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Anyone who drives a vehicle knows exactly how expensive fuel these days is, so for those who drive and run trucks, it can be one of the biggest expenses. That is why so many truck fleet operators are now looking for new ways to gain fuel efficiency in order to help bring costs down along with emissions.
In this article, Walker Movements take a look at whether truck fuel consumption can be improved and find out how it is done.
Effective Ways to Reduce Truck Fuel Consumption
The Current Fuel Consumption Problem
The weight of a truck, especially when it is fully loaded, means that it will always have high fuel consumption rates. Estimates suggest that heavy duty trucks can get anything from 6.5 miles per gallon (MPG) to around 7.5 MPG.
Generally speaking, it is easier to achieve a higher MPG on a motorway than it is on smaller regular roads. Although, this obviously varies when climbing steep uphill gradients or coasting downhill. In 2022, it was costing more than £467 to fill just one HGV tank, rising from £340 the year before.
Fuel costs have fluctuated greatly in recent years due to a number of different global issues. Supply has been a problem as well as market certainty, and the impact of Russia invading Ukraine was felt at every fuel pump.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, oil producers reduced their production levels because demand fell, and prices were then driven high as they aimed to catch up.
With these astronomical costs in mind, it is important that drivers and fleet managers do all they can to ensure their trucks can be as efficient as possible, so here are a few tips on how to do that.
Watch Your Speed
Whilst truck drivers are subject to some very tight deadlines, there is still no excuse for speeding. In fact, excessive speeding can burn the greatest amount of fuel, as driving at 75 mph can consume as much as 27% more fuel than driving 10 mph slower.
Thankfully this is an easy problem to solve as keeping a close eye on the speedometer is all that is really needed to ensure that speeds are kept to sensible levels. Many trucks are now also capped to help avoid breaking any speed limits.
Don’t Be Aggressive
Aggressive driving is also a problem when it comes to fuel efficiency, as harsh and frequent breaking and accelerating can drive the fuel gauge down very quickly. It is thought that it can be possible to improve fuel economy by between 15% and 30% simply by curbing aggressive driving.
Avoid Idling
Leaving an HGV to idle could burn around 0.8 gallons of fuel each hour. This means fuel consumption while idling can start to add up very quickly, particularly at rest stops. It can also be responsible for increasing emissions and engine wear, which means maintenance costs will also start to skyrocket.
Fleet managers are now implementing technology that is able to log idle times and notify them when it exceeds any set limits. Automatic stop-start systems can also help with this as they can keep cab temperatures reasonable whilst reducing the time that the engine is spent idling.
Cruise Control
Cruise control can be a really valuable tool for many truck drivers as it can limit unnecessary acceleration and deceleration. In fact, some studies estimate that it could save as much as 6% in fuel consumption whilst on the road.
We all know the condition of the roads in the UK at the moment and those bumpy highways can cause the right foot to move whilst on the accelerator, which means you are using tiny amounts of extra fuel all the time.
Cruise control can work really well on flat terrain to prevent this from happening, ensuring the acceleration is only needed to maintain the cruising speed.
Vehicle Maintenance
Ensuring that your vehicle is in tip top condition can make a big difference to your fuel economy. Underinflated tyres can reduce your fuel efficiency as it takes the engine more effort to turn them.
It is also important to make sure that your wheels and tyres are properly aligned as even a slight misalignment can cause you to travel sideways slightly forcing corrections and a greater distance travelled.
Route Planning
Before any journey, it is essential that you plan your route, and you can do this with fuel efficiency in mind. You should look for routes that allow a smooth journey without too much stopping and starting and consistent speeds to help keep fuel efficiency healthy.
You should take into account any planned road works, accident hotspots or times of day where certain roads are likely to be at their busiest.
It is also important to plan the journeys efficiently as sitting for hours on end at facilities waiting for loading or unloading can be a huge waste of everybody’s time when the truck should be back out on the road.
Go Electric
There are many things that can help to reduce fuel consumption, but none of them can eliminate it altogether unless you switch the type of vehicle that you are driving.
Electric trucks have not been developed at the same rate as cars, but they are now starting to appear more and more frequently. These can be particularly useful when having to deal with the increasing number of low emission zones.
Electric trucks still have their downsides as charging networks and times are not as efficient as they could be and the initial cost of the vehicles is much higher, but there are substantial savings to be made when it comes to running them.
Final Thoughts
High fuel bills are a natural expectation for any HGV fleet managers, but they can easily spiral out of control if things are not kept a close eye on.
By ensuring the trucks are well maintained and introducing driver training programmes to ensure that people are working as efficiently as possible, it can be possible to reduce how much fuel your trucks are getting through on each journey, keep expenditures at a minimum and reduce emissions at the same time.
