Driving with your A/C running,does it burn more gas.?

Question

Driving with your A/C running,does it burn more gas.?

Answer 1

It depends on how fast you're going. Under 45 it's best to have your windows down. Above 45 it's best to have the windows up and AC on.

Answer 2

Not enough to make me turn off my AC. It's hot where I live (Phx)

Answer 3

YES.

Part of the energy that is generated by your engine will have to be diverted to running your AC.

You will have to feed more fuel to the engine in order to keep going at the speed that you had before you turned on your AC.

Answer 4

Depends on what you are referring to... it definitely uses more gas then driving without A/C and with windows up.

The Mythbusters show covered this myth and came up with the following.

Tests were performed under varying conditions (55 mph versus 45 mph). Also, the 55 mph test was using a computer to estimate fuel efficiency based on air intake, not actual fuel consumption, and showed A/C was more efficient. The 45 mph test consisted of running the tank until it was empty, and showed open windows were more efficient. This experiment--or one like it--is sometimes cited by the Magliozzi Brothers on Car Talk when presented with this question.

Answer 5

There was a study that I read, but unfortunately I don't remember what it was called, that said there was no real significant loss of fuel when driving with or without the AC on. But if you were to drive upwards, you will lose momentum by having the AC on.

Answer 6

It depends on your car. Obviously, the more energy you want from your engine is going to require more fuel. But within the past 15 or so years, auto makers have been putting in low resistance AC systems, which requires less energy to run than before. So, compared to running with your windows open, it doesn't require more gas.

But on the flipside, more and more cars are becoming highly aerodynamic, and even with the windows open, your wind drag coefficient is very low. The lower the number, the less wind resistance. This affects your fuel consumption. More aerodynamic, the less gas you use.

Answer 7

yes. ac compressors take a lot of energy to turn....that energy comes from your rotating engine. in order to make you car go 50mph with the ac on, it has to generate the power to drive 50mph plus the energy sapped by the ac compressor. try accelerating with the ac off...while still accelerating turn it on. unless you're drivign a high power car, you can feel  a noticable drop in power.

Answer 8

an important detail to remember is that when you shut your car off, if the ac is still on, you will wear out the compressor faster.  turn your ac off before you kill the ignition  : )