FleetWeek

Gas prices remain high these days, averaging over $3.38 per gallon for regular unleaded fuel across the U.S., and exceeding $4.00 a gallon in some areas.  In Canada, the current national average is over C$1.21 per liter, with some regions seeing fuel prices of over C$1.40.

Fuel remains a significant operating expense for all drivers and, when coupled with escalating concerns about the environmental impact of automobile emissions, it has become more critical than ever for drivers to maximize their fuel efficiency and vehicle performance.

Below are a few simple tips you may want to pass along to drivers to help improve your fleet's performance by maximizing fuel efficiency.  Please keep in mind that there are a number of alerts and reports available via FleetView that can provide a detailed view into your vehicles’ fuel performance, and your account team can help you analyze your fleet’s fuel data and take action as appropriate.

Keep your vehicle in shape and your tires properly inflated
Adhere closely to your vehicle's maintenance schedule, and make sure any issues with performance and/or failed emissions tests are quickly addressed and resolved. Also, be sure that your tires are properly inflated, as vehicles operated on properly inflated tires can have nearly 6% better fuel efficiency than those operated on under-inflated tires. Keeping your vehicle properly maintained not only improves fuel efficiency, it also reduces the risk of accidents, vehicle breakdowns, and more costly repairs down the road.

Use the right kind of fuel
When you fill up, make sure that you only use the type of fuel prescribed by your fleet policy, and only use higher-octane fuels if your policy explicitly calls for them.  It is also extremely important that you only use the fuel that matches your engine type (i.e. only use diesel fuel in diesel engines; only use unleaded gasoline in gasoline engines).  Filling a diesel engine with gasoline (or vice-versa) even one time could damage all fuel-related components of the vehicle’s engine, void the warranty, and result in repairs costing more than $10,000.

Avoid idling when possible
Idling is perhaps the biggest detriment to a vehicle's fuel efficiency, because it causes a vehicle to consume gas without gaining any distance (i.e. zero miles-per-gallon). The larger the vehicle, the more gas is wasted while idling. For certain trucks, for example, one hour of idling can use as much fuel as 30 miles of driving.

Obey speed limits and reduce “start-and-stop” driving
Excessive speeding and rapid/frequent acceleration and braking can lower your fuel efficiency by as much as 33%. For most vehicles, fuel efficiency also begins to decrease significantly at speeds above 60 miles-per-hour, and continues to decrease as speed increases further. Driving sensibly not only improves gas mileage, it also reduces the risk of moving violations, accidents and injuries.

Limit payload when possible
Avoid keeping unnecessary items – especially heavy ones – in your vehicle. Trucks and other large vehicles can generally handle excess weight better than smaller ones, but for every 100 pounds of extra weight your vehicle carries, your fuel efficiency is reduced by up to 2%.

Use cruise control and overdrive gears when possible
Using cruise control and overdrive gears while driving on highways helps you maintain a constant speed while reducing engine wear, and it may also help you conserve fuel.

Please keep in mind that odometer disclosure statements are available to review and submit online. You will find the statements in the FleetView section Reporting & Analysis: Dashboard: Approvals where you can review and edit or approve odometer disclosure statements for sold vehicles.

The report entitled Odometer Disclosure in the Reporting & Analysis: Reports: Expenses section allows you to view any online disclosures which you have edited, approved, or not yet reviewed within any date range you wish. The approval tool lets you drill down to the detail behind each record as desired.

Please note that these statements are required by law to accompany sold vehicles. If you have any questions, please contact a member of your account team.

Infiniti has announced that January 31, 2012 will be the final order cutoff date for the 2012 Infiniti G (coupe and convertible) and the 2012 Infiniti M.  Order banks for the 2013 models of these vehicles opened on January 1.

A complete list of announced order startup/cutoff dates is available here. It is important to note that all announced cutoff dates are tentative and subject to change, sometimes with very little notice from the manufacturers.  In addition, some manufacturers do not allow will-try opportunities for orders they receive after the cutoff date. Therefore, it is extremely important that clients looking to acquire any models approaching cutoff submit orders as soon as possible.  We recommend you submit orders to Wheels at least two days prior to the cutoff date if possible, to account for processing time.

Please contact a member of your account team if you have any questions about order cutoffs, production startup dates or your vehicle selector.