When you’re in charge of a fleet of vehicles, fuel prices can add up quickly. But with strategic planning, quality wholesale fuel, and the right driving tips for fuel efficiency, fleet managers can significantly reduce fuel costs. Discover five fleet-tailored tips for maximizing revenue and minimizing your fleet’s environmental impact!

HOW CAN YOU INCREASE FUEL EFFICIENCY IN YOUR FLEET?

1. PRIORITIZE PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE

You’ve probably noticed that happy, healthy fleet drivers perform better than miserable, tired ones. Your fleet vehicles are no different; proper vehicle maintenance can play a massive role in fuel efficiency. Without getting too technical, here are some of the key areas you should keep a close eye on:

  • Tire Pressure: According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), properly pressurized tires are safer than underinflated tires and can “improve your gas mileage by 0.6% on average—up to 3% in some cases.” Underfilled tires tend to have a higher rolling resistance and lose more energy from flexing back and forth as they travel down the road.
  • Fluid Health: The health of your various automotive fluids can also play a significant role in your vehicles’ fuel efficiency — especially engine oil, transmission fluid, and gear oil. When any lubricating fluid has outlived its lifespan or become contaminated, it loses its ability to reduce friction. When friction increases, your engine loses more power and becomes less fuel-efficient.
  • Air Filter Breathability: When your air filter is dirty, your vehicle’s electronic control unit compensates for the lack of air by adding more fuel. But without enough air, that extra fuel can’t combust properly. This results in more unburnt fuel, reduced engine performance, and worse gas mileage. So, to an extent, cleaner air filters mean more air, more powerful combustion, and better fuel efficiency.
  • Spark Plug Condition: Over repeated heating and cooling cycles, the gap between spark plug electrodes increases. Your spark plugs’ electrical arcs have to travel further, which may not only reduce efficiency but also cause your vehicles’ coil/coil packs to wear prematurely. Similarly, dirty spark plugs can also reduce fuel efficiency since they tend to produce weaker sparks and rarely ignite fuel as effectively as clean ones. For these reasons, ensuring your fleet’s spark plugs are cleaned and gapped properly is crucial.
  • Fuel Injector Cleanliness: Like spark plugs, the cleanliness of fuel injectors can play a critical role in vehicle fuel efficiency. Dirty spark plugs can lead to many issues — from sluggish acceleration and rough idling to misfiring and reduced fuel efficiency. So, if you want the best fuel economy from your fleet vehicles, ensuring that their spark plugs are clean is paramount!

2. CAPITALIZE ON CRUISE CONTROL AND IDEAL SHIFTING

Maintaining a consistent speed reduces the amount of fuel your vehicle uses, especially on uninterrupted stretches of road. So, if you want the best fuel efficiency possible, instruct your fleet drivers to use cruise control when possible. This tip is especially easy to incorporate if your fleet consists of automatic vehicles.

However, if your fleet vehicles have manual transmissions, know that shifting gears too soon or too frequently can also reduce mileage since engines need to be in a certain RPM band to operate at maximum efficiency. Though it may seem minor, fuel savings add up, so train your drivers how to shift gears effectively if you can!

3. REDUCE IDLING AND SPEEDING

We know it’s nearly impossible to prevent all idling, but reducing the time spent idling can drastically increase fleet fuel efficiency. In fact, the DOE claims that $11 billion of fuel is wasted every year due to idling — and that’s at a cost of only $2 per gallon!

On the other end of the spectrum, speeding can also be bad for fuel efficiency. For light-duty vehicles, every five miles per hour (mph) you drive over 50 mph “is like paying $0.30 more per gallon of gas (based on the price of gas at $4.32 per gallon),” according to the DOE. It’s not unreasonable to assume that this effect is even bigger for generally less aerodynamic heavy-duty vehicles like the ones that may make up your fleet.

4. PLAN EFFICIENT ROUTES

Optimizing routes and combining trips is another effective way to improve fleet fuel efficiency. When planning routes, try to avoid paths with uphill grades, winding roads, or heavy traffic. If you really want to boost your fuel efficiency, combine trips when possible. Not only do well-planned combined trips often reduce the number of miles traveled, but they also allow your vehicles’ engines to reach peak operating temperature, which can cut down on fuel consumption even further.

5. Equip Your Fleet Vehicles with Monitoring Systems and Tap into Your Drivers’ Competitive Sides

Many companies make devices that can monitor driving habits, fuel consumption, engine health, and much more. If your budget allows, consider installing this type of onboard monitoring system on your fleet vehicles, as they can provide you with the metrics needed to produce actionable feedback for your drivers.

To take this idea one step further, tap into your drivers’ competitive sides and create a leaderboard that ranks drivers according to fuel efficiency. When a driver maintains good fuel efficiency for enough time, consider giving them a reward like a gift card or other incentive. With that said, we know that managing a fleet is a lot of work, so this tip only applies if you have the bandwidth!

STRETCH YOUR FUEL BUDGET FURTHER WITH VENTURE FUELS

Driving habits and planning aren’t the only things that can help you save money. Savings start from the moment you purchase your fleet’s fuel. When you decide to maximize your revenue, trust Venture Fuels to fuel your business fleet. By partnering with major refineries in the Midwest, we’re able to deliver high-quality fuel at the best possible prices. Get in touch today to learn how we can help your fleet!