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Don't drive
Without a doubt, the best way to burn less gas is to driver fewer miles. That doesn't necessarily mean biking the whole way to work, though it couldn't hurt. Think about combining trips, walking, biking or taking public transportation when possible. If you've got to go to several stores in the same plaza, park centrally rather than driving from one store to the other. It takes some extra planning and some physical effort, but it might be worth it if you can squeeze a few extra days between fill ups.
Fix your car
Sure, buying an electric car or a hybrid can save you a bundle in gasoline costs, but if you're worried about gas prices you probably already have a car. You might as well make the most of what you've got.
Ditch that roof rack. If you're not carrying skis or kayaks, there's no need to create unnecessary drag.
Clean up. Remove unnecessary items from the trunk. The extra weight doesn't help.
Kick the tires. Make sure all of your tires are properly inflated. The more rolling resistance your tires exert, the harder your engine has to work. But don't over-inflate. That can lead to a dangerous loss of friction or other problems.
Tune up. A well-kept engine runs more efficiently. A simple tuneup can save gas, as can friction-reducing motor oil.
Fix the driver
If your window sticker said 25 MPG and you're getting 15, there's a chance your foot is what's wrong with your car. The easiest way to improve your mileage is to fix the driver.
MPG computers are available on many cars, and there are some available aftermarket, such as the ScanGaugeII, and some you can build yourself (MPGuino). Observing your "instant" or current MPG as you drive your car in different ways is eye-opening. For example, those who drive manual transmission vehicles may discover that you hold your car in a low gear too long, and you may find that upshifting sooner and gently nudging the car along with the gas pedal can cause a huge rise in MPG. You would not see this kind of immediate feedback without a trip computer that displays the current MPG.
Learn to anticipate the flow of traffic as you drive: Leave some distance between your car and the car in front of you during stop-and-go traffic, so you can coast. When coming down a hill, leave your foot off the accelerator. Don't floor it just to get to a stoplight.
If you're really looking to maximize your mileage, check out websites like CleanMPG and Ecomodder, which are devoted to the fine automotive art of hypermiling. Hypermilers use Newton's First Law of Motion to its full extent, keeping a car in motion for as long as possible.
Hypermilers think nothing of pushing their car out of the garage to avoid using extra gas, or parking in a space that's on an incline so they can coast back into traffic. You may see a hypermiler wearing an "ice vest" to avoid using air conditioning or rolling down windows during summer.
Some of the techniques work best on lightly traveled roads, such as following the "racing line" through a corner or timing a traffic light by slowing down many car-lengths away from the stop line and coasting until the light turns green.
Other tactics, such as cutting through parking lots to avoid red lights and shutting off the engine while coasting, are dangerous and often illegal.
Whether you're hypermiling or just giving up hot-rodding, the key to increasing your mileage is paying attention to your commute, your car and your driving habits.
Read more about how lots of people described their hypermiling experiences.
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