Once upon a time the petrol prices in Qatar were stable and did not fluctuate. One litre cost approximately QR 1 for the longest time.
Not anymore though.
The fluctuating oil prices of the recent years have changed everything and, subsequently, petrol prices in Qatar have also been fluctuating, and have risen in the last few years as a result of the oil price increase worldwide.
In this article, we are going to talk about how to save or conserve the fuel you put in your vehicles, so you can gain maximum fuel efficiency and reduce fuel consumption, and ultimately, not have to fill your tanks up as often.
You really don’t need to use ‘Super’ petrol which is a higher octane gas, unless it’s specified in your car’s manual. To be honest, the octane is really not connected with the performance of the fuel. It just specifies the combustion chamber’s volatility aspect, so it’s perfectly fine to fill your tank with ‘Premium’, rather than 'Super'.
This will reduce your fuel cost by 50 dirhams (half a Qatari riyal) per litre.
Most research shows that the best speed to drive at is 80 - 90 km/hour. Driving at higher speeds than that can increase the consumption of fuel in your car by almost 30 - 40%.
Keep your speed moderate and within the speed limits. Not only will this increase fuel efficiency, it will keep you safe as well.
Similarly, if you start and accelerate too fast, weave in and out of the traffic around you, break too fast, you may lose up to 20% of your fuel. Keeping a steady and light pressure on the accelerator will encourage fuel economy and ensure your safety as well.
If you’re driving against the wind, you will suffer from wind drag, making the engine of your car work harder than it would normally. This will reduce the fuel economy of your car.
Though its not possible to always drive in the direction of the wind, what you can do is keep your windows up. By doing this, the wind will cross over the car’s body and will not come inside the car cabin to slow it down.
If you drive on the highway with your windows down, you will increase the wind drag which can, actually, cause a 10% increase in fuel consumption.
If you really want some fresh air while driving, it’s best to turn the air conditioning system to the ‘outside air’ option so you can have fresh air from outside circulate in the car.
We have a habit of unnecessarily filling our cars and their trunks with things just for the sake of convenience and sheer laziness to take them out.
Did you know that cars that are not carrying around extra weight in it are more likely to conserve on fuel?
In fact, for every 91kgs of additional weight you carry around in your car, it takes away 1.6kms of fuel efficiency.
Remove all the extra things you are carrying around in the trunk of your car and make it more fuel efficient.
The air conditioner in your car puts more load on your car’s engine and, subsequently, causes more fuel to be consumed. In fact, the air conditioning in a car, can actually increase fuel usage 5-20%, depending on the kind of car you drive around Qatar.
Use the air conditioning setting on minimum of 23 degrees Celsius when it’s really hot, especially during the summers in Qatar and when possible, use the vent (outside air) setting.
When the car is parked under the sun, it will cause the fuel in the fuel tank to start evaporating, as compared to parking in the shade which evaporates less fuel. Also, if parked in the shade in the summers of Qatar, you won’t need to turn the air conditioning on to very high to make the interior cool down.
Cruise control is very effective to reduce fuel consumption when you are driving at high speeds on the highway, because continuously changing speeds reduces fuel efficiency. With cruise control, your speed stays consistent while you enjoy the drive and also the fact that you are consuming less fuel.
It’s not a good idea to drive your car with tyres that are not inflated to the pressure that has been specified in the car manual. If your car tyre is underinflated by 4 – 5 psi less than the correct pressure, you are likely to increase fuel consumption by approximately 3 - 10%; this can also reduce the tyre’s thread life by 15%.
Make sure you check your car tyres regularly and ensure they are always inflated with the correct pressure.
Another good way to conserve the fuel in your car is to opt for carpooling. If there are several people who are travelling in the same direction, then taking just one car instead of everyone taking their own, is a good way to economise on fuel, or a shared taxi will work, too.
What do you think of these tips to increase the efficiency of fuel in your car and, ultimately, pay less? Have you tried any of these tips before? Do you have any more tips to save petrol? Do let us know what you think in our Comments section. Like and share the article - it keeps us going!
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