Your VW’s fuel efficiency is one of those things you might notice only when something changes.
Maybe your VW used to get you through the week on one tank, but now you seem to be stopping for fuel more often?
Or perhaps recent fuel prices have made you wonder whether small changes to your driving habits could help your money go further?
The good news is that you don’t need to drive everywhere at a crawl (which, in fact, can actually result in higher fuel use). Most fuel-saving habits are simple, everyday things. And to help you along the way, our team at Sunset VW has put together this list of practical tips.
Understand when higher fuel use is normal
Of course, your VW won’t use exactly the same amount of fuel every week. That’s completely normal. You may use more fuel when:
- It’s winter, because the engine takes longer to warm up and you use lights, heating, demisters and wipers more often.
- Your tyre pressures drop, which can happen more quickly in colder weather.
- You tow, carry heavy loads or use a roof box.
- It’s very warm and you use the air conditioning
- You drive in strong winds or poor weather.
- You spend more time in city traffic, where stop-start driving uses more fuel.
- Your commute changes, especially if you switch from motorway driving to town driving.
- You make more short trips, because the engine has less time to warm up properly.
- You drive more miles than usual.
In other words, spending more on fuel doesn’t always mean your VW has become less efficient. Sometimes, it just means your driving conditions have changed. And that’s absolutely fine.
Drive more smoothly
Your driving style is one of the biggest factors affecting your VW’s fuel consumption. Accelerating hard uses much more fuel than accelerating gently. Likewise, braking hard forces your car to use more fuel, too, because it essentially ‘wastes’ the momentum you just used fuel to build.
Naturally, you’ll notice this more in stop-start journeys like driving through Derby or when you’re stuck in A38 rush hour traffic.
Try to look further ahead as you drive. Ease off the accelerator as soon as you see traffic slowing down, even if it’s a long distance ahead. Likewise, build up your speed steadily rather than rushing up to the car in front. Keep a safe gap so you can react gently with the brake pedal, too.
Gentle steering can also improve your fuel efficiency. The sharper and harder you turn the wheel, the more momentum you lose, which means you need to accelerate again and use more fuel to keep moving smoothly.
Keep your speed steady where you can
In the same vein, try to maintain a steady speed. Your VW uses far more fuel if you constantly speed up and slow down. Now, there’s not very much you can do about this in town. However, on A-roads and motorways, a steady speed should be relatively simple to maintain.
If you struggle to hold a steady speed, try using cruise control.
Cruise control, especially modern adaptive cruise control, helps on motorways and dual carriageways. But it’s not always ideal. For example, on hilly roads it can use significantly more fuel than driving naturally and allowing small, natural changes in speed. If you’re interested, that’s because cruise control tries to hold the same road speed, even uphill, which can make the engine rev harder or change gears more often.
Ideally, try to keep your car at a constant engine speed by keeping your foot as steady as possible on the accelerator. Avoid suddenly pushing either pedal except in emergencies.
On that note, you can’t always drive at a steady speed. When you’re accelerating onto a dual carriageway, getting out of someone’s way or reacting to the car in front braking suddenly, you need to respond quickly. The few pennies you might save on fuel consumption don’t mean anything in comparison with driving safely.
Don’t carry unnecessary weight
A boot full of forgotten items makes your VW work harder. Now, one bag of shopping won’t make much difference, but heavy tools, sports equipment, old boxes, or things you keep meaning to take out could conceivably build up over time. Before you realise it, you might have the equivalent weight of another adult sitting in your car the entire time.
Have a quick look in your boot and cabin. Remove anything you don’t need for your normal daily driving. You don’t need to strip your VW bare or take out its back seats, but you should avoid using it as a storage cupboard.
Roof bars and roof boxes also increase fuel consumption thanks to air resistance (especially at higher speeds) and, when full, additional weight. If you only need them for holidays or weekend trips, take them off when you’re finished with them.
Check your tyre pressures regularly
Tyre pressures are one of the simplest things you can check at home, and they can make a real difference to your VW’s fuel efficiency. If your tyres are under-inflated, they ‘stick’ to the road more, leading to more rolling resistance. That means your engine must work harder, so your VW uses more fuel. Winter tyres also consume more fuel than summer tyres, which is why it’s important to change them over once the temperatures rise above approximately 7 degrees C.
Check your tyre pressures at least once a month and before long journeys. You’ll find the correct pressures in your owner’s manual, inside the fuel filler flap or on a sticker inside the driver’s door area.
Try to check pressures when the tyres are cold (that is, before you drive anywhere or at least an hour after you park). If you’re unsure, ask a garage or service centre to show you once. After that, it becomes a quick, easy habit.
