Local man looking to fill up less

CEDAR RAPIDS - With gas prices approaching $4 per gallon, many Iowa motorists are looking for ways to boost their miles per gallon.

“The higher the gas prices go, the more people look for things they can do to improve fuel economy,” said Jeremy Tinder, manager of the Mount Vernon Road Tire Co. in Cedar Rapids.

The average price of gas on Tuesday was $3.86 per gallon, according to AAA of Minnesota/Iowa, just 10 cents per gallon below the all-time high of $3.96 per gallon in July 2008.

Tinder believes “there are a million things you can do to improve your mileage.” On Tuesday, he had a chance to prove that.

Indian Creek Nature Center Director Rich Patterson wanted to see how much he could boost the fuel economy of his 1995 Chevrolet Colorado truck with simple maintenance and minor modifications. Tinder was glad to oblige.

Patterson and Tinder came up with a list of changes that they believe could boost the fuel economy of Patterson's truck.

• Replace the tires with low rolling resistance tires. Almost every manufacturer now offers a low rolling resistance tire that improves fuel economy at little or no additional cost, Tinder said. Alas, none of them were available in the size Patterson's truck needed, so he settled for tires with a “non-aggressive” tread design that should provide decent fuel economy.

• Replace the E10 ethanol blend in the tank with a type of regular gas labeled Top Tier. The switch is expected to improve fuel economy two ways: regular unleaded gas gets better fuel economy in almost every vehicle than ethanol, and the Top Tier formulation contains detergent additives that are supposed to remove carbon deposits that reduce engine efficiency.

• Replace the motor oil with synthetic oil, which is supposed to improve fuel economy by providing better lubrication, especially late in the oil change cycle.

• Replace the differential fluid in the vehicle's transaxle. Tinder said the new fluid should have better viscosity, which will allow parts to move with less resistance.

• Replace the air filter. The new air filter will have less obstruction, providing better air flow to the engine.

• Remove a top carrier from the truck capper of the vehicle. The removal will reduce aerodynamic drag that harms fuel economy.

Patterson had been checking the fuel economy of the truck over the past two weeks, and it had been getting 24 miles to 25 miles per gallon on in-town driving and 27 miles to 28 miles per gallon on the highway. With the improvements, Patterson is hopeful that will improve by 2.5 miles per gallon, or roughly 10 percent.

“A few miles per gallon would be great,” Patterson said. When he bought the truck, Patterson said he looked for a model that stood out for high fuel economy. Unfortunately, he said, “there weren't any.”

Many of the things motorists can do to boost fuel economy don't cost a thing. They include keeping tires properly inflated and accelerating gradually rather than abruptly.

Running in four-wheel-drive when a vehicle doesn't need the extra traction wastes fuel, Tinder said, and so does carrying an unnecessary load of discretionary items in the trunk.

When he hears predictions that doing this or that will improve fuel economy by a certain amount, Tinder remains skeptical. He said every vehicle and every owner's driving habits are different, so you rarely receive the results claimed in fuel economy.

“The only way to figure it out is to do it like Rich is doing,” Tinder said. “You just have to figure it out yourself.”