Tire World's Tech Tips (14)

click here to return to the list of Tech Tips

Our Craving for Mobility Demands Fuel

Just after the year 1900 rolled around, three cars were able to drive across America. The first trip took over two months. Without the highway system we enjoy today, the dirt road routes they could put together made the trip twice the current 3,000-mile distance. Gas stations were unheard of so much of their fuel was carried. How different driving is today with super highways, traffic lights, parking lots, interchanges and tollbooths.

People living on the east or west coast and within larger cities have better mass transit opportunities than we do in the spread out, "Big Sky" west. However, with the need to drive greater distances comes the expense of fuel for our mobility. Then, once we get tolerant of a range of gas prices, they again rise beyond our comfort level.

Stories of 10 cents a gallon make us yearn for the "Golden Days of Yore" but, adjusted for inflation, those prices seem at least a bit more familiar. Drivers in 1950 saw gas prices that, with the spending power at that time, felt like $1.91 a gallon. Inflation adjusted prices in 1970 would have been $1.59 but, by 1980, the impact was a more outrageous $2.59. 1995 had the more reasonable feel of $1.28.

Throughout these times, the roller coaster of price swings kept excitement and frustration in the topic until, today, we are back to over $2.00 a gallon. Still, we drive twice as much a year as we did in 1980 when prices were their highest.

For every $100 we spend on gas, approximately $43 pays for the crude oil product needed to make the fuel. $13 goes to refining the crude oil. Another $13 goes toward transporting it to us plus attempts to win our loyalty (distribution and marketing). The remaining $31 is made up of federal, state or local taxes.

If the bite of higher costs per gallon is affecting you, there are numerous ways you can lesson the pain. They break down into three categories: your driving style, the condition of your vehicle and the type of vehicle you drive. For example, trucks and SUVs, especially when equipped with 4-wheel drive, are heavier so use more fuel. Driving in 4-wheel drive will take more gas as well. Aerodynamic designs improve gas mileage.

The most fuel-efficient speed to drive is 40 to 60 miles per hour. A heavier, less aerodynamic vehicle in poor mechanical condition will be most efficient closer to 40 with a better running, lighter car being most efficient near 60 miles per hour.

See other Tech Tips for more specifics on these items or bring your vehicle into Tire World for an inspection and any needed maintenance or repair work. While you are in, ask for what your vehicle needs for improved gas mileage.

 We Sell Tires, too!