If you notice repeat low pressures, you likely have a slow puncture. This requires a puncture repair or a new tyre.
Keep up with routine servicing
Servicing helps keep important parts of your VW in good condition, including oil, filters, spark plugs and other wear-and-tear components.
You don’t need to diagnose these things yourself. That’s what servicing is for. Your job is to follow the recommended service schedule for your VW and avoid putting off maintenance when it’s due.
If your VW is overdue a service, booking it in can be one of the most sensible steps you take.
Don’t coast
Coasting is when you push the clutch pedal, and sometimes even move the gearstick into neutral, to disconnect the engine from the wheels. Some suggest that, since you’re lowering the engine speed, you’re saving fuel.
Nothing could be further from the truth. Not only does coasting use more fuel, it’s also extremely dangerous.
When you coast, your engine keeps idling, which still uses fuel. But when you stay in gear and simply lift your foot off the accelerator, most cars use little to no fuel at all while they naturally slow down.
Coasting can also be dangerous. If you roll towards a roundabout, junction or bend with the clutch pressed down, you have less control of your car. You may not be able to accelerate if the situation changes, and the car will feel less stable if you need to brake suddenly because you won’t have engine braking.
So, instead of coasting, stay in gear and ease off the accelerator early. Your VW will slow down naturally, you’ll stay in better control and you may use less fuel, too.
Pay attention to warning lights and small changes
You don’t need to panic every time your VW feels slightly different, but you shouldn’t ignore obvious changes either.
If a warning light appears, your fuel use suddenly increases, the engine feels rough, the car pulls to one side or you notice unusual noises, get it checked. The small issues behind these symptoms can make your car work harder, which increases fuel consumption. Sorting it early could help you avoid a more expensive repair later, while also helping your car use less fuel.
This is especially important if the change happens suddenly. Gradual differences can come from weather, traffic, driving style or route changes. A sudden drop in fuel economy can point to something that needs attention.
Use heating and air conditioning sensibly
Use your heating, demisters and air conditioning when you need them. That’s what they’re there for. And clear windows and comfortable driving conditions matter more than saving a tiny amount of fuel.
That said, you can still use these systems sensibly. Once the cabin feels comfortable, turn the fan down. Don’t leave heated seats, heated screens or air conditioning running longer than necessary. On hot days, it can help to let the worst heat out of the car by lowering the windows before you set off, rather than asking the air conditioning to do all the work.
Comfort and visibility come first. Just avoid forcing your car to work harder than it needs to.
Plan your journeys when it makes sense
Short trips use more fuel than you might expect because the engine spends more time warming up. In winter, this effect can feel more noticeable.
Don’t turn every errand into a military operation, but a little planning might help slightly. If you need to visit the supermarket, post office, and school in the same area, combining those trips should use less fuel than doing them separately.
You can also avoid the worst traffic where possible. Stop-start driving uses more fuel than a steady journey, so a slightly longer route with less congestion may sometimes feel easier on both you and your VW.
Know when to get your VW checked
A small change in fuel use is usually nothing to worry about. A cold week, a traffic-heavy commute, or a few extra school runs can easily make you fill up sooner than usual.
As a very rough estimate, pay closer attention if your VW repeatedly gets around 15% to 20% fewer miles from a tank than it used to, and your driving patterns haven’t otherwise changed.
For example, if you normally fill up every 10 days but now need fuel every eight days on the same commute, that’s worth watching. If you used to get roughly 400 miles from a tank and now get closer to 320 to 340 miles over several tanks, it may be time to book a check.
Again, everything might be fine. As cars age, they do start to use more fuel. But it’s worth making sure.
Don’t worry about fuel use too much
Fuel efficiency is important, but driving requires burning fuel. You bought your VW to use it, not to worry about the fuel gauge.
The best way to minimise your fuel use is to not drive but, of course, that doesn’t make any sense at all. So, instead of letting fuel efficiency become an obsession, focus on the things you can control – the things we’ve mentioned on this page. Most importantly, stay on top of regular servicing, so you catch small issues early and keep your VW in optimal condition.
Pay attention to sudden changes. But after that, try not to overthink it. Your VW will use more fuel in some seasons, on some journeys and during some weeks of normal life. That doesn’t always mean something is wrong.
However, if your fuel use rises sharply, stays high or comes with warning lights, rough running, strange noises or a noticeable change in how the car feels, Sunset VW can help. Book your VW in with our service team, and we’ll give it a thorough check to make sure everything’s okay.
Contact our friendly team today to book your appointment.