Here are some tips to help you find cheap gas while you are out and about:
Shop Around:
You can try to shop around in your local area trying to find cheap gas but you shouldn’t go too far out of your way to try and get the best price unless you’re already traveling in that direction anyway.
Once you start driving around looking for the gas pump that can beat the one in your neighborhood you start to increase the amount of money that you spend on your driving expenses.
Since your goal is to save money you would be defeating the purpose by driving around for too long.
Studies done by the AAA indicate that it will cost you approximately 51.7 cents per mile to drive your car this year (2004) and you can be sure that number will increase each year.
Keep in mind that the IRS deduction is usually lower than this per mile so driving too far to find cheap gas isn’t always cost efficient even if you are deducting mileage on your taxes.
While you are driving to a location that you would normally be going to anyway you can of course keep your eyes open for the cheapest gas.
If you find a certain gas station that consistently sells cheaper gas each week and it’s out of your way you might want to consider making a weekly or bi-weekly journey to this destination.
This way you can take a day to get gas, buy your groceries, and take a walk in the park within a different area of the city where you live. In effect, what you are doing is multitasking and saving money on your fuel costs at the same time.
So you see, to find cheap gas might take a little bit of effort but the savings can pay off in the long run especially if you can combine your “to do” items into one trip.