Like me, you may have never considered how you can save money by driving slower. I’ll be frank, I had never really considered how my speed effected anything other than how fast I got to my destination. After witnessing a few car accidents though, I’ve discovered the beauty of taking my sweet time. There are quite a few ways that the speed of your vehicle affects your potential savings. In a moment, we’ll discuss as many ways as I can think of but you may be able to come up with even more. First of all, most of you know by now, that a car’s fuel efficiency is usually tested at 50 miles an hour. Studies have shown that driving 65 compared to driving 80 mph is at least 20% more efficient. So naturally, driving 50 mph compared to 65 is… you guessed it; is 20% more efficient.

Imagine if you drive 20 miles a day, 5 days a week, and your car gets at least 20 miles to the gallon. You’ll use 260 gallons of gas a year. That’ll cost you $650 at $2.50/gallon. Saving 20% or $130 in this scenario can be quite a bit of money over time. Especially if you’re saving for that vacation you always wanted to go on. Who doesn’t want 20% more money? Just drive slower and the savings are all yours.

What other ways can you save money by driving slower?

As most of you know by now, regardless of how nice your car is, there is still only one thing between you and the road. Of course, it’s tires. Thin strips of rubber wrapped around a cushion of air. Over time, they wear down. But have you considered how heat affects rubber? Heat is often how they ‘vulcanize‘ rubber including tires. It’s the act of heating it up until it “melts together”. Heat is also what is generated, the faster you drive. You’ll notice every tire has a top speed rated for it. How long do you think those tires will last being driven near or at their top speed? Now imagine the ever-increasing heat as the friction builds from the traction of the road.

Do you want to take a chance you can heat them up enough to “melt apart”? Or having the hot air inside expand beyond the safety limit of the rubber lip that holds them to the wheel? Not the most comforting thought that’s the only thing between your car and the asphalt. Especially at 85 mph. The variables may seem obvious to this one. The slower you drive, the less heat’s generated by the tire. Cooler tires result in longer life for them over time, but that’s still not the only thing your speed affects.

Driving slower, slows down the wear and tear

By now you probably already know how brakes work to so I won’t delve too deeply into this at the moment. However you can certainly imagine that the faster you drive, the more the brakes are going to wear down. Certainly more so when forced to come to an abrupt stop from a high speed. It’s literally like an engine powered grinding wheel. Slow down and your break pads and rotors will last quite a bit longer. On top of that, you’ll lose less tire tread and leave less rubber on the pavement by stopping from slower speeds.

Check out how you can Save Money by Removing Weight from Your Car. Sure you want to slow down, but weighing your car down unnecessarily, is not the best way to do it. In conclusion, by saving money on tires, brakes, gasoline, and even the potential for avoiding speeding tickets; you can see how you can save money by driving slower than you use to.