Fuel Economy Tip - Roll the Windows Up

With the weather being nice, I'm sure many of you wouldn't mind hopping in the car, rolling down the windows and going for a drive. While that's not a bad idea, you may want to keep the windows up if you're trying to get good gas mileage out of your leisurely drive.

Keep your car's windows up, especially the faster you go.

A car is its most aerodynamic (meaning it moves through the air with less resistance) when the windows are rolled up.

When your vechicle's windows are down, especially at highway speeds, there is more drag placed on the vehicle. Drag is the force that opposes your car's movement, so the less amount of drag, the less amount of energy (gas) your car has to use to get up to and maintain speed.

By having the windows down at highway speeds, you can reduce your vehicle's fuel economy by up to 3%, or roughly add $.09 to each gallon of gas you use! For a 15 gallon car that is filled up once per week, that adds up to over $70 per year.

Especially when the weather is nice (not hot), you should be able to keep the windows up and get away with using a cool vent.

We'll talk more about using the AC in a following tip.