THE JAPANESE METHOD for Saving Nearly 50% on Fuel – You Have to Know About It

00:00 Drivers in Japan have been using a set

00:02 of habits that dramatically improve fuel

00:04 efficiency.

00:06 Here is the part most people in the

00:08 United States have never heard. These

00:10 techniques became widespread after the

00:12 1970s oil crisis,

00:15 >> [music]

00:15 >> when every drop of fuel started being

00:17 treated as a strategic resource by an

00:19 entire [music] country.

00:21 Now, here is what makes them so

00:22 practical. None of these tricks require

00:25 mechanical knowledge, expensive tools,

00:28 or a single modification to the vehicle.

00:31 They are simple adjustments to the way

00:32 you drive. Habits most American drivers

00:35 were never taught. And once you

00:37 understand the logic behind them, you

00:40 start noticing just how much fuel is

00:42 being thrown away every single day on

00:44 the road. Today, you are going to learn

00:47 14 techniques inspired by Japanese

00:49 eco-driving that [music] can instantly

00:52 stretch your range.

00:54 Some you can apply in seconds. Others

00:57 require a small shift in mindset behind

00:59 the wheel. But together, they form a

01:02 system that can make a single tank last

01:04 far longer than you ever imagined.

01:08 And at the end, I will show you the one

01:10 mistake millions of drivers make every

01:13 day. A habit so common, it might be

01:16 draining more fuel from your tank than

01:18 anything else on this list.

01:21 Let us get started.

01:23 Number 14.

01:24 Long-range vision. Most drivers believe

01:27 they are paying close attention to

01:28 traffic. In reality, they are simply

01:31 reacting to whatever is directly in

01:33 front of them.

01:34 The car ahead brakes, they brake.

01:37 Traffic slows down, they slow down. The

01:40 light turns red, and only then do they

01:43 lift off the throttle. This style of

01:45 driving feels completely normal, but it

01:48 destroys fuel efficiency. Every late

01:51 reaction wastes energy that was already

01:54 paid for at the pump. In Japan,

01:56 eco-driving training teaches something

01:59 different.

02:00 Long-range vision.

02:02 Instead of focusing only on the bumper

02:04 of the car directly ahead,

02:07 you start looking far down the road.

02:10 >> [snorts]

02:10 >> Brake lights three or four cars away,

02:13 traffic signals at the next

02:15 intersection,

02:16 the flow pattern of an entire block.

02:19 When you anticipate these situations,

02:21 you simply lift off the accelerator

02:23 earlier and let the car slow down on its

02:25 own momentum.

02:28 Many times, traffic starts moving again

02:30 before you ever reach the stop section,

02:33 which means you do not have to brake at

02:35 all.

02:37 This single habit cuts the constant

02:39 accelerate and brake cycle that defines

02:42 most American driving. And by itself, it

02:45 can produce noticeable savings on a

02:48 daily commute.

02:49 Number 13, the constant speed principle.

02:53 A lot of drivers assume fuel consumption

02:55 depends mainly on how fast you are

02:57 going.

02:59 In reality, the biggest enemy of

03:01 efficiency is not your top speed.

03:05 It is constant variation. Every time you

03:07 accelerate, the engine injects more fuel

03:10 to generate the extra power.

03:13 Every time you brake, that energy is

03:15 simply wasted as heat in the brake pads.

03:19 This is why experienced eco-drivers

03:22 focus on holding a steady speed.

03:24 On the highway, your right foot should

03:26 be as stable as possible. No constant

03:29 micro-adjustments.

03:31 Going up a slight incline, do not press

03:33 harder on the pedal. Let the car lose a

03:36 little speed naturally. When the road

03:38 levels out, the vehicle will recover

03:41 that speed without demanding extra fuel

03:43 from the tank.

03:45 If your car has cruise control, even

03:47 better.

03:48 Cruise control makes those

03:50 micro-adjustments far more efficiently

03:52 than almost any human driver could.

03:55 Stable speed means less wasted energy

03:58 and more miles per gallon at the end of

04:00 every trip. Number 12.

04:02 Efficient acceleration. There is a very

04:05 common myth that says accelerating

04:07 gently always saves fuel.

04:11 In practice, [music]

04:12 that approach can actually make things

04:14 worse. When you accelerate too slowly,

04:17 the engine spends a longer stretch of

04:19 time in an inefficient operating range,

04:21 working harder than it needs to and

04:23 burning more fuel in the process.

