, and the reading I've done on the web suggests checking tyre pressure about every other week, against my monthly fuel costs for my car, and an ave I've found from viewing 5 sites, of 8% fuel cost saving, i think it's worth my while.
It's worth doing even if it doesn't save fuel. It protects against blowouts, improves handling (and therefore safety) and extends the life of the ty/ire (with environmental consequences). But I'm sure it must save fuel, the "bicycle" argument is logically convincing.
As for the varying estimates of how much can be saved, I think Ray has hit the nail on the head. It depends on exactly what and how you drive, that's why nobody can put a figure on it.
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