Driving green

Buying green is just the first step in reducing the environmental impacts of automobile use. Your choice of vehicle is most important, but how you drive and how well you maintain your car, van, or light truck will also make a difference.
 

• Avoid "jack rabbit" starts and aggressive driving. Flooring the gas pedal not only wastes gas, it leads to drastically higher pollution rates. One second of high-powered driving can produce nearly the same volume of carbon monoxide emissions as a half hour of normal driving.  
• Think ahead. Try to anticipate stops and let your vehicle  coast down as much as possible. Avoid the increased pollution,  wasted gas, and wear on your brakes created by accelerating  hard and braking hard.  
• Follow the speed limit! Driving 75 mph instead of 65  mph will lower your fuel economy by about 10 percent,  and can dramatically increase tailpipe pollution in many  vehicles.
• When possible, plan your trips to avoid rush hour. Stop-and-go  driving burns gas and increases emissions of smog-forming  pollutants.
• Combine trips. Warmed-up engines and catalysts generate  much less air pollution, so combining several short trips  into one can make a big difference.
• Take a load off. Carrying around an extra 100 pounds  reduces fuel economy by about 1 percent. Take a few moments  to unload your cargo area.
• If your vehicle has it, use overdrive gear at cruising  speeds. When driving a manual transmission, shift up as  soon as possible. Running in a higher gear decreases the  rpm and will decrease fuel use and engine wear.
• Try using the vents and opening windows to cool off  before you turn on the air conditioner. Air conditioner  use increases fuel consumption, increases NOx emissions  in some vehicles, and involves environmentally damaging  fluids.
• Unlike many older cars and trucks, modern vehicles don't  need to warm up and they have automatic chokes, so you  don't need to step on the gas pedal before starting the  engine.
  

• Keep your tires properly inflated. Tires should be inflated  to the pressure recommended for your vehicle; this information  is often printed inside the door frame or in your owner's  manual. For every 3 pounds below recommended pressure,  fuel economy goes down by about 1 percent. Tires can lose  about 1 pound of pressure in a month, so check the air  pressure regularly and always before going on a long trip  or carrying heavy loads. Underinflated tires can also  detract from handling, safety, and how long the tires  will last.
• Buy low-rolling-resistance (LRR) replacement tires.  Switching to a typical set of replacement tires lowers  a vehicle's fuel economy as much as 4 percent. LRR tires,  on the other hand, are specially designed to improve a  vehicle's fuel economy. Most major tire manufacturers  now produce LRR models, so when it comes time to replace  your tires, seek out a set of LRRs.
• Check your own fuel economy every few weeks. If you  notice it slipping, that could mean you have a minor problem  with the engine or your brakes. Using this advance warning,  you can fix problems before you have a breakdown on the  road.
• Get a tune-up. Whether you do it yourself or go to a  mechanic, a tune-up can increase your fuel economy. Follow  owner's manual guidelines. Be sure to check for worn spark  plugs, dragging brakes, and low transmission fluid; have  your wheels aligned and tires rotated; and replace the  air filter if needed. Make sure all used vehicle fluids  are recycled or disposed of safely.
• Change the oil. In addition to making your car or truck  last longer, replacing the oil and oil filter regularly  will also help fuel economy. Check your owner's manual  for specific recommendations about how often to change.  Ask the service station if they recycle used oil, or if  you do it yourself, take your old oil to someplace that  does recycle. Ask for recycled oil as a replacement.
• Have your vehicle's emission control system checked  periodically. Take it in for service if an instrument  panel warning light comes on.
  

• Use regular gasoline unless your owner's manual says  otherwise. Unless your car requires premium, high-octane  fuels improve neither fuel economy nor performance and  will just waste your money.
• Don't overfill the gas tank or try to top it off beyond  where the automatic nozzle clicks off. Spilled gasoline  evaporates to aggravate smog formation and can leak into  groundwater.
• Patronize gas stations that have vapor-recovery nozzles  (those black, accordion-looking plastic devices attached  to the nozzle) whenever you can.
  

• Park in the shade in summer to keep your car cool and  minimize evaporation of fuel.
• If you have a garage, use it as much as possible to  keep your car warm in winter and cool in summer.
• If you have to park outdoors, windshield shades can  cut down on summer heat and help keep the frost off in  the winter.
  

• One company gives its workers free walking shoes, with  the promotion "we'll even buy your walking shoes  if you hoof it to work!"  
• Another company offers participating employees monthly  drawings for prizes that might include extra time off,  mountain bikes, and other goodies.  
• A municipality gives its employees an extra hour of  time-off for every 5 days they use carpool or vanpool  to get to work, plus permission to dress casually at  the office.