04:26 The right approach is progressive,

04:28 purposeful acceleration.

04:31 When the light turns green, accelerate

04:33 firmly but smoothly.

04:36 Not aggressively.

04:37 Not sluggishly. The goal is to reach

04:40 your cruising speed quickly, then ease

04:43 off the throttle and ride the momentum.

04:46 In other words,

04:47 short and efficient bursts of

04:49 acceleration.

04:51 The faster you move the engine through

04:53 its least efficient phase, the better

04:56 your overall fuel economy will be by the

04:58 end [music] of the day.

05:00 Number 11.

05:03 The engine's [music] sweet spot. Most

05:05 people pay attention only to the

05:07 speedometer, but the real story of fuel

05:09 consumption is happening inside the

05:11 engine itself.

05:13 Every engine has an RPM [music] range

05:15 where it operates at maximum efficiency.

05:18 Outside [snorts] of that range,

05:20 >> [music]

05:20 >> it starts wasting fuel.

05:22 If the RPMs run too high, the engine

05:25 burns extra fuel just to maintain a

05:28 given speed. If the RPMs run too low

05:30 under load, the engine struggles and

05:32 consumes [music] more as well.

05:35 The trick is to keep the engine sitting

05:37 comfortably in its optimal range.

05:40 In a manual car, that means shifting up

05:43 earlier instead of letting the engine

05:45 wind [music] out.

05:46 >> [snorts]

05:46 >> In an automatic car, it means using

05:49 smooth, moderate throttle inputs so the

05:51 transmission upshifts quickly into a

05:54 taller gear.

05:56 A comfortable engine uses less fuel. A

05:58 stressed engine uses more. The principle

06:01 is that simple.

06:03 Number 10.

06:05 Tire pressure control.

06:07 This is one of the simplest tips on the

06:08 entire list and one of the most ignored

06:11 [music] by American drivers. Tire

06:13 pressure drops over time and most people

06:16 never notice because the loss happens

06:18 gradually. The car still drives

06:20 normally. The handling feels fine. But

06:23 fuel consumption starts climbing without

06:26 any obvious reason. Under-inflated tires

06:28 increase rolling resistance. The engine

06:31 has to work harder [music] to keep the

06:32 vehicle moving at the same speed and

06:35 that means more fuel is being burned for

06:37 the exact same [music] trip.

06:40 The right approach is to check tire

06:42 pressure regularly.

06:44 Always when the tires are cold.

06:46 Preferably first thing in the morning

06:48 [music] before driving anywhere.

06:50 That gives you an accurate reading.

06:52 Properly inflated tires reduce engine

06:54 load [music] and improve efficiency

06:56 immediately. Sometimes by several

06:58 percent on the very [music] next tank.

07:01 >> [snorts]

07:01 >> Number nine.

07:02 The unnecessary weight rule.

07:04 Another common mistake is driving around

07:07 with a steady load of extra weight

07:09 without realizing it is even there.

07:12 Everything inside the vehicle affects

07:13 [music] fuel consumption. Because at the

07:16 end of the day, the engine has to move

07:18 every single pound of cargo down the

07:20 road. The problem [music] is that this

07:22 weight usually accumulates from small,

07:24 forgettable items that build up [music]

07:26 over weeks and months.

07:29 Tools left in the trunk after a project.

07:32 Cardboard boxes that [music] were

07:33 supposed to come out yesterday. Sports

07:35 gear from last season.

07:37 Travel items from a trip 3 months ago.

07:40 By the end of the year, many drivers are

07:43 hauling dozens and sometimes [music]

07:45 hundreds of extra pounds around their

07:47 daily route for no reason at all.

07:50 Every acceleration requires more [music]

07:53 energy to move that extra mass.

07:56 That extra energy comes straight out of

07:58 the fuel tank. Keeping the car lighter

08:01 reduces engine effort, especially during

08:03 starts and accelerations, and over time

08:06 the small optimizations turn into real

08:09 savings.

08:10 The most interesting part is this.

08:13 None of the techniques on this list

08:15 require a single dollar of investment.

08:17 They only require awareness.

08:20 And this is only [music] the beginning.

08:24 Number eight.

08:26 The aerodynamic drag factor. Once your

08:28 vehicle reaches higher speeds, an

08:31 invisible enemy starts playing a major

08:33 role in your fuel consumption.

08:36 Aerodynamic drag.

08:39 At low city speeds, vehicle weight is

08:41 the dominant factor in efficiency.

