Gadgetory

you know saving fuel is saving money that gets a lot of people's attention too bad a lot of that attention is paid to things that don't matter I'm Brian Cooley with my top five myths about what saves gas in your car number five warming up your car will save gas like anyone does this anymore it makes no sense anyway but today's materials engine machining techniques oils lubrication channel design and more mean you can drive off a second or two after you turn the key and not warm up your engine wasting fuel ditto goes for idling at a stoplight by the way hence the new prevalence of automatic start/stop tech in cars these days which is generally considered to increase mpg five to ten percent put another way idling your car can burn a quarter to a half a gallon of gas an hour going nowhere number four a dirty air filter will harm your fuel economy not unless it says clogged as a cork in a bottle you see your car's electronic control unit will adjust the fuel mix to match whatever amount of air is actually getting in for the optimal blend now you may get less power and torque with a badly clogged air filter but probably not lower mpg number three premium gas gets you better mileage I never really understood this one but I think it comes from the misconception that higher octane gas is more combustive and therefore gives you more go for a droplet of fuel in fact higher octane fuel is actually less likely to detonate and therefore it has no impact on mpg unless you've got a car that really specifically needs it number two additives to increase fuel economy now turn off the daytime TV folks these additives and devices are basically all BS the EPA has been testing this stuff for decades and if they deliver any improvement at all it's tiny I mean seriously if you think a twenty dollar additive or gadget for which you get two if you pay separate shipping and handling can outdo a hundred million dollars in engineering your car maker did to invent your car I can't help you you'll save gas money and the environment the number one myth I hear all the time in this area is annual transmissions delivering better fuel economy it was the case but that was a while ago today the automatic gearbox will almost always deliver better fuel economy and typically better acceleration that's because an automatic can be lashed to the vehicle's electronic control units and managed for optimal shift points how long it holds our PMS and whether it locks up its torque converter let's face it your modern car is a computerized transportation appliance and typically when you intervene with all your fuzzy logic things just get worse high-tech cars and modern driving at CNET on cars calm I'm Brian Cooley thanks for watching