Tires and Fuel Efficiency: It’s All About Staying "Green"

The tires you buy and how well you maintain them can significantly affect how much money you spend on fuel, as well as your vehicle's impact on the environment. Being an informed consumer and properly maintaining your tires means you can be green— and get more "green" in your wallet by reducing your vehicle emissions.

Here are two key tire factors that affect vehicle fuel efficiency:

If your tires are underinflated, you reduce your vehicle's fuel economy and increase the amount of greenhouse gases and other pollutants it puts into the air.
Keeping your tires properly inflated can save you up to 9 cents per gallon. If you fuel up once a week, those savings add up fast.

• To save on gas, check your tire pressure once a month.
• Keep a tire pressure gauge in your vehicle, because hitting a pothole or a curb can cause a significant loss in tire pressure that you may want to check on at any time.

• Make sure you know the recommended pressure for your tires: It's in your owner's manual or the Tire and Loading Information Label located on the driver's side door edge or post.

• Check your tires when they're "cold," which means that they haven't been driven on for at least three hours.

• When it's time to buy new tires, research which low rolling resistance tires are recommended for your vehicle.
• Choose fuel-efficient, low rolling resistance tires to help improve your fuel efficiency.