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With the price of gas at record levels, a host of fuel saving products are being advertised. If you do a search for the key words "fuel saving devices" google will find 1.5 million pages as a result of the search. It never ceases to amaze that so many unscrupulous individuals try to take advantage of specific situations in order to scam you out of your hard earned money. And that is exactly what these gas saving devices are, scams. This current scam takes advantage of driver's overwhelming desire to cut their gas costs. The scam artists are using deceptive advertising to convince you that a fuel saving product installed on your vehicle will miraculously cut your fuel usage up to 30 percent or higher. The Federal Trade Commission through research and US government testing of every kind of device and additive has some advice for all consumers. The FTC (Federal Trade Commission)) warns you to be very wary of any fuel saving claims for devices or additives. They have never found any fuel saving device that significantly enhances fuel economy in any way! There are a few popular ads and claims used in gas saving device advertising strategy. Here are a few to watch out for: Be very skeptical of the following kind of advertising claim. "This gas-saving product improves fuel economy by 20 percent." Claims usually tout savings ranging from 12 to 25 percent. However, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has evaluated or tested more than 100 alleged gas-saving devices and has not found any product that significantly improves gas mileage. In fact, some "gas-saving" products may damage a car's engine or cause substantial increases in exhaust emissions. Also be skeptical of ads that feature glowing testimonials from satisfied drivers such as: "After installing your product on my car, I got an extra 4 miles [6.4 kilometers] per gallon [3.8 liters]." You cannot put your hard earned dollars at risk because of some amateur drivers claim. These types of deceptive advertisements use testimonials from happy drivers as the proof that the product works. No consumer or driver has the proper equipment or the training to test for precise changes in fuel economy. Even if the consumer had the right equipment they could not control the conditions that affect fuel economy a great deal. Different variables affect gasoline mileage. These include road conditions, weather conditions, traffic conditions, and the condition of the vehicle. For example in one deceptive advertising case that was researched, a driver wrote a letter praising a "gasoline saving" device. Of course this consumer forgot to mention that when he had the aforementioned device installed, he also had his car completely tuned up. The increase in fuel economy that was attributed to the "gasoline saving" device in the letter was most certainly a result of the tune up and not the device. The device advertisement did not mention this, so other drivers and consumers would never know it was the tune up not the device that accounted for any increase in fuel economy. These are just some of the tactics that those selling fuel saving devices use to legitimize their claims. They are out there to take advantage of unsuspecting consumers desperate to find a way to lower their gas costs. Don't become a victim of these scams. Be wary of their claims. Remember, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
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Scott Siegel is the author of a 143 page manual of automotive industry insider information on saving gas and money at the pump (beatthegaspump.com). Visit us to learn how you can get better gas mileage. Find out how to increase gas mileage. Feel free to grab a unique version of this article from the Uber lower gas costs article directory
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