Tips To Help You Use Less Gas

The road to using less gasoline begins at home and consists of some relatively simple, commonsense steps, according to Vera Gibbons, a special correspondent for Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine.

She offered advice on The Early Show Monday.

Any kind of help is more than welcome. The average price for a gallon of self-serve regular is up to $2.91, and there's no end to in sight to the pain at the pump.

"One of the first things you should do before you head out the door (to buy gas)," Gibbons told co-anchor Hannah Storm, "is hit the Web. Go to sites such as gaspricewatch.com, , or even AAA's site just to find out which stations near you have the best prices, because the spread may be significant, upwards of five, 10 cents. In this day and age, those make a difference."

Gibbons says the day of the week you buy gas matters.

"Gas prices sometimes go up on Thursday," Gibbons said. "This is when demand starts creeping up. People go away for the weekend. So it's high then and then it slowly starts creeping down after the weekend. Typically, the lowest price day of the week is generally Tuesday midday or Wednesday morning."

In addition, suggests Gibbons, "Clean out your trunk. If you've got a lot of junk back there, a lot of weight back there, it hurts your fuel economy and thus, costs you some money.

"You also want to check your tires to make sure they're properly inflated. For every three pounds they're below their recommended pressure, your fuel economy drops by 1 percent. I think a lot of people are driving around with tires either under-inflated or over-inflated, and they don't necessarily know that."

Another drag on fuel efficiency is the drag created on your vehicle by something tied to the roof. Try to avoid doing that.

Other advice from Gibbons: Keep you vehicle properly tuned. Make sure everything is checked, from the filters to the fluids. Make sure you're changing your oil regularly. Again, it's about improving your car's fuel efficiency.

The way you drive matters, too, Gibbons says: "Fuel economy is directly proportionate to how hard you accelerate and how steady you are on the accelerator. If you're driving quickly, that can cost you. Each mile per hour you go over 60 miles an hour is the equivalent of paying an additional 10 cents a gallon. Erratic braking and erratic acceleration is wasting 50 cents a gallon."

Gibbons observes that, "Some people are under the impression that higher octane fuel is going to help their cars' engine's perform better. That's hardly ever the case. So, unless your car does require it, and you've got a high-end sports car or a luxury car, stick with regular unleaded which is averaging $2.91 versus $3.19 for the premium, on average."

Asked if it matters if you use cash or credit cards to pay for gas, Gibbons replied, "I think it's good to pay with a credit card if you're getting something back. There are a couple of types of rebate cards out there. I like the ones that are more general, more flexible, where you get a rebate not only on gas purchases, but also purchases made at supermarkets. Generally, you get a 5 percent rebate — and that, in essence, is like a 5 percent discount … and we'll take it!"