Poor Fuel Economy: Why Your Car Uses More Gas and How to Fix It

When your car starts gulping gas like it’s running a marathon, you’re not just losing money—you’re dealing with a system that’s out of balance. poor fuel economy, a drop in how far your car travels per gallon of fuel. It’s not always about driving habits or gas prices—it’s often hidden mechanical issues quietly draining your wallet. Many people blame the pump, the weather, or even their route. But the real culprits are usually things you can fix—like a failing fuel pump, the component that delivers fuel from the tank to the engine, or old, dirty spark plugs, the tiny parts that ignite fuel in the engine cylinders. These aren’t luxury upgrades. They’re basic maintenance items that, when ignored, turn a 30 mpg car into a 18 mpg gas hog.

It’s not just the fuel system. A clogged or leaking radiator, the part that keeps your engine from overheating by circulating coolant forces your engine to work harder, which burns more fuel. Same with the wrong engine oil, the lubricant that reduces friction inside the engine. Using oil that’s too thick or the wrong grade doesn’t just risk engine damage—it cuts efficiency. Even worn suspension parts or bad tires can make your car drag like it’s towing a trailer. You don’t need a full tune-up to fix this. Often, it’s one or two simple fixes that bring your mileage back.

What you’ll find here aren’t generic tips or guesswork. These are real fixes from real people who’ve been there—replacing a faulty fuel pump that was sputtering fuel, swapping spark plugs that had gone silent, fixing radiator leaks that made their engine overheat on every highway trip. No fluff. No hype. Just what actually works to get your miles per gallon back where they should be.