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Dr iv ing and th e en v ironm e nt
on necessary precautions e.g. corrosion preven-
tion, maintenance and storage . Pay attention to
additional information concerning the battery.
Refer to
¢
page 203.
Economical
and environ-
mentally-friendly
driving
General
Your personal style of driving will determine the
economy of your vehicle, as well as exhaust and
noise levels.
Fuel economy, enviro nmental impact, and wear
on your engine, brakes and tires largely depend
on three factors:
- you r personal dr iving style
- operating conditions
- technical lim itations
If you anticipate what you need to do next and
drive economically, you can easily cut your fue l
consumption by 10-15 percent. This section will
give you some tips on how you can help the envi-
ronment and your pocketbook .
(D
Tips
The consumpt ion estimates as published by
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
(EPA) and Transport Canada may not corre-
spond to your act ual consumption on the
road, whi ch will vary depen di ng upon vehicle
load and speed, road and weat her condit ions,
t rip length, etc.
Drive smoothly and keep a lookout ahead
Vehicles use the most fuel when they ore acceler-
ating.
"' Avoid unnecessary accelerating and braking .
Vehicles use the most fuel when they are acceler-
ating. If you anticipate what is go ing to happen
next, you will need to brake less and, thus, accel-
erate less. Let t he vehicle coast wheneve r possi-
ble - for example when you see t hat the next traf-
fic ligh t is red.
178
· Avoid full throttle
Driving at moderate speeds saves fuel and im-
proves your mileage .
"' Try and keep well below your car's maximum
speed.
Accelerating gently reduces fuel consumpt ion,
engine wear, and does not disturb the environ-
ment .
Fuel consumption, exhaust emissions and engine
noise increase disproport ionate ly at high speeds.
If you drive at approximately three quarters of
top speed, fuel consumption will be reduced by
one half . Never drive faster than the posted
speed limit and weather cond itions permit .
Reducing unnecessary idling
Even when your car is jus t idling it burns up fuel.
"' Shut the engine off when you are not driving
the vehicle.
"' Do not warm up the vehicle by letting the en-
gine run at idle .
It
makes sense to shut off the engine in traff ic
j ams, when waiting for trains to pass at railroad
crossings, or at traff ic lights that have long waits
on red . Turning the engine off for just 30 -40 sec-
onds saves more fuel than is burned starti ng the
.
.
engine again.
It takes a long time for the engine to warm up
fully when it is run ning at idle . However, wear
and noxious emissions are especially high when
the engine is warming up . So you should dr ive
away as soon as you sta rt the engine and avoid
run ning at hig h rpms w hil e the engine is still
warming up.
(D
Note
Do not leave eng ine idl ing unat tended after
st arting.
If
warning lights should come on to
indicat e improper operation, they wo uld go
unheeded . Extended idling also prod uces
heat, w hich could result in overheating or
other damage to the vehicle or other proper-
ty .
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