It’s never too late to jump aboard the fuel efficiency bandwagon. Even without throwing gobs of money at a solution right now, fleets can tame the impact of price hikes associated with the war in the Middle East.

At the time of this writing, March 27, the average Canadian retail diesel price is $2.29 per liter.

That’s a staggering $8.66 per U.S. gallon. The U.S. national average price hit $5.37 per gallon the same day, with California’s average (the highest in the U.S.) topping $6.87 per gallon — you don’t want to know what that is in Canadian dollars. 

For a bit of context, the average U.S. price is $1.82 higher this week than it was a year ago. Likewise, a liter of diesel on the northern side of the border costs 80 cents more than it did at the beginning of April last year.

That’s gonna cut into your margins for sure.

We’re hearing from more than a few analysts who think oil prices are going to stay extremely high for a very long time if the Strait of Hormuz isn’t opened up soon.

If those terrifying numbers have you scouring the web for fuel-saving tips, here are five you can implement immediately, at almost zero cost.

Eliminate idling

Reducing idling is a very effective way of reducing fuel consumption, but it’s hard to convince drivers of the merits of freezing in the sleeper to save a few gallons of fuel. A big diesel burns about a gallon (4 liters) of fuel per hour at idle. At current fuel prices, that’s about $60-$70 per night.

There’s a bit of money there to work out some arrangement with drivers whereby they get a cut of the savings by not idling overnight. A couple of extra blankets will keep drivers plenty warm. And we’re lucky now as we head into spring. It’s not as cold at night, so there’s real opportunity for savings over the next few months.  

Start/stop idle reduction is a feature programmable in most ECMs. Sometimes it’s a paid option or an upgrade, but it’s something to consider. Drivers generally aren’t fond of such systems because they can be disruptive while sleeping. Make sure you disable the low-air and low-oil pressure warning buzzers when activating the start/stop feature.

Of course, we’re not talking just about overnight idling for hotel loads and climate control. A lot of idling occurs during active duty. Review engine data to get a handle on total idle time; you’ll likely be surprised how often it occurs.

Activating the idle shutdown time is one possible solution, so is imploring drivers to shut down the engine when it’s not in use.

You can also establish a contest and award drivers with the lowest monthly idle time. When asking drivers to give up something, they are more likely to respond positively if the fleet also has some skin in the game.

Use cruise control

Many late-model trucks have cruise control systems with advanced technologies such as adaptive and predictive cruise features, neutral coasting, etc. Taking advantage of those features requires the driver to be driving in cruise mode. If drivers aren’t setting and using cruise control, you’re not getting the full advantage from your powertrain.

Many fleets have had success encouraging drivers to use cruise control more often by adding a couple of miles per hour while in cruise versus on the pedal. Your options here may be limited if the fleet is already running a speed-limited road speed setting 105 km/h (65 mph).

Fleets can also track time in cruise and issue reports to drivers who aren’t complying. Or, build a fuel economy bonus program based on proper driving techniques rather than raw mpg scores. Load and road conditions can work against drivers in that regard, but demonstrating good driving technique is worth a little recognition.

Top up those tires

The best analogy I have ever heard about running on underinflated tires came from Tim Miller, a former marketing and communications manager at Goodyear. He likened running on soft tires to walking barefoot on a beach.

“Walking in the hard wet sand down by the water’s edge requires so much less effort than slogging through the deep, soft, dry sand further away from the water,” he said. “Your foot glides across the hard wet sand, while it sinks into the soft dry sand. Pushing that sand aside with your feet requires effort.”  

It’s the same with tires. Soft, underinflated tires flex and squirm as they roll through the contact patch. The energy required to flex all that rubber comes, of course, from the fuel tank.

Estimates concerning the impact of underinflation on fuel efficiency are usually a little vague. Tire makers often say running 10 psi below your chosen inflation pressure (all tires) would yield a 1% reduction in fuel efficiency due to the increased rolling resistance of the softer tire.

They are usually referring to American trucks and their piddly 80,000-lb. weight limits. Factor in the weight-induced rolling resistance of a loaded Canadian truck, and the figure is likely to be closer to 2-3%. It’s not the end of the world, but it adds up.  

That same 10 psi underinflation can also lead to a decrease in tread life of 5-10%. If you don’t track tire wear and inflation pressure carefully, you might not notice the difference week to week, but it would surely appear on the balance sheet at year-end. And you’re gonna need all that money to buy fuel.     

Close that gap

The gap between a tractor and trailer is obviously unavoidable, but the gap is often larger than it needs to be.

Turning angles and jackknife backing have a bearing on how large the gap needs to be, as does weight distribution in some applications. The gap on most North American trucks is much larger than you typically see in Europe. Maybe there’s room for improvement here?

Testing done in 2015 by Transport Canada and the National Research Council Canada (NRC) at its wind tunnel near the Ottawa airport revealed that for every foot the gap between tractor and trailer is reduced, drag drops by 2.6%.

Corollary research suggests a 1% decrease in aerodynamic drag roughly equals a 0.5% decrease in fuel burn. Testing showed that a one-foot gap reduction can save up to 1,600 litres (425 USgal) of fuel per year in a typical long-haul operation.

Obviously, no gains are possible for trucks with fixed fifth wheels, but trucks with sliders may be able to tighten up the gap a bit — if axle weights permit.

Slow down

While there are many who believe it’s probably not safe to drive at 90 km/h (55 mph) on some North American highways anymore, the fuel-saving potential from slowing down cannot be ignored.

According to American fuel economy guru, Joel Morrow, aerodynamic drag is responsible for about 65% of your fuel burn at 70-75 mph (110-120 km/h).

“Dropping from 70 mph to 60 mph often boosts mpg by 0.5-1 mpg,” he claims. “On 100,000 miles/year, that’s $5,000–$15,000 in diesel savings alone — at $3-$4/gal.”

With Canadian diesel at nearly $8 a gallon, the calculus changes pretty fast.

A note of caution here: if dropping road speed a few mph means dropping the engine speed to a point where the transmissions constantly up- and downshifts, you may be defeating the purpose.

Many of today’s downsped powertrains are optimized to run at peak efficiency at a given road speed, ie., 1,100 rpm at 65 mph (105 km/h). That engine operating range is pretty narrow. Dropping out of that peak efficiency range (900 rpm at 55 mph or 90 km/h) may prompt downshifts to lower gears with a higher engine speed.

That said, the reduction in aerodynamic drag will probably offset the extra fuel burned at higher rpms.

Train those drivers

While automated powertrains now do most of the heavy lifting on fuel efficiency, the driver still controls the throttle pedal. How aggressively they drive has a huge impact on fuel efficiency. Some estimate the drivers’ impact on fuel economy can be as high as 30%.

Light on the pedal saves fuel. Period. Drivers should be encouraged to avoid hard acceleration and to coast as often as possible. Leaving extra space between vehicles allows for better throttle pedal modulation and limited use of the brakes. Every time the brakes are applied, the energy needed to make up that lost momentum comes from the fuel tank.

This applies particularly to local and city drivers, whose performance in traffic determines how much your fuel bill will total.

Who knows how long the current fuel crisis will last? You can’t affect diesel pricing, but you can change a few habits and burn less of the stuff.