Although most of us dream of owning hybrid cars, only a few would actually take the effort to make sure that the vehicle runs at its peak, and offers wonderful fuel efficiency in the process. The more efficiently you use your hybrid car, the better it would serve you in terms of performance, fuel efficiency and cost savings. So if you own a hybrid car, here are some tips that could help you increase the efficiency of the same.
Extending Battery Life
Although most hybrid cars contain batteries that can last for anywhere between 100000 and 150000 miles, you can make your hybrid car’s battery last longer than that by following a few tricks.
Instead of braking to stop your car, try coasting to a stop from a safe distance. Put the car in neutral gear and let the car use its own kinetic energy to coast to a stop. This would retain the charge in the battery for longer periods. However, make sure you steer clear of other vehicles on the road while doing this.
When starting from a stoplight, consider using the gas pedal instead of electricity. Accordingly, press the gas pedal gently to allow the car to start moving slowly. This way, you can cycle the battery and enjoy a better fuel efficiency.
Saving on Fuel
In addition to extending the battery life, saving on fuel can help increase the efficiency of your hybrid car. Here are some tips that can help you out with the same.
The faster you drive, the greater would be the aerodynamic drag. This would in turn increase the amount of fuel your hybrid car uses. So make sure you drive slower in order to save extra fuel.
Try driving at a constant speed. For if you slow down, you would waste accumulated energy. And if you accelerate, your hybrid vehicle would use more energy. Maintaining a constant speed would thus enable your hybrid car to perform more efficiently.
Saving Energy
A few tricks would enable you to save the energy your hybrid car builds up while on the road. But the most important trick of all would be stopping slowly instead of abruptly. Every time you press the brakes hard, the car would use a lot of energy to come to a sudden stop, thereby wasting a lot of energy in the process. So keep aside the sudden stops for emergencies, and make sure you stop the car slowly in order to let it use only a small amount of the energy to stop as well as recover this energy while stopping.
