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Yes, you read the headline correctly and, no, I didn’t make a mistake on the price. On May 14, 2008, a 1996 Geo Metro sold on eBay (item #120259722316) for $7,300 (read the full story), about five times the Blue Book price for the car, and only about $2,000 less than new - 12 years ago! Yes, the car can get 44 miles per gallon of gas, but my only question is - what was the buyer thinking?

Marci Solomon, the buyer of the car, gushes “The Metro is an investment in the future.” It was all about saving money,” she said. “I don’t think gas is ever going to go down, and these are going to be the types of solutions we have to turn to. I wanted to beat the rush.” If this is what she thinks is a good investment, her retirement 401K is definitely in peril. Folks, this is a perfect example of what’s known as “herd” mentality - “describes how people are influenced by their peers to adopt certain behaviors, follow trends, and/or purchase items” (Wikipedia). The focus here is on gas mileage only - sadly, no other factors are even considered. This was an incredible purchase that will most likely never result in any savings, and I can prove it.

For example, say I bought a 1996 Chevy Corsica with 39,000 miles for $1,930 (KBB price). At $4.00/gal for fuel and 22 mpg, it would cost $2,728 in gas for 15,000 miles. This Geo cost $7,300, gets 44 mpg and uses $1,364 in fuel for the same 15,000 miles, half the amount of the Chevy. Here’s where things get interesting - The Chevy costs a whopping $5,370 less than the Geo and, while it would use twice the amount of fuel, it would take almost 4 years of driving the Geo just to break even ($5,370/$1,364 = 3.94 years), considering the ridiculous purchase price of the Geo! And that doesn’t include the lost opportunity cost of investing the savings for those four years.

Let’s face it - the Geo was always a bottom feeder, even when new. Cramped, noisy and slow, new car shoppers usually just said “no” when car shopping in 1996, looking to much better designed Hondas, Toyotas and Mazdas to satisfy the small car urge.

Always consider more than just miles per gallon when shopping for an “economy” car.

You’ve been behaving yourself on the road - no aggressive driving, obeying speed limits and planning each trip with care. Your car is in tip-top condition, tires inflated, excessive weight removed and all fluids changed at proper intervals. And, your gas mileage has increased noticeably and you’re pleased with the results - so far. The burning question now - is this all you can do to stretch your fuel dollar? Most conventional sources will tell you that all the “low hanging fruit” has been picked, and now you must reach higher (or get a ladder) to keep the harvest in full swing.  Here are some more things you can do now to stretch your fuel dollars even more.

• Pay for your gas with a cash-back credit card. This could be worth an additional 1% - 5% savings per year. If you drive 15,000 miles per year and your car gets 20 miles per gallon, you could putting   more than $140 back into your pocket! Of course, paying off your credit card balance every month is a MUST for this strategy. Why not let the credit card companies help you out for a change? Here are some cash back cards to consider.

• Use a high-flow air filter. In real life, about 95% of all the “gas mileage gadgets” out there do not help to increase miles per gallon. In fact, many do just the opposite - they rob your engine of horsepower and actually decrease your gas mileage. But there are several legitimate products that can help your car get better mileage. One of them is a highly efficient air filter. Since today’s engines (gasoline and diesel) are essentially air pumps, the easier it is for your engine to “breathe,” the more efficient it will be.  The paper filter that’s in your car now is fairly adept at letting clean air through, but you can do better. K&N sells a washable, high-flow filter that has been scientifically proved to increase horsepower and increase gas mileage. They cost a little more than the paper variety, but are reusable and will last far longer. Click here to find one for your car.

• Vortex Generators designed to create turbulence in the air intake tract of your car.  According to information on the Turbonator website, this device “spins” the air so that it will more efficiently move around corners and mix with the fuel better than “flat” air in the combustion chamber. Claimed increases in gas mileage, about 10% - 22%. Popular Mechanics tested similar devices with similar claims to Turbonator, Sept. 2005, and found that peak horsepower declined by at least 10%, and one decreased miles per gallon by 20%, the other  was no change. These devices have been around since the first days of the automobile, and have never been proven to have had a positive effect on horsepower and/or fuel consumption. The sales hype sounds promising, but the engineering just isn’t there. Conclusion: Don’t waste your money.

• Miracle Magnetic Ionic Fuel Savers. Just clamp this magnet right onto your fuel line and the magnetic flux will “break apart clusters of fuel molecules so gas burns more efficiently.” First of all, gasoline has no magnetic components, so I can’t see where the magnetic influence would be useful. Other claims include more miles per gallon, helps pass emissions testing and stops scale buildup and corrosion in engine, according to one seller on a popular auction site. Of course, no one can offer 100% documented proof that a magnetic flux will have any positive effect on engine performance or gas mileage. Once again, don’t waste your money on these worthless devices.
  

