FUEL ECONOMY
FuelEconomy
Unit
Q1
My current car is a 2011 Toyota Camry LE. I use the car for myeveryday commute, running errands, and general mobility. This cardoes not portray my desired public image. It is also not the mostfuel efficient car in the market as it is relatively older. If I wereto choose another vehicle regardless of how much it costs, then Iwould go for a more elegant make that better represents who I am.Thus, my ideal car would be the 2016 Mercedes-Benz C63. This car isrelatively new in the market. This means that it is fitted with thelatest features in entertainment, safety, performance, and emissions,making it much better than my Toyota Camry. Concerning fuelefficiency, my current car gets 25 miles per gallon (MPG) in thecity, 31 on the highway and 25 combined. The car has a relativelylong range of 462 miles on a full tank. In contrast, the 2016Mercedes-Benz C63 promises to deliver only 18 MPG in the city, 24 onthe highway, and 20 combined with a relatively short range of 360miles. Concerning expenditure on fuel, the Camry requires $1,350annually translating to $2.24 for every 25 miles. Such consumptionlevels are equal to those of an average 2016 car. Therefore, I do notincur any extra costs or save on fuel. On the other hand, the E63 hashigher fuel costs at $2,050 annually and $3.41 for every 25 miles.This translates to an additional $700 spent on fuel every year. TheE63 is also more compact than the Camry and has an overall safetyrating of five stars compared to three in my current car. Thus, theE63 is safer and more good-looking but less fuel efficient than theCamry or the average new car of 2016.
Q2
For the time being, there are several suggested techniques that I canemploy to increase fuel efficiency on the Camry and save more. Theyinclude shedding excess weight, reducing excessive idling of theengine, and using recommended motor oil. To make these tips work, Iwill have to make drastic changes. One of them is to stop leaving thecar idling for more than a minute. I have always thought thatstarting the engine combusts a significantly larger amount of fuelthan when left idling for about five minutes. Therefore, I tend toleave my engine idling for even 20 minutes just to avoid restartingit. What I have learned is that a car combusts just about 10 secondsworth of fuel to restart. With such information, I will be shuttingdown my engine whenever I anticipate a delay such as when waiting topick up my friends. Another thing that I have learned today is thatthe choice of engine oil affects both the performance and the fuelefficiency of an engine. Still, on reducing fuel usage, I have foundout that auto manufacturers recommend certain types of motor oils forspecific engines. In the past, I have always bought motor oilrecommended by staff at the car clinic. From now on, I will seek toknow the oil recommended for my Camry by the manufacturer and stickto using it. Again, I will offload any unwanted items from my car.For some unknown reason, I tend to keep several tools in the trunk ofthe car. I will not be keeping such stuff in my car to avoidunnecessary weight that increases fuel consumption of the car.