Almost every day we hear about the environment, global warming, climate change, air pollution and other nasty things that driving your car can contribute towards, not to mention the sky high fuel and maintenance costs.
None of these facts seem to deter us from driving though, as anyone can see the roads getting ever busier.
In this short series we will look at a style of driving that minimises these negatives, will contribute to your own road safety and save you money in fuel and maintenance costs.
This style of driving is:
Eco-safe Driving.
So what is eco-safe driving?
In this first part of the series we will look at the keys to driving eco-safe, which are:
- Hazard perception and planning.
- Vehicle control.
Those of you learning to drive, or have recently passed your driving test, will be familiar with these terms, but they apply to all drivers regardless of how long you have been on the road.
In fact, eco-safe driving is part of the current DVSA driving test.
You will read in some articles that eco-safe driving is an "informal" part of your driving test and that driving in a non eco fashion will not result in a test fail, but beware! The faults will not be marked in the eco-safe section as a fail, but the manner of your driving that is considered non eco will be recorded elsewhere and could still result in disappointment.
For example, if you were waiting at lengthy traffic lights with 1st gear engaged, your clutch at biting point and your engine revving for a few minutes, the faults would be recorded under proper use of clutch pedal and proper use of accelerator.
The examiner would inform you at the end of your test that your eco-safe driving is in need of improvement, but the faults that failed you would not be recorded under the eco-safe section.
A successful driving test depends very much on eco-safe driving.
Hazard Perception and Planning.
Planning ahead is one of the best ways to avoid accidents and keep yourself safe, as you are prepared in advance for potential hazards. By concentrating on hazard perception, (remember those videos on your theory test?) you can plan more accurately and make better use of the momentum and engine braking of your car, saving yourself fuel and maintenance costs and reducing environmental damage.
A little bit of thought will go a long way over time.
Whenever you are driving, try to keep up your scanning and observation. Check the far distance, middle distance and foreground, as well as what's happening at your rear and to your sides with regular, effective use of your mirrors.
This way, you will pick up potential hazards, but you still have to deal with them, which will be easier as you have spotted problems earlier.
Having seen ahead,you can ensure that your speed is correct when meeting the hazard, avoiding late braking or harsh acceleration, causing higher fuel consumption, which is no good for your wallet or the environment.
Maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you, as this will give you more visibility and help your planning. Sometimes just easing off the gas pedal is sufficient to slow down, avoiding the need to brake, saving some fuel.
If every driver planned ahead this way, bunching would be avoided, allowing traffic to flow more smoothly and a lot of fuel would be saved.
Vehicle Control.
Keep it smooth, keep it steady, do it gently.
These simple actions will save you money almost straight away and would go a long way towards saving the planet if every driver adopted them.
Every time I hear a car "blasting off," I picture pound coins tumbling down the drain, as the fuel wasted and the damage caused to the car really add up over a few months or years.
Driving away.
There is no need to over-rev your engine when you start up your car, or to pull away in a hurry. Try to pull away smoothly.
Regulating your speed.
These days, there are a lot of incentives to drive sensibly and to stay within the speed limit. It's not only the high chance of being caught on camera and the resulting hefty fine and points that should encourage you, but you will again save fuel and reduce the risk of a nasty collision. All saving you money again, with fuel and insurance.
So slow down.
Vehicles travelling at 70mph use about 30% more fuel to cover the same distance as vehicles travelling at 50mph.
If you have cruise control fitted, then use it. It can help with keeping to the speed limit and saves fuel by keeping a steady setting on the gas pedal.
The accelerator.
A lot of money and damage from wear and tear can be saved by smooth use of the gas pedal. Remember that rapid acceleration will often lead to heavy and harsh braking which results in greater fuel consumption.
Smooth driving can save you around 15% in fuel costs and a lot of money in repairs, as well as reducing pollution.
Whenever it is possible, take your foot off the accelerator and allow the momentum of the car to drive you. This works rather well on downhill stretches without any loss of control, but you will save a lot of fuel.
Gear Selection.
You can save fuel as well as wear and tear by making use of block gear changes. This is where you can miss out intermediate gears as you change up or down. (Eg, 1st to 3rd, 4th to 2nd, 3rd to 5th.)
This will reduce the amount of time you are accelerating, when fuel consumption is at its highest, and will save on wear, as you are doing fewer gear changes.
Use the highest gear possible as soon as you can, without making the engine labour.
In part 2 of this series we will look at fuel consumption in more detail and other simple ways to save money and the environment.
All of the driving instructors at John Lowe Driving are eco-safe specialists, so if you would like to know more, or to start your driving lessons in an eco- friendly way,
Call us on 01452 313713.
Warm Regards,
Tom & Lisa Lowe.
