Roadtrip Savings Tips: Fueling Up & Saving
The jig is up. The Frill Seeker Diary Girls are heading out on a trip right now, and this time, our roadtrip skills will come of good use. Sure, running off to New Haven, Lancaster, Albany, and Philly were tons of fun, but its time to flex those car muscles- we’re going on a long one this time around!
Our overall destination is a surprise, that will be live blogged both here and on Twitter, by following @TravelingAnna and @Rawr_its_Lori, but till then, plan your own roadtrip and use the websites below to save majorly on the gas you’ll need to get there.
GasBuddy.com: Everyone’s favorite money saving site is still pumping out bargains. Check for the lowest gas prices in the US, as well as Canada, and track them for days before you hit the road.
MSN Auto: With a funky new interactive site, click on this US map to zoom in on stations you’ll be passing on your trip. This gas information is updated nightly and includes directions to nearby stations from wherever you are.
Mapquest Gasprices: Similar to MSN’s gas price finder, this site is your basic Mapquest, with the lowest fuel prices in your ‘hood. Of course, being Mapquest, you get the added bonus of being a click away from directions to just about anywhere, a yellow pages directory, and local directories.
AAA Fuel Cost Calculator: Other than just searching for the lowest cost gas stations, know what you’re getting into ahead of time. This easy to use calculator features drop down menus of your starting location, destination, and vehicle make and model. It searches the average gas prices near you and shoots out the calculation of what you can expect to pay one-way and round-trip.
FuelFrog.com: For those who like to take this project into their own hands, Fuel Frog offers a special tool- a gas mileage clock. If you use Twitter, it’s even simpler. Check in with @fuelfrog when you fill up, enter your fuel data, and check how often you should be filling up, and how your car handles it.
A Few Other Tips for Fuel Efficiency:
Fill up your tires with a little air before heading out.
Clean all the junk out of your trunk. Every pound counts!
Get some fresh air: the AC is a total gas waster.
Keep a constant speed on highways and avoid too much speeding/breaking.
If renting a car, go small. Sure that SUV might provide a lil extra legroom, but you’ll pay for it at the pump. Roomy sedans, like my beloved Mazda 3, give you plenty of space to spread out and go easy on the gas.
We have a site that calculates the cost of driving anywhere in the US: http://www.cost2drive.com. Simply enter your route and the car you’re driving and it will calculate the cost based on gas prices at the refueling points along the route. It finds the gas stations with the cheapest gas and plots them on the map.
It also shows you the cheapest flight for that route so you can compare the cost of driving with the cost of flying (for routes over 200 miles).
Cool links!
Some more for you:
Plan your perfect road trip here:
http://www.tripbase.com/road-trip-ideas
One tank road trip ideas here:
http://www.tripbase.com/blog/24-amazing-4th-of-july-road-trips/
Enjoy!
Gas prices these days are just getting higher, i think the government should focus more on alternative energy.”‘”
I agree. I also made it a priority to rely more on train travel in the new year, however, it’s always a good idea to give back (plant, volunteer, etc) no matter what type of transit you take. Transportation is nearly unavoidable.