Pump 'em Up- Americans Wasting More Than $2 Billion at the Gas Pumps

Goodyear Calls Motorists 'Tire-fuelish' for Running Their Vehicles on Low Tires

AKRON, Ohio, March 24 -- If record-setting gasoline prices aren't gut-wrenching enough, consider that American motorists may be wasting more than $2 billion a year by driving their vehicles on under-inflated tires.

According to statistics from The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, a tire inflation that's only 4 to 5 pounds per square inch low causes a vehicle to gulp an extra 10 percent of fuel.

Since tires account for 4 percent to 7 percent of a car's fuel consumption -- power needed to overcome the tires' rolling resistance -- keeping tires properly inflated has a huge effect on America's pocketbooks, according to Bill Egan, Goodyear chief engineer of advanced product design.

Consider a 2002 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency study that states a 1 percent improvement in vehicle fuel economy saves about 1.3 billion gallons of gasoline in one year -- or $2 billion in fuel costs at that time.

In 1995, the U.S. Energy Department said under-inflated tires wasted 4 million gallons of gasoline daily -- or nearly 1.5 billion gallons annually -- in America.

Egan calls the country's rising gasoline bills "tire-fuelish," a money- wasting malady that could be cured by spending five minutes a month with vehicle tires.

Goodyear recommends that motorists check tire inflation monthly or before a long trip. Tires should be inflated to the vehicle manufacturer's recommendation printed on the vehicle's door placard or in the owner's manual.

For more tire tips, www.goodyeartires.com/tireschool/safety/tiresafetyguide.pdf .

"At today's prices and with more vehicles on the road, motorists are wasting well more than $2 billion annually," Egan said. "An under-inflated tire consumes more energy and increases rolling resistance, which robs the vehicle of fuel efficiency."

"Tire-fuelishness" is a double-edged sword, Egan added. It wastes gasoline, which causes demand to increase. U.S. average retail gasoline prices continue to hit all-time highs as a tight-fisted OPEC policy and rising demand constrict supplies, according to the American Automobile Association.

At today's prices ($1.88 a gallon), low tires waste about $674 a year for an SUV owner who fills a 23-gallon gas tank twice a week, he said.

"Tire-fuelishness," Egan said, is confirmed by recent Goodyear market research that says nearly a third of U.S. drivers rarely check their tires. Almost 8 percent say they never do.

Some organizations are calling for more fuel-efficient tires to help save fuel costs, but Egan said these proposals are merely stop-gap measures. "As long as motorist behavior is 'tire-fuelish,' America will continue to waste gasoline and money at the pumps.

"Even the most fuel-stingy Goodyear tires on the road would be ineffective without the correct inflation pressures," he added.

In the "tire-fuelish" scheme, California motorists stand to lose the most money in fuel economy, since they pay $2.141 per gallon for regular gas. Oklahoma drivers lose the least, at $1.604 per gallon.