What to do With Your Gas Hog

The U.S. economy continues to struggle and gas prices remain high. The cost to fill up the gas tank is an average car is $60 or more. If that is breaking your budget, there are two things you can do about it. You can try to improve the gas mileage in your used car or you can replace it with a more fuel efficient car.

To improve the gas mileage in your car, make sure all of your tires are properly inflated. Under inflated tires not only cause them to wear faster, it wastes as much as 2 miles per gallon. You should also put in new spark plugs in every 30,000 miles and replace your air filter regularly. A tune up will also help improve your gas mileage. The smoother your vehicle runs, the better its gas mileage will be. In addition, you should remove anything from your car you do not really need. The more weight there is in your car, the more gas it will use.  Also, remove your roof rack when you are not using it and if you have a pickup truck put a bed cover on. These changes will reduce your cars drag and give you 2 or 3 more mpg.

Of course, the ultimate gas saver is to simply drive slower. The faster you drive the more gas your automobile will use. If you drive the speed limit, accelerate gradually and avoid sudden stops you can save 3 mpg or more.

If these changes do not significantly improve your gas mileage or your car is just costing you too much money in repairs, it may be time to look at replacing it. If you do buy a fuel efficient car, you then have to figure out what to do with your old gas guzzler. The car dealership will probably not want it as a trade in because there is simply no demand for gas guzzlers. For the same reason, it will be very difficult to sell your older privately. You can always sell it for parts at a junk yard for a couple hundred dollars. Another alternative is to donate your car to charity. When you donate car to charity, you get a tax deduction equal to the amount the charity sells your car for or $500, whichever is more. You simply need to itemize on your federal tax return to claim your valuable tax deduction. 

Cars4Charities will gladly take your gas guzzler for charity car donation. You car will be picked up free if charge. You just need to provide them with a valid title for your old car and not remove any parts from it, whether or not they work. They will also provide you with the documents you will need for your donated car to attach to your tax return in order to claim your valuable tax deduction.

Cars4Charities has hundreds of respected charities that can benefit from your most generous gift of a car donation. For complete details on how to donate car to charity, please go to the cars4charities website or call them toll free at 1-866.448.3487.