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Money Saving Car Tips

Memorial Day weekend is less than a month away. That`s one of the busiest travel weekends of the year for Americans. Now is a good time to start thinking of ways to improve the fuel economy in your car or truck.

The days of slippery roads and shoveling out your car appear to be over for the season. If you`re hoping to go a little farther on one tank of gas, you can start by taking off the snow tires.

"With the summer heat, the tires will wear down a lot quicker. And also, they don`t run as efficient in the summertime. So you lose mileage that way," said Sean Peck, service manager at OK Tire.

Workers at OK Tire say you can extend the life of your tires by rotating them often. If you`re in the market for a new set of treads, Peck says you`ll get what you pay for.

"You don`t want to get too cheap of a tire because the compound isn`t as good. About a 50 to 75,000 mile tire will get you good gas mileage," Peck said.

Also, make sure your tires are properly inflated. If you don`t know how much to fill them, check your driver`s side door panel. It should tell you. Normally it`s around 35 pounds per square inch. And while you`re at it, check the oil.

"An oil change takes about ten to fifteen minutes without any appointments or anything like that," said Jiffy Lube manager James Hellman.

It`s hard to argue with not getting your hands dirty and having the work done for you. Plus, experts can often spot problems under the hood that are easy to overlook.

"Most people, they just drive their car and they tune out to things like noises. They tune them out just because they hear them every day," Hellman said.

Final piece of advice, clean your air filter and fuel injector.

"Like fuel injection cleaning. Most people haven`t even heard of that. But most manufacturers since 2007 recommend getting your fuel system cleaned out every 15,000 miles, which I`d say 90 percent of people never do," Hellman said.

Hellman adds that the ones who do will enjoy a little better mileage and they`ll be saving a little change in their pockets, no matter how high the price at the pump rises.

For more ways to save on gas, try to combine trips and slow down. You can try carpooling with workers or telecommuting, working from home.