These are just two of the many gadgets on the market today that claim to save fuel and improve engine performance, and do nothing but lighten your wallet. The key to spotting frauds like these is to ask yourself - “is this too good to be true?” If the answer is yes, then you’ve exposed a fraud - pat yourself on the back.

Read some of my articles on how to really save gas and care for your car on Ezines.com.

Can “hypermiling” boost your gas mileage?

Hypermiling, the practice of using extreme driving measures to get more miles per gallon, has been around for practically as long as cars have been chugging all over the earth. But it hasn’t been making the news until lately, as gas prices have been streaking up and up - more than $4.00 per gallon at last count. Hypermilers practice some of these techniques to boost gas mileage:

• Increase tire air pressure to maximum
• Turn engine off at stoplights
• Shift transmission to neutral and coast down hills (preserve momentum)
• Draft (follow very closely) large trucks on the highway (reduce drag)
• Never use air conditioning

Some of these techniques, such as shifting into neutral and coasting down hills, could potentially cause big trouble if your car goes out of control. Drafting on the highway is essentially tailgaiting and, if you don’t eventually rear-end the truck in front of you, cops WILL ticket this behavior as aggressive and/or reckless driving.

But, I’ve adapted a couple of hypermiling ideas for my own use, and I’ve seen my gas mileage increase to almost 20 mpg, from a normal 17mpg (city) in my Ford Taurus Wagon - a 15% increase. Now, this is not the miraculous 50% - 85% increases that you can read about on the internet today, but I won’t compromise safety for a few measly bucks, and some of these people are risking their lives, and the lives of others in this pursuit.

Here’s a couple of hypermiler-inspired mileage-boosters that I’ve been doing for a couple of months that won’t put your life at risk, but will boost your gas mileage.

• If I’m at a long light (greater than 1 minute), I’ll shut off the engine. The car’s in great tune and will restart easily - no problem here. Same applies to RR crossings and the like.
• Maximized the air pressure in my tires (read the tire manufacturer’s max psi on the sidewall).
• Momentum is our friend - it’s not dangerous, nor will we be likely to get a speeding ticket coasting your car (in gear) down a hill without riding the brakes (unless it’s a school zone) about 5 mph faster that the limit. I’m not advocating breaking the law, but if you can use some of that momentum to get up the next hill, you’ll be dollars ahead at the gas pump. Proceed with caution.
• Unless I’m traveling on the highway for an extended period, I won’t use the a/c. Studies have confirmed that air conditioning use in the city, vs. rolling down the windows, saves gas.
• For Pete’s sake, don’t jackrabbit from stoplight to stoplight - try to keep your car rolling between stoplights as a rolling car takes much less energy to get rolling than to keep rolling.

Gas prices have hit another all time high this week. Is there any relief in sight? Probably not, at least in the short term. As long as crude oil continues its meteoric rise to well over $130/barrel (crude was about $65/barrel one year ago), gas prices will remain in the “ouch” category for a while.

You can’t control the price of gas, but you can control how much of it you use. That doesn’t necessarily mean rushing out and buying an expensive “economy” car, but you can fine tune your driving habits and the vehicle that’s now sitting in your driveway.

1. Don’t drive. Well, duh - it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that one out. But it does require some pretty careful planning when you do drive your car. Can you walk to the post office? Can your kids hoof it home from school? Could your significant other pick up that dozen eggs and gallon of milk on the way home (instead of you making an extra trip)?
2. When you drive, develop some new habits. Another obvious “duh” - don’t rocket away from stoplights. Maybe there is an area in our brains that says “don’t let the guy next to you beat you away from the stoplight,” when, in reality, you’ll most likely meet him at the next light anyway. You could save up to 20% on your gas bill by treading lightly on the gas pedal.
3. Take better care of your car. No matter what you drive, paying attention to the basics will definitely make your vehicle last longer and get better gas mileage. Things like changing the oil, making sure tires are inflated to the maximum psi, getting the engine tuned when needed all contribute to a more efficient transportation experience. And, that means doing it for less money.

Instead of feeling helpless everytime you hear that gas prices are up again, take action! And remember, what goes up, must come down. While gas prices may never be as low as they were even last year, most commodities “experts” are predicting that the “oil bubble” will eventually burst. Just think of the dot.com bubble bursting in 2000 and the housing bubble popping today. Think positive!

For more timely car tips, visit http://www.ezinearticles.com/?expert=Dan_Morton.