Source: Radio New Zealand
Saving fuel could mean taking simple steps like carrying less weight, driving safely and checking tire pressure. RNZ / Dan Cook
The Automobile Association is advising people to take steps that could help save fuel as the Middle East conflict bumps up prices.
Principal advisor Terry Collins said people can use less fuel by driving safely, checking tire pressure and taking fewer trips.
“Getting the car up to operating temperature … doing all those trips in one go coming back you’re saving fuel.”
Prices have been going up because of the volatility on the wholesale market caused by the conflict in the Middle East following the US-Israel strikes on Iran.
Collins said saving on the cost of fuel can come down to taking simple steps like carrying less weight in the car.
“Don’t drive all week with extra weight unnecessary like golf clubs or other things in your car that aren’t doing anything other than sitting in there. Weight will always make you use more fuel.”
Collins advised people to take a roof rack off their car, as it will make the aerodynamics of the vehicle better.
Checking tyre pressure was also on the list to save fuel, as he said it can decrease in colder weather.
He is also urging people to use an app, like Gaspy, to find the cheapest petrol station near them.
“It’s a homogeneous product which means basically its the same where ever you get it and so buying it by the cheapest price is the best smartest thing to do.”
Since the start of the conflict the price of oil has almost doubled from where it was at the start of the year.
The ripple effects of the price increase has also been the potential for inflation across a wide range of goods and services.
This week demand on Gull’s discount day left some of its petrol stations running low on fuel.
Gull stations in Auckland have run out of petrol at some locations, including this one in Sel Peacock Drive in Henderson. 12 March 2026. RNZ/Calvin Samuel
Gull said 3 percent of its sites had not been able to meet the extra demand from customers when it cut prices on its regular Thursday promotion.
Emeritus Professor in Climate Mitigation and Sustainable Energy at Massey University, Ralph Sims, had previously given similar advice to drivers on saving fuel as prices spiked.
“Most people don’t understand how to drive a car efficiently. I see people accelerate to a red light and then brake heavily, and if you’re running on low tyre pressures, it consumes much more fuel,” Sims said.
He also suggested the government do a national education campaign on fuel-saving tips like avoiding heavy braking, checking tyre pressure, and taking things that add weight, like a roof rack, off their vehicle when they are not needed.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
