Economical and environmentally friendly driving

Fuel consumption, emissions, and wear on the engine, brakes and tyres depend mainly on your driving style. By driving in an anticipatory and economical way, you can easily reduce your fuel consumption by 10 to 15%. The following tips will help you protect the environment and reduce operating costs.

Anticipate!

A car uses the most fuel when accelerating.

Drive ahead anticipating traffic conditions so you need to brake and accelerate less often. Where possible, let the car coast in gear without accelerating, for example when you see that the next traffic light is red.

Shift gears economically

Another way to save fuel is to shift up early. If you rev the engine up to high speeds in each gear, you waste fuel unnecessarily.

Manual gearbox: Shift into second gear as early as possible. Where possible, we recommend shifting up through each gear at an engine speed of about 2000 rpm.

Automatic gearbox: Press the accelerator pedal gently and avoid pressing it down to the kickdown position.

Avoid full-throttle acceleration

Wherever possible, never use the full maximum speed of your car. At high speeds, fuel consumption, exhaust emissions and road noise increase disproportionately. Driving at lower speeds saves fuel.

Limit idling

In traffic jams, at level crossings and at traffic lights with long red phases, it is advisable to switch off the engine. Switching off the engine for 30 to 40 seconds saves more fuel than is needed to restart the engine.

When idling, the engine takes a very long time to warm up.

During the warm-up phase, wear and exhaust emissions are very high. Therefore, drive off immediately after starting the engine. Avoid high engine speeds.

Regular maintenance

Regular maintenance of your car is already a condition for economical driving before you even set off. The condition of your Audi affects not only road safety and the value of your car, but also fuel consumption.

It is not unusual for fuel consumption to increase by 10% if the engine is poorly tuned!

Avoid short trips

The engine and the exhaust gas aftertreatment system must reach their optimum operating temperature to effectively reduce fuel consumption and pollutant emissions.

A cold engine consumes fuel disproportionately.

After only four kilometres, the engine has reached its operating temperature and fuel consumption stabilises.

Therefore, please avoid using your car for short trips wherever possible.

Check the tyre inflation pressure

Always keep your vehicle's tyres inflated to the correct pressure to save fuel. Half a bar less can result in a 5 % increase in fuel consumption. Low tyre pressure also increases rolling resistance, which causes greater tyre wear and degrades the vehicle's handling.

Always check the tyre inflation pressure when the tyres are cold.

Do not drive with winter tyres all year round, otherwise fuel consumption may increase by up to 10 %.

Avoid unnecessary loads

Every additional kilogram increases fuel consumption: it is worth checking the luggage compartment to remove any superfluous load.

A roof rack is often left fitted for convenience even when it is no longer in use. Due to the greater air resistance this creates, your car consumes approx. 12 % more fuel at 100 km/h with an unloaded roof rack than without one, 120 km/h.

Save electrical power

The engine drives the alternator, which generates electrical power; its consumption is directly linked to fuel consumption. For this reason, switch off electrical consumers when you no longer need them. Major power consumers include the high-setting blower, the rear window defroster and the seat heating*.