8
Eco-driving
Eco-driving
Eco-driving refers to a range of everyday
practices that allow the motorist to optimise
the vehicle's energy consumption (fuel and/or
electricity) and CO
2 emissions.
Optimise your use of the gearbox
With an automatic gearbox, favour automatic
mode. Do not depress the accelerator pedal
heavily or suddenly.
The gear shift indicator prompts you to engage
the most suitable gear. Whenever this indication
is displayed on the instrument panel, follow it
straight away.
With an automatic gearbox, this indicator
appears only in manual mode.
Drive smoothly
Maintain a safe distance between vehicles, use
engine braking rather than the brake pedal and
press the accelerator gradually. These practices
help to save on energy consumption, reduce
CO
2 emissions and decrease general traffic
noise.
When the traffic is flowing smoothly, select the
cruise control.
Control the use of electrical equipment
Before moving off, if the passenger compartment
is too warm, ventilate it by opening the windows
and air vents before using the air conditioning.
At speeds above 31
mph (50 km/h), close the
windows and leave the air vents open. Consider using equipment that can help keep
the temperature in the passenger compartment
down (e.g.
sunroof blind, window blinds).
Unless automatically regulated, switch off the air
conditioning as soon as the desired temperature
has been reached.
Switch off the demisting and defrosting functions,
if they are not managed automatically.
Switch off the heated seat as soon as possible.
Adapt the use of headlamps and/or foglamps
depending on visibility conditions.
Avoid running the engine before moving off,
particularly in winter (other than in severe wintry
conditions: temperature below -23°C). The
vehicle will warm up much faster while driving.
As a passenger, avoid connecting your
multimedia devices (e.g. film, music, video
game) to help reduce the consumption of energy.
Disconnect all portable devices before leaving
the vehicle.
Limit the causes of excess consumption
Spread loads throughout the vehicle. Place the
heaviest items in the boot as close as possible to
the rear seats.
Limit the loads carried in the vehicle and
minimise wind resistance (e.g.
roof bars, roof
rack, bicycle carrier, trailer). Preferably, use a
roof box.
Remove roof bars and roof racks after use.
At the end of winter, remove snow tyres and refit
summer tyres.
Comply with the servicing instructions
Check tyre pressures regularly, with the tyres
cold, referring to the label in the door aperture on
the driver's side.
Carry out this check in particular:
–
before a long journey
.
–
at each change of season.
–
after a long period out of use.
Do not forget the spare wheel and, where
applicable, the tyres on your trailer or caravan.
Have your vehicle serviced regularly (e.g.
engine
oil, oil filter, air filter, passenger compartment
filter, etc.). Observe the schedule of operations in
the manufacturer's service schedule.
When filling the fuel tank, do not continue after
the third cut-out of the nozzle, to avoid overflow.
You will only see the fuel consumption of your
new vehicle settle down to a consistent average
after the first 1,900 miles (3,000 kilometres).
Optimising the driving range
(rechargeable hybrid vehicles)
Connect the vehicle as soon as possible.
Favour the ECO zone of the power indicator by
driving smoothly and at a steady speed.
Anticipate slowing down as much as possible
and, if possible, favour decelerations with
regenerative braking mode activated (power
indicator in the CHARGE zone).
With the vehicle connected, carry out
temperature pre-conditioning before setting off.
To optimise consumption during a journey:
