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Minimizing Idling Time Can Save Your New Fleet Company Big Bucks

24 July 2018 by Herman Mills

Starting up a new auto fleet company can be a major challenge. You have to not only invest in vehicles but also minimize your fuel costs. This process can be very hard if you are new to the business. Therefore, it is essential to find a way to decrease your vehicle idle time and get your drivers to follow these rules.

Fuel Costs Can Cripple A New Auto Fleet Company

Idling engines in a vehicle burn a large amount of fuel and are considered one of the biggest issues facing the fleet management industry. That's because fuel costs can be so up and down, and idling is just wasted fuel that your vehicle will never get back.

In fact, it is estimated that simply turning your engine off and back on uses less fuel than idling for more than 10 seconds. However, you're going to run into some problems trying to implement idle-reducing concepts with drivers who want to deliver their goods as quickly as possible to minimize travel time.

Reducing Idling Times Can Be Challenging

While focusing on minimizing idling times is a noble goal, it can be a challenge. That difficulty is due to the fact that you have to get all of your drivers on the same page, and they may be focused on getting their deliveries done as soon as possible and want to keep their engine idling while they deliver. Just a few suggestions that can help you minimize idling times include:

• Turn vehicle off when parked during a delivery
• Install auto-shut-off controls for when your driver leaves the vehicle
• Don't warm it up by letting it idle before a cold-weather delivery
• Place warm-weather items in vehicles to stay warm
• Add a motor clock that gauges how long it runs during a delivery
• Create a reward system for those who minimize their idling time

These steps not only help you decrease your idling times but create an incentive for your drivers to follow. After all, they are going to leave their vehicle idling during deliveries to save time. However, if they can minimize their idling time the most and get a nice reward out of it, you'll find they are more willing to shut off the engine.

So if you are concerned that idling time could threaten the financial state of your new auto fleet business, follow these guidelines. They can help to minimize your cost investment and keep your vehicle operating prices down as low as possible without costing you any serious money.

Contact a company offering auto fleet maintenance services, such as Service Pros Auto Center, for more information on how to maximize efficiency.

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