While gas prices rise around the U.S, it’s never been more important for trucking companies to cut down fuel expenses. Truckers can significantly decrease their fuel costs by taking simple measures to increase the efficiency of their fleet. We’re sharing with you 7 ways truckers can save big on fuel costs. (If you’re looking to improve your truck for a more positive experience out on the road, you may want to consider roll-up gortite doors for additional security for your vehicle and the items inside it.)
- Regular Maintenance and Check-ups
Along with following the normal oil change cycle, make sure to perform regular tune ups on your trucks at each 100k mile mark in order to keep your fleet as efficient as possible. When a problem occurs don’t let it persist. If a truck’s cylinders fail, it is recommended that you replace the injectors in sets in order to ensure the optimum performance of all cylinders.
- Progressive Gear Shift and Consistent Speeds
Truckers often mistakenly waste fuel when accelerating. By speeding up the truck beyond the necessary revs for each gear shit, truckers decrease their overall fuel economy. What many truckers don’t realize is that they can actually accelerate faster by getting into a higher gear sooner, and that’s best accomplished by using minimum engine revs for each gear change. Lower your revs and you will lower your fuel expenses. According to the Department of Energy, rapid speeding and braking can decrease gas mileage up to 40%!
- Reduce Idle Time
Too many truckers leave their engines running idle and waste a significant amount of fuel in the process. According to truckinginfo.com every hour of idle time in a long haul operation can decrease fuel economy by 1%. While many drivers leave their engines idle in order to protect their trucks from extreme temperatures, idling in moderate weather has become surprisingly common. Instead of unnecessarily burning fuel, invest in advanced heating and cooling systems in order to regular the temperature of your trucks and save yourself money.
- Look For Rewards
There are a lot of reward schemes that gas stations use to keep you using their brand. There are also simple things you can do to get free money for fueling. For example, Murphy USA has an online survey you can complete and be in with a chance of winning $100 worth of free fuel. Every little offer like this can help truckers a lot.
- Take Care of Wheels
Proper inflation of your tires is essential to maintaining good fuel economy and extending tire life. Proper wheel alignment is also critical to a truck’s fuel efficiency. Align all axles together instead of using just a front axle alignment and check alignment at every 60,000 miles in order to increase your truck’s fuel economy. Investing in low-rolling resistance tires is also proven to improve fuel efficiency!
- Use Technology
Electronic cooling devices can reduce the fuel used to run your trucks’ air conditioner.
New mobile smartphone apps are helping make trucking more efficient. Drivers can use EFS’ apps in order manage funds, transfer money between cards, and view load history. TruckerTools is another mobile app which can save you on fuel costs by providing instant access to the nearest fuel locations and highlighting the lowest available prices.
Why waste fuel by stopping at tolls and weigh stations when you don’t have to? With transponder services such as E-Z Pass, Prepass, and Bestpass truckers can cut down their fuel expenses by limiting the amount of required stops.
Even after putting these fuel efficient practices to use, rising diesel prices can continue to burden your trucking business. Apply for funding from a freight factoring company and receive fuel cards that save you money at the pump. Along with providing discounted fuel at truck stops nationwide, freight factoring also provides cash advances for fuel. When factoring, fuel advances are available for every load upon pickup!
Start factoring freight today! Not only will factoring provide same day cash when you need it most, but your business will be instantly eligible for free fuel cards. Call 1-855-322-8671 today to receive freight factoring cash and fuel discounts so your trucking company can increase its cash flow and grow!