08:44 But once you hit the highway, the air

08:47 itself becomes the main force [music]

08:49 holding the car back. Modern vehicles

08:51 are engineered for years inside wind

08:54 tunnels to slice through the air with

08:55 minimal resistance.

08:57 But small additions can ruin that

08:59 careful engineering in an instant.

09:02 Roof racks,

09:04 cargo boxes,

09:06 bike mounts on the trunk. All of those

09:09 increase drag. And even when they are

09:11 completely empty, they still hurt

09:14 efficiency every mile they ride along.

09:17 The faster you drive, the bigger the

09:19 penalty becomes. At highway speed, the

09:21 engine has to work significantly harder

09:24 just to push the vehicle through the

09:25 air.

09:27 Removing those accessories when they are

09:28 not actively in use allows the car to

09:31 return to its optimal aerodynamic shape.

09:34 That alone translates into real fuel

09:37 savings, especially on a long road trip

09:39 across the country.

09:42 Number seven.

09:43 The smart choice between AC and open

09:46 windows in daily driving.

09:48 The comfort question usually comes down

09:51 to two options.

09:53 Roll the windows down

09:55 or turn on the air conditioning.

09:59 A lot of drivers believe the AC [music]

10:00 always burns more fuel. That is not the

10:03 full story. At low speeds, like in city

10:06 traffic, [music]

10:07 driving with the windows down is more

10:09 efficient. Air flows in naturally and

10:13 the engine does not have to power the AC

10:15 compressor.

10:16 But everything changes the moment you

10:18 reach the highway.

10:20 At higher speeds, open windows disrupt

10:22 the air flowing around the body of the

10:24 car, creating turbulence and a

10:26 measurable increase in [music] drag.

10:29 The engine has to work harder to

10:31 overcome it. In that scenario, running

10:33 the AC with the windows closed is

10:36 actually [music] more efficient.

10:38 The rule is simple.

10:40 Windows down in the city.

10:42 AC on the highway.

10:44 Before we get into the most surprising

10:46 techniques on this list, hit the like

10:48 button and subscribe.

10:51 We did serious research for this video

10:54 and that small tap on your screen tells

10:56 us to keep producing content like this

10:58 for you. [music] We have plenty more

11:00 fuel saving secrets coming your way.

11:03 Number six.

11:06 Idle time awareness.

11:08 Leaving the car running while sitting

11:10 still feels harmless. [music]

11:13 Waiting for someone in front of the

11:14 house. Sitting in a long drive-thru

11:17 line.

11:19 Warming up the engine on a cold morning.

11:22 But the reality is that the engine is

11:24 burning fuel the entire time without

11:26 moving the car a single inch.

11:30 Modern engines do not need long warm-up

11:32 periods like older vehicles from the

11:35 1970s and 1980s did.

11:38 In most cases, [music]

11:39 the best approach is to start the engine

11:42 and begin driving smoothly right away.

11:44 Every minute spent idling is fuel burned

11:47 with zero return on investment. Over

11:49 weeks and months, that adds up to a

11:52 significant waste. If you know you are

11:54 going to be parked for more than a

11:56 minute, shutting off the engine is the

11:58 smartest move you can make.

12:01 Number five, choosing the right fuel.

12:05 There is a stubborn myth that says

12:07 premium [music] gasoline always improves

12:09 performance and efficiency, no matter

12:11 what car you drive. That is simply not

12:13 true.

12:15 The actual difference between regular

12:17 and premium fuel comes down to the

12:19 octane [music] rating, which is just a

12:21 measurement of resistance to knocking

12:23 inside the cylinder. High-performance

12:25 [music] engines and certain turbocharged

12:27 vehicles genuinely require higher octane

12:30 fuel.

12:32 But the vast majority of vehicles sold

12:34 in the United States are designed to run

12:36 perfectly well on regular gasoline.

12:40 Using premium fuel in a car that does

12:42 not actually require it will not improve

12:45 fuel economy.

12:47 It will not improve performance.

12:49 You are simply paying extra at the pump

12:52 for no measurable benefit at all.

12:54 Japanese drivers follow the owner's

12:57 manual strictly on this question. And

12:59 that is exactly what every American

13:02 driver should do. Number four,

13:05 the importance of [music] the air

13:07 filter.

13:08 Every engine needs a balanced mixture of

13:11 air and fuel [music] to operate

13:13 efficiently.

