How to get to a pump when low on fuel

It is always a harrowing experience, not knowing how far you can go before your engine sputters and dies from lack of fuel. Here are a few tips to deal with such a situation...

It is always a harrowing experience, not knowing how far you can go before your engine sputters and dies from lack of fuel. Here are a few tips to deal with such a situation.

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Stop and enquire as to where the closest pump is — it wouldn’t hurt to switch the engine off while doing so. Drive as slowly as possible, as higher speeds means more fuel consumed. Tickle the throttle and use as few engine revs as possible.

Start slowly from a halt and gather speed gradually. Drive in the highest gear possible without the car lurching or lugging; this can damage the engine. Do not use the brakes and lose momentum unless you have to, make the effort to use every bit of rolling speed. Try and coast as much as possible while going down slopes with the engine off — but leave it in neutral and running if you have power-assisted steering and brakes. They may not work if you leave the engine off. Switch off the AC as this adds load to the engine, consuming more fuel. Lastly, when parked at traffic crossings, switch off the engine.

Autocar India