Fuel-saving tips to reduce fleet operating costs

Get more value from your fleet with our practical tips

Managing large commercial fleets is a delicate balancing act of man and machine. It relies on the continuous monitoring of vehicles and drivers to ensure that deliveries and collections run smoothly. Besides this demanding workload, fleet managers also have to ensure that budgets meet operational and revenue targets.

At Michelin, we understand the immense responsibility and expectations that face fleet managers. We have gathered some valuable tips that will provide you with support in one of the areas where you need it most – your fuel budget. Here are a few practical fuel-saving tips that will help you to decrease your fleet’s fuel bill.

Driver monitoring and training 

It’s impossible to monitor your drivers’ every move. But you can put measures in place to improve their driving behaviour and ultimately how much fuel they use. Bad driving habits like leaving the air conditioner or heater running and unnecessary idling can significantly increase fuel costs. Another driver behaviour fuel-saving tip is to minimise dead stops. The larger the vehicle, the higher the revs and subsequent consumption required to pull away from a standing start.

Your fleet tracking system provides reports on idling times and driver economy ratings. Use these to your advantage in planning driver training to improve fuel-efficient driving.

Smart route planning

Route deviations can have a significant impact on your fleet’s fuel consumption. Drivers opting to use routes that might be shorter in distance – but have many traffic lights and stop signs – can result in higher fuel consumption. It’s also beneficial to train your drivers to avoid traffic and if possible, to minimise stop-start driving.

The further in advance you can plan your routes, the easier it will be to find common overlaps between pickup and delivery destinations. This can help you to minimise distances travelled and even use fewer trucks to complete the same number of journeys. If you have a variety of trucks in your fleet, try to allocate the truck that’s best-suited for the load. This can conserve your overall fuel consumption as smaller vehicles with smaller engines use less fuel.

Regular maintenance

Overseeing the maintenance of a large commercial fleet is a neverending endeavour. Along with scheduled manufacturer services, it’s important to maintain moving parts that are subject to daily wear and tear. The malfunctioning of the smallest part can affect your fuel consumption.

Filters and lubricants are key components to ensure that your trucks use fuel optimally. Filters ensure that clean fuel and air is delivered to the engine which allows it to run as efficiently as possible. Lubricants help the engine and transmission to run with as little friction as possible. More friction results in the engine having to work harder and use more fuel.

Fuel-saving tyres

Truck tyre costs make up a large portion of your operational fleet budget and total cost of ownership. Properly maintaining tyres helps to reduce the frequency of replacements but you can also reduce your fuel bill by fitting the right tyres.

Michelin X Line Energy tyres have been expertly engineered with your fleet budget and cost of ownership in mind. X Line Energy tyres are lighter on your budget and kinder to the environment. If you’re fitting your fleet with our X Line Energy steer, drive and trailer tyres, you will save on your fleet’s fuel bill, improve your mileage performance and reduce your overall CO₂ emissions.

See how much you can save when you switch to X Line Energy. Our truck tyre calculator estimates your potential savings and sends it straight to your inbox. Calculate your savings here.