House bills, Car bills...GAS?!!!

If you ask the everyday commuter what their biggest pet peeve is, it'll more than likely be the high gas prices that seemingly increase every time you even step into your cars. Like Katt Williams says in one of his stand up comedy routines: "We should not be making life changing decisions at the pump." Now it's sad that for the most part our hands are tied in terms of gas prices but to make our wallets happier, there are precautions we can take to reduce the gas that our cars guzzle.

1. Lose weight

Excess weight on and in your car increases the fuel consumption of your car. If you load up your car on a trip or something, it can cut into fuel economy by as much as 5%. So what can you do? For every 100 lbs you remove from your car, it's a 1-2 percent improvement in gas economy.

2. Tires

In a given month, tires lose about 1 lbs. of pressure. What this means is that the rolling resistance increases and your mileage decreases. So, make sure to check your air filter on a regular basis because a funky air filter can increase fuel consumption by as much as 10%!

3. 60 Is The Magic Number

Speeding is fun and thrilling, and it also can get you to where you need to go a lot faster...as well as get you a ticket =/. However, for every 5 MPH you take your car above 60 MPH, you're paying 6% more per gallon at the gas station. That's definitely not fun. Smooth out your throttle pressing and slow down a bit...you'll avoid trouble from the cops and trouble at the gas stations.

4. Apply Cleanser

Though some cars require the highest grade of gas, you're more likely than not going to aim for the cheapest gas you can get. However, you might be selling yourself short of many chemicals that clean out your fuel injectors. As a solution, apply a cleaner to your fuel injectors and this could improve gas mileage by up to 20%.

5. Check Engine...no really, check it when the light goes on!

The "Check Engine" light is probably the most ignored alert on the car. Sometimes, we'll attribute it to a busted bulb and that's why the alert is on or worse, we think that we can just "ride" it out. Let me warn you...if you blow your engine, your gas mileage is going to get about 10-20% worse.

The days of cheap gas are long gone so the best thing to do is to prepare ourselves and really try to minimize any excess weight we put on our cars. That way, we become happier 'cause our cars become happier, and vice versa.

- Rack of Lam