How to Improve Fuel Economy in a Truck

Oct 01, 2019 at 08:10 AM CST
The US trucking industry spent an estimated $89.7 billion on diesel fuel in 2016 alone. Fuel is the second biggest expense motor carriers face, after labor costs. Since it's such a huge chunk of a trucking fleet's budget — as much as 20% of the total operating cost — saving on fuel is essential for any fleet, whether local or national. Yet it's tough to learn the best practices that would actually boost a truck's fuel economy. The data you need to make a decision is limited, and often comes from sources so different that it's like comparing apples and oranges. Take the statistic I opened this article with, for instance — the source is from the reliable American Trucking Associations (ATA) website, but it only covers diesel fuel in 2016, rather than all fuel in 2019. Even worse, some sites use misleading or outdated information — even official government websites. In this article, I've combed through all the available data and analysis to offer the most comprehensive investigation of which habits burn the most fuel, and how fleets can save as much money as possible.

Oct 01, 2019 at 08:10 AM CST

The US trucking industry spent an estimated $89.7 billion on diesel fuel in 2016 alone. Fuel is the second biggest expense motor carriers face, after labor costs. Since it's such a huge chunk of a trucking fleet's budget — as much as 20% of the total operating cost — saving on fuel is essential for any fleet, whether local or national. Yet it's tough to learn the best practices that would actually boost a truck's fuel economy. The data you need to make a decision is limited, and often comes from sources so different that it's like comparing apples and oranges. Take the statistic I opened this article with, for instance — the source is from the reliable American Trucking Associations (ATA) website, but it only covers diesel fuel in 2016, rather than all fuel in 2019. Even worse, some sites use misleading or outdated information — even official government websites. In this article, I've combed through all the available data and analysis to offer the most comprehensive investigation of which habits burn the most fuel, and how fleets can save as much money as possible.