With all the talk lately of sustainability and going green and such I thought I’d take a few minutes to talk about a few ways of sustaining ourselves — or at least of keeping a little green in our wallets during this time of high prices everywhere.
Certainly the biggest demand on most of our budgets these days is fuel cost. Normally I’d use this as a stepping off point to discuss the need for public transportation options like trains and trolleys — and really, yes…we do need this. But for now, I’m going to spend a few minutes in present reality to try and give a few pointers on keeping your own present reality a little less expensive.
With fuel prices around the $4/gal. mark the dynamics of driving our cars have changed. For one thing let’s start with fuel choice. I mentioned this last week in a thread, but I’ll repeat it here with the first pointer:
1. Buy the highest grade of fuel available. Most stations offer 91, 92, or 93 octane fuel. To put it simply octane makes your engine run smoother and more efficiently. Many cars specifically call for higher octane 
ratings but even older vehicles that run well on 87 octane will benefit in performance from higher grade. And, since the highest grade is usually only 20 cents higher than regular it’s worth the cost. Afterall with prices around $4, 93 octane fuel is only 3% more expensive than 87.
2. Change your oil. Everybody has at least once forgotten to change their oil and realized they were a couple thousand miles overdue. And, amazingly enough global cataclysm does not break out if you go over 3 months or 3,000 miles. I know people who regularly drive 10,000 miles between oil changes. But, as your oil degrades and gets dirty your car’s performance (and thus fuel economy) does suffer. So, with a cheap oil change costing 
$25-30, get your oil changed regularly.
And, clean out your engine. Every few oil changes use an engine flush. Many oil change places offer engine flushing service but this can be expensive. Wal-Mart, Autozone, and many other retailers sell several brands of engine flush however that are usually under $10 and very easy to use. Simply pour them into your engine oil right before getting your oil changed. Run the car for 5-15 minutes with the engine flush added then get your oil changed as normal. When you get your new oil you will be putting it into a clean and more efficient engine.
Finally when changing your oil, take a second to ask about your options. Don’t always go with the default 10W40 oil. Ask the attendant what’s available and what it can do for your car. Try using a lighter weight oil. Depending on your car and driving habits 5W30 or 20W50 may be better for you. Using oil with a lower viscosity increases your fuel economy.
3. Use a high-flow Air Filter. Many people forget about their air filter. After all, it’s not exactly glamorous. It is important though. For your engine to run efficiently it needs a. good fuel flow, b. good air flow, c. strong electric spark, and d. clean workings. Cleaning your fuel injectors and changing your oil takes care of a and d. Changing your spark plugs, wires, and distributor cap every 40-50,000 miles takes care of the spark. But one of the easy thing you have a lot of control over is air flow. Half of air flow is exhaust, and if you drive a Japanese or Korean car you probably can’t do too much to help your exhaust flow short of replacing the entire exhaust system. Most American and European cars have decently resistance-free exhausts from the factory. You can however change the resistance of your air intake.
Air filters should be changed when you have your oil changed. They simply keep all the dust and pollen and trash in the air from getting inside your engine and damaging it. But, like any filter they create an obstruction to the air coming into your car. Just breathe through your shirt and you’ll see right away that it’s harder to get air into your lungs. The same thing happens to your car. To remedy this, try adding a highflow air filter. These come in a variety of shapes and styles and of course prices. But unlike paper filters which are thrown away these filters like the K&N line can be washed and reused. They allow your engine to breathe easier and give between 5-12% better fuel economy. The cost of a K&N or other filter is generally between $30-70 upfront versus $15-20 for a paper filter. But that cost is spread out over several years and the savings in fuel consumption ($0.20-$0.40 per gallon of gas) pays for the purchase fast.
Basically we are simply going to be paying a lot more for gas from now on. But by doing a few simple things to our cars we can at least make what gas we do buy go further in our tanks and thus allow us to keep driving to work and all the places we need to go while not going as broke in the process.
CenLamar 
For many people, it’s counter-intuitive to buy the highest octane when prices are so high, but depending on your vehicle, typically, higher octane does increase performance.
