Best gas mileage in winter

Read on to see how to get the best gas mileage in winter

1) cold engines are less efficient. Cold air is denser than warm air. Your engine consumes massive amounts of air - about 14x more than fuel. Dense air tells the computer to add more fuel to compensate. This will boost performance but you lose fuel economy. Also, cold fuel doesn't ignite as quickly as warm fuel. Your engine's computer automatically adjusts the fuel/air mixture to be richer (has more fuel) to compensate.

2) idling cars are fuel efficiency wasters. An idling engine can burn 1/4 to 1/2 of a gallon of gas per hour. Also, it can increase the likelihood of fuel dilution - this occurs when fuel washes past the piston rings and contaminates the oil in the sump. Furthermore, oil that's diluted with gasoline loses viscosity, which can affect wear protection.

3) winter blend gas contains reduced energy. It evaporates quicker at low temperatures to aid in starting. Also helps the engine run smoother in frigid weather. However, winter-blend gas contains less energy than summer-blend, reducing mileage.

How to boost winter fuel mileage:

A - check your tire pressure. Which tends to drop as the temperatures drop. A tire that is down 10 psi can reduce mpg by 1 %.

B - stop idling your vehicle for more than a minute or two before driving in winter.

C - also remove unnecessary items that cut your mpg, like a roof rack.

D - use synthetic lubricants. They flow more easily when cold, it reduces energy wasted in the form of burning fuel to circulate oil at start-up.

E - maintain your fuel system. Fuel must be a fine mist to burn efficiently during combustion. Any dirty fuel injector tips can disrupt the spray pattern and lead to streams of fuel instead of a fine mist reducing mpg. Keep injectors clean with an injector cleaner. This will reduce emissions and increases fuel economy by up to 5.7%. Once clean, maintain the clean by using an upper cylinder lube.