The Cost of Driving at High Speeds!
by Connie Walters
(Illinois, USA)
There is really nothing that most of us can do to make the price of gas let up a bit. All we can do, then, is try to use as little gas as we can. When most people think of decreasing their fuel consumption, they simply think of staying home more often and limiting the amount of miles they drive.
Few drivers tend to think about how much money they cost themselves by driving at excessively high speeds!
No one can deny that the pace of the average life these days is quite high. There are many things to do, especially if you have a career, a family, or other responsibilities that keep you frantically running around.
It would seem to most people that one of the best ways to save a little time is to “put the pedal to the metal” when they get in the car. This may be true, and it may get you to where you are going a little bit faster, but it may also cost you quite a bit at the gas pump!
Simply put, your car, truck or sport utility vehicle uses more gas when it drives at higher speeds. Most vehicles operate at peak fuel efficiency at around 55 miles per hour. If you are driving at a higher speed than that, you are probably costing yourself quite a bit of fuel efficiency in the process.
Using up more fuel means more frequent visits to the gas station. And, of course, more frequent visits to the gas station means less money in your purse or wallet. That is why you should consider slowing down a bit, so that you can stop costing yourself extra money in fuel expenses.
If you are one of the many people who drive at over 70 miles per hour frequently, you are costing yourself quite a bit of money! Your fuel consumption will be up to 25% more than if you were going 55 miles per hour, depending on your vehicle and other driving conditions.
With gas prices surpassing four dollars per gallon in many places, it is easy to see that this kind of cost can add up, especially if you are driving a vehicle that is not exactly fuel efficient, such as a van, truck or sport utility vehicle.
Most people are not very receptive to the idea of slowing down from their usual speed and driving a little slower on the highway, freeway or interstate.
If you do want to save money bad enough, though, you will be willing to make some sort of change to the speed that you drive on these types of roads.
It may be hard at first, particularly when people start passing you on the road, but remember that you are saving yourself a substantial amount of money in the process!
Also, you do not necessarily have to change your speed dramatically to see some level of savings. Even if you are completely unwilling to slow down to 55 miles per hour, if you can slow down from 75 to 65 miles per hour, you will still notice that you go through gas a bit slower.
The key here is to find a speed that you can live with, but that is not as excessive as the speed that you traveled at before. Also, consider the situation.
If you are on a weekend trip to a friend’s house, do you really need to arrive five minutes earlier? If not, simply relax and ease up on the gas a bit. If you aren’t going to be late, you really don’t have to drive so fast!
You will experience other benefits from slowing down on the highway, as well. You’ll be less likely to be seriously injured in a crash, and you’ll attract considerably less attention from the highway patrol, as well.
Speeding tickets aren’t cheap, so slow down and you’ll save money on gas as well as costly tickets!
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