The ultimate cost-saving FAQ for cars

Many have said that the car is a liability rather than asset. Whether it’s a liability or an asset, here are some money-savvy tips that you must know to fully utilize your money spent on your precious car. Precious, I used this word because if you haven’t heard about the outrageous price to drive a car here in Singapore, you should definitely check it out (hint- it’s USD 6-figure).  Here is my attempt to compile The ultimate cost-saving FAQ for cars.

What is the expected mileage per litre?

My dad’s Nissan Latio goes around 12-13 km per litre of petrol. 

If you suspect that your mileage is going low, some tips that you can do

·         Make sure your tyres are adequately pumped

·         Drive smoothly rather than jamming on the accelerator and breaking adruptly

·         Have you modified your car with any add-ons recently that can cause the inefficiency?

·         Check your odometer whether it is running on mph or kph? (no kidding)

·         It might be traffic conditions – consumption is higher in start-stop traffics as opposed to smooth driving on the expressway.

·         Aircon consumption.. speaking of this, this begs the question

How much fuel does air-conditioning consume?

We all should have some extent of knowledge that turning up the airconditioning in cars consumes petrol. Is this a substantial cost of concern? Should we go with natural wind to save money?

In a study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the use of Air Conditioning can add fuel consumption depending on the type of vehicle, by at least 35%.

Then again, opening the windows does not seem like a feasible alternative since incoming wind will causes drag forces and requires the engine to work harder to go at the same speed.

Should I warm up the car before driving, or just drive?

You might have heard some advice from your friends or family to warm up the car for a while before driving to prevent complications on the car. There are also some arguments that idling in the parking lot to warm up the engine wastes fuel and does nothing to prolong the life of the engine.

The possible reason to warm up the car could be bring the engine up to operating temperature, as well as to heat up the oil to get to proper flow viscosity.However, under Singapore's sunny climate, the need to warm up isn’t really as necessary as in countries during winter seasons.

That said, the cold engine indicator still bothers me. What I would do is to let the car crawl slowly for the first 10 minutes out of the car park before really stepping on the accelerator