6 Tips To Save Money As A Van Driver

You’ll know where you’re going but planning ahead with your trip can make for a more efficient journey. If you know what you’ll need for your day, you can load your van accordingly, so you aren’t carrying extra weight. Keep items on the roof rack to a minimum to reduce fuel and potential theft. If you don’t need to use the roof rack, remove it completely. Consider having any bulky or heavy items delivered.

Keeping up with maintenance on your van is the easiest way to ensure it stays in the best and safest condition possible; it’s also a good way of saving some money on fuel. There will be a temptation to either miss or be late for servicing. However, from our experience maintaining thousands of vehicles, this approach is usually a false economy over a longer period of time.

Tyre pressure is a surprising way of using more fuel than you need to. Some studies suggest that poor tyre pressure can affect fuel economy by reducing it as much as 10%. Too much pressure can cause as much damage to the tyre and fuel use as a tyre that is underinflated. You should also make sure the tread is sufficient. Knowing how the tyres are wearing will help you budget ahead for their replacement.

Sharp braking and accelerating can reduce your fuel economy and increase wear and tear on brakes and tyres. Keep your driving smooth and steady, anticipating what is happening ahead in plenty of time.

While it’s tempting to crank this up (especially on the hot summer days), it will eat into your fuel consumption. If driving at lower speeds, it can be more efficient to have the windows open. There is no need to have air conditioning on all the time – find a balance of having it turned on for a shorter time.

We all know fuel prices are sky high, but the prices aren’t the same at every pump. It wouldn’t make sense to drive miles for cheaper fuel, as you would use more to get there. However, if you have the option to fill up at different fuel pumps nearby, researching where the cheapest rates are can keep costs lower. If you’re planning a longer trip, researching cheaper fuel pumps along the journey can help to minimise costs. If you’re a fleet manager, keeping your drivers informed on where the best pumps are can benefit the fuel cost.

With a difficult winter likely on the way for many, we’ve continued to ask our experts for ideas about how you can save money on your vehicles.