13:14 A lot of drivers forget that the air

13:16 side of that equation matters just as

13:18 much as the fuel side. The air filter is

13:21 what keeps dirt and debris [music] from

13:23 entering the engine.

13:25 But over time, that filter becomes

13:27 clogged with dust, pollen, and grime.

13:31 When that happens, air flow into the

13:34 engine becomes restricted. What does the

13:36 engine do in response?

13:38 It compensates by burning more fuel to

13:40 [music] produce the same amount of

13:42 power.

13:43 The car keeps running like it always

13:45 has, just less efficiently with every

13:47 passing mile.

13:49 Checking and replacing the air filter on

13:51 schedule is one [music] of the cheapest

13:54 maintenance items in the entire vehicle,

13:56 and it has a direct, measurable impact

13:59 on fuel economy.

14:01 Number three.

14:03 Fuel cap sealing. Most drivers never

14:05 think twice about [music] the gas cap,

14:07 but that small piece of plastic plays an

14:09 important role in efficiency.

14:12 Modern vehicles [music] use a fully

14:14 sealed fuel system designed to prevent

14:16 fuel from evaporating.

14:19 If the cap is loose, cracked, or has a

14:22 worn out rubber seal underneath, fuel

14:24 vapors can escape [music] into the air

14:26 every single day the car sits in the

14:29 driveway.

14:30 It seems minor at first, but over weeks

14:33 and months, those small losses turn into

14:36 real money disappearing from the tank. A

14:39 failing cap can also trigger the check

14:41 engine [music] light on the dashboard,

14:43 which sends a lot of drivers straight to

14:45 the dealer for an unnecessary diagnostic

14:47 [music] visit.

14:48 The fix could not be simpler.

14:51 Tighten the cap until it clicks every

14:53 time you fill up. Check the rubber seal

14:56 for cracks or hardening twice a year.

15:00 Number two.

15:02 The quarter tank rule. Some drivers

15:04 treat the low fuel light like a personal

15:06 challenge, trying to push the tank as

15:08 close to empty as possible before

15:10 filling up.

15:12 That habit can actually create long-term

15:15 problems for the vehicle.

15:17 Inside the gas tank, there is an

15:19 electric fuel pump that is cooled by the

15:22 fuel surrounding it. When the level

15:24 drops too low, that pump can start

15:26 pulling in air along with the gasoline,

15:28 which causes additional wear over time.

15:32 There is another problem at low fuel

15:34 levels.

15:35 Sediment and debris settle at the bottom

15:37 of every tank, and the lower the fuel

15:39 level drops, the more likely those

15:41 particles are to be sucked into the fuel

15:44 line and the filter. Keeping at [music]

15:45 least a quarter tank in the vehicle

15:47 protects the fuel pump and helps you

15:49 avoid expensive repair bills down the

15:52 road.

15:53 Number one.

15:55 The calm lane strategy.

15:58 In heavy traffic, a lot of drivers try

16:00 to save time by constantly switching

16:02 lanes.

16:03 The idea is always to pick whatever lane

16:06 looks fastest at the moment.

16:08 In practice, that habit dramatically

16:11 increases fuel consumption. Every lane

16:14 change requires acceleration to get into

16:16 a gap, followed by another round of

16:19 braking when that lane slows down again.

16:22 The cycle repeats over and over for the

16:25 entire commute.

16:27 Multiple traffic studies have shown that

16:29 drivers who constantly switch lanes

16:32 rarely arrive much faster than drivers

16:34 who simply stay in one lane and let the

16:37 road flow naturally.

16:39 The time difference is usually minimal,

16:42 sometimes only one or two minutes on a

16:44 30-minute drive.

16:46 But the fuel consumption difference can

16:48 be significant. Maintaining a smoother,

16:50 more consistent driving style with fewer

16:53 lane changes preserves momentum and

16:55 [snorts] reduces the load on the engine.

16:58 At the end of the day, that translates

17:01 into one thing.

17:03 More miles per gallon. On every single

17:06 tank.

17:08 If any of these techniques saved you

17:10 money at the pump or showed you a habit

17:12 you can change starting tomorrow

17:14 morning,

17:15 hit the like button and subscribe before

17:18 you [music] go. We have plenty more

17:19 driving secrets and fuel saving tricks

17:21 coming your way every week.

17:24 Click on the next video for even more

17:26 techniques that could save you hundreds

17:28 of dollars over the course of a single

17:31 year.

17:32 You will not regret watching it.