How to Calculate Gas Mileage
Calculating gas mileage is a great way for you to determine if you’re getting the most out of your gas. Some people like calculating gas mileage to compare road trips to expenses procured in other forms of travel, like via train or plane. Another reason to calculate gas mileage is to know exactly how much you pay for the gas you need in running your everyday errands in your vehicle. Here’s how you can calculate gas mileage.
Method 1
This first method is better used when you want to find out how much you’re using and spending when you’re using your vehicle for your everyday errands.
Keep a small notebook and pencil in your glove compartment before you even start. This is important in keeping track and calculate your gas mileage.
Have the gas tank filled completely, but not before writing down the mileage number that you see before you even leave the gas station.
Try to use your existing gas to near-empty before you refuel your vehicle. When you do refuel, make sure that you’re using the same grade of gasoline that you did when you first logged in.
When you refill your tank to full, take note of the day, time, number of gallons you need to refill and the mileage shown on your odometer.
Take your current odometer reading and subtract the previous odometer reading you’ve recorded.
Once you’ve gotten the difference between the two odometer readings, divide it by the number of gallons it took to refill the tank the second time around.
Method 2
This second method is recommended if you want to calculate how much mileage you may potentially end up using on a planned trip.
Calculate your vehicle’s consumed miles per gallon (MPG) using the first method.
Determine how many miles you’ll be driving to your intended destination.
Find out the gas prices along the places you’re likely to get your gas.
Divide the miles you’ll be driving with your MPG. Multiply the dividend with the average gas prices that you’ve determined. This will tell you how much you will probably spend on gas on your trip.
The calculations only require basic math, and you’ll be able to determine how economical it actually is to take your car to travel. Good luck.