Perhaps more than any other invention in history, cars have had a profound impact on our society and our environment in both the positive and negative aspects. On one hand, the transportation industry makes for faster human mobility, easier delivery of basic services and closer linkages, to name a few benefits. On the other hand, automobiles are responsible for the huge amounts of air, water and land pollution as well as a variety of human diseases. That being the case, it is very important to start greening your ride with these easy tips. Just count to 10 and you’re done!

Keep Your Car – The environmental costs of buying a new car easily outweigh the costs of keeping your old car and keeping it as energy-efficient as possible. Extend its life as long as possible so that the landfills will be less crowded.

Slow Down – Save 30-40 percent of gas costs by accelerating gradually, maintaining steady speed and braking slowly. Plus, your tires, brakes and engine will last longer, thus, saving on additional car costs including speeding tickets. Your ride will be safer, too.

Check Your Tires – Three things: Ensure that the tires are the right size for the car, that the tire air pressure is of the recommended amount and that the tires still have good treads. This should result in lesser gas costs and tire blowouts.

Go for Tune-ups – Make the mechanic your friend through regular tune-ups. This should save about 7 to 10 cents to the gallon, which should add up in the long run. Better yet, ask your mechanic for the energy conserving synthetic motor oil.

Throw Away the Junk – Excess weight in the car makes the engine work harder than it should, thus, lessening fuel efficiency. It makes sense to clean and clear your car of its junk on a regular basis. Plus, it makes a better-smelling ride.

Cruise Control – Unless you are climbing mountains, the car’s cruise control should be turned on. Fuel efficiency is maximized because the smaller decreases and increases in speed balances out with this standard feature in most cars.

Idling Off – When stuck in traffic or waiting for someone for more than 10 seconds, just turn off your car. You will be saving on gas costs and lessening carbon emissions. Every little smoke helps in global warming, if you must ask.

Multi-task with Trips – Before going out of the house with driving in mind, plan the errands that need to be accomplished. This way, you can maximize car use. And if possible, just walk to your destinations when you get to the general area.

Carpool – It may not sound cool to carpool with others but for the sake of the environment, it should be. It will help in lessening the traffic, the dependence on oil of our society and the pollution from too many cars on the road.

Clean with Green Materials – Cleaning with hose, bucket and rag is fun for the whole family, not to mention that it conjures up images of those sexy carwash girls. However, it is also the most wasteful use of water, more so where commercial car washes are concerned. Instead, use waterless car cleaning polishes and sprays to make your car sparkling clean.

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