Teesside motorists are keeping a closer eye on petrol prices than ever before. With oil prices on the up, a recent report from motoring organisation RAC said fuel rises could put £180 on the annual cost of motoring. Supermarket giant Asda recently announced it was cutting petrol prices by a further 1p, just days after cutting 2p from the cost of a litre. But with the price of a tankful still growing increasingly more expensive, what else can you do to avoid pouring extra pounds into petrol. With anything from Euro 2004 car flags to tyre tread affecting fuel consumption, online car retailer jamjar cars has some money saving tips for lengthening the distance between service station pit stops. Joe Pattinson, marketing manager for jamjar cars, said: "It's good practice for motorists to know how to keep fuel consumption to a minimum and avoid empty pockets as well as an empty tank. "Some of the most commonly used fuel saving techniques employed by drivers mean you actually use more, rather than less of your tank. Our top ten tips aim to redress this and provide a more realistic guide to cost effective motoring." * Shop around for your fuel. Prices are currently fluctuating as much as 10p per litre between stations, equating to £6 per tank on the average car. * Check your tyres - it's estimated 50pc of tyres on the road are under inflated which increases wear and wastes fuel. Worn tyres also reduces fuel efficiency. * Drive in the highest gear possible without labouring the engine. It's the most fuel-efficient way. A vehicle travelling at 37mph in third gear uses 25pc more fuel than at the same speed in fifth gear. * Have your car serviced regularly and your emissions checked. Modern unleaded, low sulphur fuels leave sticky residues in fuel systems that reduce engine efficiency and performance. And a poor service record will also knock around £500 off the value of your car when you come to sell it. * Don't coast in neutral - it doesn't save you fuel. When you slow down stay in gear as modern cars automatically shut off fuel to the engine if you're not accelerating, but they will use fuel when in neutral. * Close your windows. Driving with them open drastically reduces your fuel efficiency, far more so than putting the air conditioning on when motorway driving. * Drive smoothly, applying light throttle and avoiding heavy braking by predicting traffic queues. Research shows this can improve car fuel efficiency by as much as 30pc. * Keep loads to a minimum and remove roof racks when not in use, as they affect the aerodynamics of your car and increase fuel consumption. Even England car flags will increase drag and in turn fuel consumption. * Consider fuel efficiency - miles per gallon - when shopping for a new car as even similarly sized cars can vary massively in their fuel consumption by up to 45pc. * If buying a new car, consider the depreciation costs as well as fuel efficiency - these make up 60pc of your motoring costs. | 
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