Leading experts have shared one simple switch that could save drivers thousands of pounds in fuel – but many motorists are still unsure how to use it
Drivers could slash thousands from their annual motoring costs by simply flicking one essential switch on their dashboard, top motoring experts have revealed. Specialists from Radius, Britain’s leading fuel card provider, have highlighted that the cruise control button is absolutely crucial for reducing petrol and diesel consumption.
Motorists typically guzzle the most fuel during acceleration and braking phases, which means maintaining a consistent speed could deliver significant savings. The experts cautioned that despite its potentially enormous benefits, cruise control remains amongst the most neglected fuel-saving technologies in modern motors.
They highlighted that countless drivers remain baffled about how to utilise this tool effectively, even though it comes standard in virtually all contemporary vehicles, reports the Express. Kerry Fawcett, specialist at Radius, explained: “Cruise control is designed to keep your car moving at a steady speed without you having to keep your foot on the accelerator.
“Once you reach your desired speed on a flat stretch of road, you simply press the cruise control button to ‘set’ it, the system then maintains that speed automatically. You can easily override it at any time by pressing the brake or accelerator.
“On flat, steady motorway journeys, using cruise control can improve fuel efficiency by around 14%, saving drivers around £1.35 to £1.65 in fuel for every hour of driving. “With over 200,000 vehicles using the UK’s busiest motorways each day, that adds up to a potential £270,000 to £330,000 saved daily, or as much as £120 million in fuel savings every year if all motorists used cruise control effectively.”
Radius calculated fuel savings based on typical UK motorway driving conditions at 70 mph.
Standard vehicle fuel economy was estimated at 40 mpg for petrol cars and 50 mpg for diesel vehicles. At this consistent speed, experts reckon that cars would burn approximately 7.96 litres of petrol and 6.36 litres of diesel per hour.
The experts noted that according to steady-speed driving research, cruise control typically boosts fuel efficiency by roughly 14%. This generally translates to savings of about 1.11 litres of petrol and 0.89 litres of diesel every hour on Britain’s roads.
