Guest Post: Eco Friendly and Pocket Friendly Car Tips

Eco Friendly and Pocket Friendly Car Tips

The majority of times, we simply jump into our cars and don’t think much about how our driving affects the environment. We simply just want to get from A to B as quickly and safely as possible. What many people don’t know, is that if we make small changes to our cars and how we drive them, we can save the planet from further damage and even save ourselves some precious money. There are many ways in which greener driving and our finances go hand in hand, everything from fuel costs to our car insurance can go down. Here are some helpful tips that should see you through to a brighter, eco-friendly future.

Look at your insurance

The size of your car does directly affect how likely you are to experience theft of a vehicle. Smaller cars are less prone to being vandalised or broken into, mainly because they are in general cheaper than their larger counterparts. It is this fact that makes smaller cars less costly to insure.  Luxury cars are often more expensive to fix and obtain parts for, so insurance companies tend to charge a premium rate for these. So, it is great news for us small car drivers, that eco-friendly cars, such as electric cars are also small in stature. Simply by switching your next car, to an eco-friendly version, you will save yourself money on your car insurance each month. Do some research into how insurance providers, such as Swiftcover calculate how much it will cost you to switch insurers.

Turn off your engines

Do you leave your engine running at traffic lights, or whilst waiting for a friend? If the answer is yes, then you are certainly not alone. Many of us simply don’t consider switching off the engine when we are only waiting a matter of minutes, but by leaving the car running, we are wasting money and not helping the environment. The constant running of the engine will waste your fuel for a start. Let’s face it, current fuel prices are too high to waste anyway. Along with this, the gas emissions can be greater for idling then when the vehicle is in motion, contributing to the global carbon footprint.

Give your car a check up

Much like our bodies, you car will go through an awful lot in its lifetime and because of this it needs to have regular maintenance checks. On average, your vehicle needs a maintenance check once a year to make sure that, not only that the car is road worthy, but that it is not costing your wallet or the environment more than it should be. Fuel consumption is a great example of this; if you car is not working at 100% then it will need more fuel intake to keep it going. This in turn will cost you extra cash each month and mean that your vehicle is giving off extra carbon monoxide fumes. To save yourself some money and worry, make sure you keep all your maintenance appointments and get anything fixed when it needs to be.

Empty your car

We all carry our lives around in our cars at some point, from children’s toys, bikes, coats, bags, sometimes it feels like our cars are an extension of our home. The issue is, that by carrying extra weight in our vehicles we are not only slowing our vehicles down, but it is having to work harder to perform to the right capacity! Much like the maintenance checks, by simply emptying our vehicles, we can save money and fuel, thus creating a happier world and bank balance.