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  • How to save fuel: What will reduce fuel consumption?

    how to save fuel and reduce fuel consumption

    Businesses want to find the most efficient and cost-effective way to operate to make a profit. So, when it comes to saving money, you want to start with the most expensive costs, which is often fuel consumption.

    There are ways to monitor your expenditure on fuel by using fuel cards. But with the use of fleet technology, you can now track and monitor driver behaviour so you can see what will reduce fuel consumption in the future.

    So, what will reduce fuel consumption?

    There are a few ways in which you can reduce your fuel consumption, and therefore improve fuel economy. This includes improving processes from implementing better driving habits to ensuring regular vehicle maintenance.

    Change bad driving habits

    Poor driving behaviours such as harsh acceleration and braking, speeding and always driving with the air conditioning on when it is not needed, can affect your fuel consumption. Incorporating driver training and process such as how to slow the vehicle without harsh braking, or using cruise control down straight roads such as A-roads or motorways will help to improve your fuel consumption.

    Use the right vehicle for your fleet

    If your fleet is using vehicles that are larger than they need to be, this will be impacting your fleet fuel costs. Check the maximum load weight of your vehicle and compare it to the actual load weight. If the actual load weight comes in under the capacity, then you know your vehicles are too large. Using smaller vans can also reduce your fleet insurance costs and tax costs.

    Utilise Telematics

    Telematics helps to track driver behaviour. Helping you to identify which drivers require additional training to improve their fuel-efficient driving, and improving driver productivity as they can see their driver performance. Telematics also report on traffic issues, which helps to find shorter routes and even detect engine issues that could impact fuel efficiency.  

    You can also use fuel consumption tracking software. Specialist software can help compare fuel usage by a driver, calculate the fuel-efficiencies and pinpoint inefficient routes.

    Efficient routes

    Using telematics or other fuel consumption software, you can reduce unnecessary road miles by planning the most efficient route using data recorded from telematics and fuel devices. Data will include routes where there is less stop-starting involved, which use more fuel, and where you can maintain a consistent speed. Sometimes the shorter journeys aren’t as fuel-efficient as slightly longer ones which avoid high traffic areas.

    Remove extra weight

    By removing unneeded items or swapping to vehicles with light vehicle parts, you reduce your fuel consumption. Heavier vehicles can weigh down your miles per gallon and therefore cost your fleet more in fuel.

    Fleet maintenance and services

    Regularly checking your vehicles for low tyre pressure, low fluids and scheduling in frequent maintenance checks can help improve your fuel consumption. During these maintenance checks and services, mechanics can highlight issues that impact fuel economies, such as a leaky fuel pump or wheel alignment.

    Choose the right vehicle for your fleet

    There are a lot of options to consider when choosing vehicles for your fleet. If you can switch to electric vehicles for your fleet, this will be the simplest and most efficient way to reduce fuel consumption. However, if your fleet isn’t ready to make the switch, then trying hybrid vehicles may be a better solution. Hybrid vehicles use a combination of petrol and electrics. It doesn’t reduce your Co2 as much as a full electric vehicle would, but it’s a start.

    What are the benefits of improving fuel consumption?

    There are plenty of benefits from improving and reducing your fuel consumption, from cost savings, environmental benefits and increasing the life span of the vehicles in your fleet. With the world aiming to become more sustainable and to help reverse climate change, looking at changes such as reducing fuel consumption will improve your sustainability as a business. Especially if you track and record fuel usage, driver habits and costs.

    These tips will help you to reduce fuel consumption, and with a well-maintained fleet and safe drivers, you can even find that your fleet insurance premiums come down in cost as you report fewer accidents. 

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