Don't believe the myth that it takes more fuel to start your car than to let it run.

If your vehicle will be stationary for longer than about 10 seconds, yo... read full tip

Don't believe the myth that it takes more fuel to start your car than to let it run.

If your vehicle will be stationary for longer than about 10 seconds, you'll save gas by turning it off. This is one method hybrid cars use to boost fuel economy: the engine shuts down when the car stops moving.

So just turn off the engine instead of letting the car run while you're waiting for the kids to get out of school, or for your roommate to run into the mini-mart to buy a snack, or for your carpool buddy to finish breakfast.

If you reduced the amount of time you sit idling in your car by just three minutes per day, you could save about 12 gallons of gas per year.

Americans waste an estimated 3.8 million gallons of gasoline per day in absent-minded engine idle. If this number were reduced by just 1 percent, the annual fuel savings across the country would total 13.8 million gallons per year-enough to fuel more than 100,000 coast-to-coast road trips.

Sources:

ASME Florida
Hinkle Charitable Foundation