Some car driving tips are designed to help you save gas. Others are intended to help you save yourself some trouble. This one does both.
If you often find yourself making sudden stops or swerving to avoid things, you might want to consider just how far out in front of your bumper you drive. The farther the better as it allows you to anticipate dangerous conditions, changes in traffic flow, and other things that are better known well in advance.
From the perspective of saving gas, it’s best to know when to adjust your speed or coast into a situation so you can conserve fuel that otherwise would be wasted by getting you quickly to the point where you need to apply the brakes anyway. Coasting is a fine way to conserve energy and save wear and tear on the brakes and tires.
More importantly, being able to anticipate trouble can help you save on vehicle damage and personal injury. It could also help you save your life and the lives of those riding with you. Here are some of the things that are important to monitor well ahead of your front bumper:
- road conditions like ice and flooding
- traffic entering the roadway
- animals and pedestrians in or about to enter traffic
- cross traffic
- changes in traffic speed and direction of travel
- roadway advisories
Driving well ahead of your front bumper relates to both speed and distance. The faster you’re traveling, the more important it is to be looking farther ahead because you’ll need more response time. You either give yourself more time to respond by looking farther ahead, or you force yourself to react suddenly.
