Artificial Intelligence

With the price of oil going through the roof, I've had several friends ask me recently what we can do about the high price of gas. Unfortunately, we may not be able to do much about high gas prices, but we can all change a few small habits that added up together allow us to save a significant amount on gas.

First of all, I'm not going to talk about doing things like buying a hybrid vehicle because I don't believe most of us have an extra $17,000 to $23,000 in cash just lying around waiting for us to invest it in a new, more fuel-efficient vehicle. So here are some down to earth low or no cost things you can do to save money on gas and make your trips to the pump fewer and farther between, regardless of what type of vehicle you drive:

1. Pay for gas with a credit card that gives you cash back. Chase, Discover, and American Express all have cards that pay you cash back on your gas purchases (and you can earn up to 5% cash back depending on the card you use). Other cards like Citi pay you cash back on every purchase, but you'll get a smaller percent back.

2. Use synthetic motor oil. This can save you up to 5% on gas.

3. Keep your vehicle's tires properly inflated. Check the tire pressure every time you fill up for gas. Doing so is safer and gives you better control of your vehicle, saves wear and tear on your tires so they last longer, and saves you about 3% on gas. Keep in mind that even the best tubeless tires on the market today lose 2%-5% of their air pressure each month from air naturally migrating through the rubber.

4. Locate a gas station with cheap prices that is on your daily commute route or near where you live and fill up there. Where I live in Phoenix, Arizona prices vary as much as 5% between discount gas stations and name brand stations. Better yet, buy gas at warehouse stores like Costco or Sam's Club. This will typically save you 2%-3% on gas over discount stations.

5. Remove items you don't need to have with you from your vehicle. Hauling that extra weight around costs more gas.

6. Drive more moderately--reduce rapid acceleration and braking. This will also save wear and tear on your brakes so they'll last longer and you won't need to replace your brake pads and shoes as often.

7. Whenever possible, drive during non-rush hours when there's less traffic. You'll save money on gas and your commute will take less time, too.

8. If your job allows it, telecommute to work one day a week or more. More and more companies are allowing telecommuting, and telecommuters are often more productive than office workers. Telecommuting costs less for employers and when the work is done from home, managers judge the effort by the end result and not how the work was done, or perceived to be done (have you ever had co-workers that looked busy but weren't really that productive?). Here's an informative article on Telecommuting as a True Workplace Alternative. Telecommuting just one day a week could save you 20% on gas.

9. Give your car a tune up if it's due for one. A tuned engine uses less gas.

10. Whenever possible, plan your driving to be efficient and run several errands at once.

11. Avoid drive-thrus and wasting gas while your car is idling. Park your car outside and walk in for transactions at the bank, fast food restaurants, and so on. One added benefit is the exercise you'll get (assuming, of course, it's not raining cats and dogs out and you don't have to walk through 3 foot snow drifts to do this).

12. Walk, ride a bicycle or carpool whenever you can, or take public transportation. If you have public transportation available to you, taking the local bus is not only economical, but less stressful because you don't have to navigate through rush hour traffic. During the ride, you can just hang out and relax and listen to some music on your MP3 player, call or text message anybody very safely, read a newspaper or book, or fire up your laptop and get some work done on the way.

In summary, what can we do about high gas prices? We can be frugal and smart about how much gas we use, change a few of our habits, and make sure we get the most bang for our hard-earned buck! The average American uses 500 gallons of gas every year. Implement the tips in this article and you can save 16%-36% on what you spend on gas. At $3.50 per gallon, that's an annual savings of at least $280 and as much as $630!

Mark Minks is the founder of MoneyJibe Personal Finance, a website that offers money saving tips, money making ideas, and free online coupons, coupon codes and promotional codes for Amazon.com, Overstock.com, TigerDirect.com and other highly respected online shopping sites.