10 Surprising Ways to Drive Greener and Cleaner for Earth Day + National Car Care Month

Earth Day and National Car Care Month both fall in April, making it a great time to take a look at your driving habits. Small changes can make a big difference, not only for the planet but also for your car and your wallet.

First, let's look at some vehicle maintenance best practices that will keep your car running at peak efficiency. Then, we'll go over some driving habits that will help you get more bang for your fuel buck while keeping your car's carbon footprint under control.

Improve efficiency with regular maintenance

By caring for your car, you'll improve its gas mileage and reduce waste by extending the lifespan of your vehicle and its components. It's a classic win-win, just in time for Earth Day.

Put these five maintenance tasks on your to-do list:

1. Keep your tires inflated

If your tires don't have enough air, your car will encounter what's known as "rolling resistance." This means your engine has to work harder to propel your vehicle, which consumes more gas and increases emissions.

According to the Department of Energy, cars burn up to 10% more gas when their tires are inflated to 50% of the recommended level. That waste adds up over time, affecting both the environment and your bank account.

The fix is easy: Keep your tires inflated to recommended levels. Check your owner's manual for guidance. It will tell you exactly which pressure ranges are right for your tires.

2. Replace worn-down tires

Speaking of tires, you should also check your treads on a regular basis. Worn-out treads also increase rolling resistance, causing further fuel efficiency losses. They're also unsafe and elevate your accident risk.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recommends changing your tires if your treads wear down to 1/16 of an inch or less. You can assess your tread levels with a simple check known as the "penny test."

Take a penny and stick it into your tire tread's most worn-down area. Make sure Abraham Lincoln's head is upside-down, facing you. Can you see the top of Lincoln's head? If so, it's time for new tires.

3. Check your fluids — and use eco-friendly alternatives

Your vehicle's fluids play a critical role in maintaining peak operating efficiency. Regular fluid checks should cover:

• Engine oil
• Transmission fluid
• Brake fluid

Your owner's manual will tell you how often you need to check these fluids, as guidance differs for every vehicle. Engine oil is especially important: Oil keeps everything lubricated while reducing friction, which eases your engine's workload and — you guessed it! — improves your gas mileage.

Also, make sure your coolant levels are where they should be. Otherwise, your engine can overheat. In a best-case scenario, this will cause fuel inefficiencies. In a worst-case scenario, it will lead to serious engine damage.

For a greener alternative to conventional coolant, check out PEAK's ECOSHIELD antifreeze. It's made of 95% renewable ingredients.

4. Perform seasonal maintenance

It's smart to perform seasonal maintenance in the spring and fall. In spring, you'll want to give your car some TLC after a long winter while also preparing it for peak summer heat. In fall, you need to make sure your car is ready for anything the winter months might throw your way.

Our DIY guide to spring vehicle maintenance fully explains all the tasks you should do in spring, and we've also put together a fall car care checklist to get you ready for winter. Use them as seasonal guides, and don't forget to change your air filters every spring and fall. Clogged and soiled filters restrict airflow, forcing your engine to work harder and consume more fuel.

5. Stay on top of scheduled maintenance

On top of your seasonal care, your car needs regular preventative maintenance. This kind of car care follows a set schedule, which depends on your car's year, make, and model. You can find all the details about how it works in this article on mileage-based vehicle maintenance.

During these periodic checkups, a technician will inspect your vehicle to perform tune-ups and recommend services that will boost its performance. Like seasonal maintenance, this kind of car care plays an important role in keeping your vehicle in peak condition — which will improve its efficiency as well as its lifespan.

Good habits to help you drive greener

With your vehicle maintenance covered, it's time to review some tips that will help you drive greener and use less energy.

6. Avoid sharp acceleration and braking

Speeding up and braking put a lot of stress on your car's working parts. Rapid acceleration makes your car use more gas, and it also tends to force you to brake harder and more often. That wears down your brakes, which also increases rolling resistance.

Strive for smooth, even acceleration and steady, gentle braking. Try increasing your following distance: This will give you more time to slow down and stop, and it'll help you break free of braking hard.

7. Reduce your highway speed and use your cruise control

The faster you drive, the more fuel your car uses. As the Department of Energy notes, gas mileage drops off sharply at speeds above 50 miles per hour. As your speed climbs higher and higher, your fuel efficiency drops lower and lower.

This one's an easy fix: Slow down. Your car probably has cruise control, and if so, you should use it whenever you're on the highway in dry weather. Cruise control helps you maintain an even speed, which almost always saves gas.

8. Stop warming up your engine

Years ago, it was good practice to let your car warm up before driving it. Thanks to modern automotive technology, that's no longer necessary. Even so, many drivers picked up this habit from older generations who taught them how to drive and they still let their car warm up.

Try to change this behavior, since all it does is waste gas and release emissions that could easily be saved. Your car doesn't need to be running long to be ready to go, even on a cold morning.

9. Sitting idle? Turn it off!

If you're sitting in traffic, waiting at a railway crossing, or stuck at a drive-thru, your mind may wander to all the gas you're wasting. It turns out there's a magic number that can tell you whether you should keep your car running or turn it off, and that number is 30 seconds.

After 30 seconds, it takes less gas to turn your car on and off than it does to sit still with your engine running. Cut your engine if you know you're going to be stopped for at least half a minute.

10. Use air conditioning and electrical components wisely

Air conditioning is tricky. Sometimes, it's better to use your A/C than it is to open the windows. At other times, the opposite is true. What should you do, and when?

Here's the answer:

At city speeds, put your windows down if it's too warm inside your car. Your A/C will use up more energy than you will by having your windows open.

At highway speeds, open windows create a lot of aerodynamic drag. Aerodynamic drag is a kind of resistance that forces your car to work harder to maintain its speed. So, when you're on the highway, A/C is a better bet.

Also, try to minimize your use of electrical system components like heated seats and interior lighting. These features can consume a surprising amount of energy.

Drive greener and cleaner with PEAK products

Earth Day serves as a gentle reminder to be more eco-conscious and do your part to drive greener. To help celebrate it, we put together a complete list of eco-friendly driving and car care tips. It's full of ideas for little changes you can make that'll have a surprisingly positive impact just in time for National Car Care Month.

At PEAK, we share the important goal of making driving more sustainable. For our part, we're making major investments in developing sustainable and innovative product lines, and our PEAK news feature is a great place to keep an eye on for more information.