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With the economy still in a fragile state and people across the country having no choice but to watch the amount they spend, it is no surprise that rising prices are at the front of people's minds. Fuel has just reached a 10 month high; compounded by the Government imposing an additional two pence a litre tax rise at the pumps this month.
It's such a talking point because when fuel prices creep up we are all affected; no one is exempt. The hit is felt by business as much as Britain's 30 million motorists. Even those without a car will see the cost of goods and services increase, especially the basics such as food.
In this context of anxiety around fuel costs GM has done well to launch two new electric models which are bound to appeal to the cost conscious motorist. The Vauxhall Ampera and Chevrolet Volt look slightly different but will essentially work in the same way. The battery has a range of 40 miles and when it runs down the car switches to a 1.4-litre engine that acts as a generator to produce electricity and keep the car running for more than 300 miles. The result is an impressive 120mpg.
There is no doubt that each year new cars will become more sustainable and more efficient which will help drivers and companies to keep a grip on their running costs. However, in the meantime drivers must take action to protect themselves by using their fuel smarter and more sparingly and this will take a degree of behavioural change.
Reducing the speed that you drive, the gears that you use, how fast you corner, how hard you stamp on the brakes and even the amount of weight that you carry will significantly impact on running costs. In short, the safer and more sympathetically that you drive the better value your fuel will become. On top of this if you can plan your journeys to miss traffic and reduce the miles that you need to drive the fuel burden becomes a smaller one.
It is also important to remember that while in general prices are rising, they are not the same at all filling stations. If you can try to fill up at the cheapest forecourts when passing there is scope to reduce your costs. The point that I'm making is that while increases in fuel price upset us, there is nothing that we can do about them. However, there are several simple steps that we can take which will save money without the need to do anything drastic.
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