I also tend to have the mindset of not wanting to pay that extra 20 cents. In fact I remember several years ago when I owned a Jaguar saloon that required 93 octane and hating the fact that I had to pay more. Of course then I was paying $1.50 when normal gas was $1.30. But today with regular being $4.09 most places and premium being $4.29 the numbers definitely work in favour of the higher grade fuel. You pay 3% more at the pump but recoup that cost quickly when driving.
BTW Lamar — they make a K&N filter for Mercedes SUV’s š
Do the stats show a 3% increase in fuel economy with the 93 octane? At $60 per fillup, my Toyota is already killing me.
Hi Mung,
It really depends on your car. Most Toyotas do benefit quite a bit from higher octane fuel. It also will depend on your driving habits as the benefit of octane tends to be most noticeable for highway driving. Your car may feel a little peppier in town, but the real change is the smoother operation and less stress on the engine itself.
This is easy to test for your car: Simply fill up one time with 87 octane. Then drive around (preferably on the highway) and note your RPM’s at specific speeds. Set the cruise at say 45, 60, and 70 and see where your RPM’s settle. Make a note of that. Then, fill up with 93 octane fuel next time and do the same exercise.
If you can drive at the same speed with fewer RPM’s, then you are saving fuel. You can compare the numbers to see what the percentage savings is.
I have a Jeep Wrangler myself, and it’s absolutely wretched for fuel economy. But, with a K&N filter (regularly cleaned), a couple of modifications to the air intakes, 5w30 oil, Bosch Platinum +4 spark plugs and 93 octane fuel, I get another 20% better fuel economy over the factory setup. It’s not a lot, but over the past few years it has definitely more than paid for itself.
With my changes I can drive 70mph at 3000 RPMs versus 3500 RPMs before the changes. That means that on my drive from New Orleans to Alexandria I save 100,000 RPMs (2.5 hour trip at a 500 RPM savings). There is some math involved, but with a full cycle of my 6 cylinder engine eating 4.0 liters of dispacement it adds up to about a $20 savings per trip.
Drew–
I appreciate you noting your modifications…because, while I’m not a gearhead by any definition, I’m pretty sure higher octane gasoline alone isn’t a magic bullet.
I think richer gasoline could foul spark plugs and even reduce performance…
Hi Michael,
Thanks for reading. You’re right that higher octane fuel alone is no magic bullet. Indeed if there is a magic bullet it’s more than anything changing driving habits with everything from average speed to acceleration and trip length.
What you’ve heard about richer gasoline fouling plugs is actually a bit different. Rich or lean refer to the ratio of fuel to air in the mixture that enters the combustion chamber. Too lean and you get low power and starve the engine. Too rich and you end up incomplete combustion and a nice goopy film all over your engine — and yes, fouled plugs.
Using a higher octane fuel won’t affect your plugs or foul the engine. It’s worth doing the driving test I mentioned above to see if your car benefits from higher octane fuel. If it does, and you can maintain the same speeds at at least 3% lower RPMs then it’s worth buying 93. If not, then stick with the lower octane fuels.
Well, I got the K&N filter, and drove 55-60 to BR this past weekend, and have yet to refill the tank, so my mileage has definitely improved. Slowing down probably has most of the effect. I drove a Jeep with that 4.0 inline 6 for 13 years and 212K miles. Always got btw 16 and 22 mpg. With all the outdoor activities around here, you screw yourself on fuel efficiency just to have that offroad truck for hunting, hiking & fishing a couple of days per week. I can’t see tossing a deer in the trunk of your Prius though.
Could you tell me where you found the data that supports “…the savings in fuel consumption ($0.20-$0.40 per gallon of gas…” Is this your own research or quoted from another source? thanks
Hi Jennifer,
This is mainly from my own experiences simply trying different grades in the same car under the same conditions and measuring fuel consumption.
I’d recommend you do the same (as described above) rather then go digging for research as each car differs on whether which grade is best.