As we hybrid car owners know, having a fuel consumption gauge on the instrument panel is the most effective mechanism for convincing drivers to drive more efficiently.
By coasting when possible, not gunning it off the line, and slowing to a stop instead of slamming on the brakes, it's easy to add anywhere from 1-7 miles per gallon to your fuel economy. If you have the gauge, you can't help but compare numbers between trips and drivers and you'll continually look for methods to add one more mpg.
These gauges are available as after-market products such as the ScanGauge or on several non-hybrid cars including the Suzuki Grand Vitara JLX", and for drivers willing to change, they quickly pay for themselves.
For example, if you drive 12,000 miles per year, and boost your fuel economy from 27-30 mpg by driving smart, that's 44 gallons of gas saved, or about $120 per year, or about what a ScanGuage will cost you.
For aggressive drivers that try and shave a few seconds off their commute by gunning it, 44 gallons saved is about 4 trips to the gas station you won't have to make, which would save more time in the long run than all of those needless lane changes.
If fuel consumption gauges were standard on all vehicles, I bet we'd save more than is in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. For some people though, that doesn't matter.
