8 STUPID things Indian drivers believe about ‘Mileage’

India is a country of jugaad and the same is applicable to the process of getting a driving license. While there are all the mandatory tests and procedures involved, it’s no secret that many Indian car drivers manage to get a driving license through jugaad. Such drivers lack proper training and most of them learn driving from their kin. This results in lack of finer driving skills and, most importantly, lack of proper road manners. This probably is the reason why we usually see people honking unnecessarily or resting their foot on the clutch pedal all the time. It really won’t be wrong to say that many Indian drivers have some really stupid habits when it comes to driving a car.

Ford Motor Company carried out a survey that covered 9,500 drivers in 11 countries of the Asia Pacific region. 1,023 out of these 9,500 drivers were Indian respondents. Based on the findings of this survey, here are 8 STUPID things Indian drivers believe about mileage.

Harsh acceleration has no effect on fuel efficiency

This is something that as many as 40% of Indian drivers believe in. Accelerating hard may give you the thrills but it has a negative effect on fuel efficiency. Most of us aren’t aware of this or are ignorant of the fact that harsh acceleration or unnecessary revving the engine can result in lower mileage.

Keeping the engine on while idling doesn’t affect mileage

Believe it or not, but a whopping 26% of Indian drivers believe that keeping the engine idling is not much of an issue. The fact is turning the engine off saves more fuel than keeping it on idle, unless the period is less than 15 seconds.

Cruise control has nothing to do with mileage

Again something which 78% of Indian drivers believe in. In reality, cruise control is a handy tool to maintain a constant speed. It translates into the engine not wasting any fuel on unnecessary acceleration, which in turns means better mileage.

GPS has no role to play in fuel efficiency

Only 27% of drivers know how to check GPS. No matter how tech savvy we may call ourselves, many still don’t check GPS before leaving home. Through GPS, one can plan alternative routes and avoid getting stuck in unnecessary traffic jams. Once you get stuck in traffic, your car will burn fuel at a much higher rate due to crawling and sudden acceleration/deceleration. So, it’s always better to check GPS before heading out and plan your route accordingly.

Driving on mountain roads does not affect fuel efficiency

52% of drivers didn’t know that driving on mountain roads can affect fuel efficiency.

When your car has to climb slopes, the engine has to constantly work extra hard to make sure that power is delivered properly to the wheels. This in turn has a direct effect on the car’s fuel efficiency. As compared to plains, your car’s mileage drops drastically on mountain roads because of the reason explained above.

Weather does not affect mileage

73% people were unaware that cold weather affects the mileage of the vehicle, while 63% did not know that hot weather can play a role in fuel efficiency

This is a fact most people are unaware of. Though modern engine technologies have made things much easier now, every engine still has an optimum temperature at which it can perform best. However, in winters, reaching the optimum engine temperature takes much more time, which, in turn, reduces the mileage. This, however, doesn’t mean that you will get good mileage in summers. On the contrary, summers lead to car owners using the air conditioning to beat the heat resulting in lower fuel efficiency.

Also, high speed driving leads to higher wind resistance, which in turn leads to lower fuel efficiency. The wind resistance can easily be minimised by rolling up the windows and using the AC to maintain a favourable cabin temperature. But at low speeds and during short distance runs, this practice can again lead to lower fuel efficiency.

Weight and fuel efficiency have no connection at all

65% of drivers did not know that removing heavy items from the car make it more fuel efficient

It’s a simple fact that the lighter your car is, the more easily and rapidly it will move. Most people however create a dump yard inside their cars, which adversely affects the fuel consumption. Hence, it’s always better to remove unnecessary objects from the car and keeping the vehicle as light as possible.

Regular servicing has no role in mileage

Only 33% of drivers are aware of the fact that regular servicing can help in saving more fuel

It’s quite apparent that regular servicing is one of the easiest ways to ensure that your car remains in good health. However, truth to be told, just about one-third of all car owners adhere to this practice. This simple practice can keep your car in a good condition in the long run and would also lead to better mileage figures.