From the time you began driving, I’m sure your parents, friends and even strangers gave you some advice about driving at some point. Whether they gave you tips on saving gas or tricks to keep your car cleaner, some of the advice may have been contradictory. I know I heard some tips that seemed too good to be true, or just plain illogical! So which common car tips are true, and which ones are just old hearsay? I did a little bit of research to help finally figure it all out! Here are 7 things you should stop believing about your car: 1. Driving with the windows down will lower your gas mileage. I know I definitely heard that it’s better to turn on the AC than drive with your windows down, because the air coming into the car can create a drag and prevent you from getting as good of gas mileage. And as much as I love my dear AC, sometimes I just want to feel the wind through my hair! So I’ve wondered about this one for quite some time. Well, it turns out that there are still conflicting ideas out there. Some people say the AC provides better gas mileage, some say the windows down will. But any tests that have been done (like this one on MythBusters) showed that the difference in results were so minuscule, it simple doesn’t make much of a difference! 
2. You need to change your oil every 3,000 miles. Here’s one I’m really happy to hear debunked. After all, it will save a lot of money! Apparently, cars are made much more efficiently these days and can go as far as 10,000 miles without changing the oil. Of course, changing the oil more frequently isn’t going to do any harm, and it’s probably still good to get in sooner than 10,000 miles — but it’s good to know that if you don’t make it into the shop that frequently, your car is going to be just fine! 3. You need to let your engine warm up before driving — especially in the cold! Modern cars will naturally warm up as you drive them. In fact, they warm up more quickly while being driven — meaning you might as well get going if you want your engine to get to it’s peak performance and fuel efficiency during your travels. Just be sure not to rev your engine or hit top speeds in your first few minutes of driving. 4. Premium gasoline is better for any car. Unless designated in your owner’s manual, your car will function perfectly well with regular grade gasoline. Premium grade won’t hurt your engine, but it won’t magically make your car go faster or perform better, either. And premium grade will hurt your wallet a bit more! 
5. Red cars get pulled over more than any other color car. Apparently the model of car you drive has a lot more to do with getting pulled over than the color of the car. I’ve even heard that red cars cost more to insure, since they have a color that catches the eye of cops more often — but that’s not true either! It turns out that the Mercedes-Benz SL-Class gets pulled over more than any other car. 6. Driving around the block a few times will recharge your battery after a jump-start. I always heard that you need to drive around after getting your car jump-started to make sure it will turn on again the next time. But unfortunately it can take a lot longer than you might think. Some cars can take several hours of driving to recharge the battery enough! 
7. Manual transmission is more fuel-efficient than automatic. Automatic transmissions have become far more progressive in technology over the years. Features like a continuously variable transmission help to keep automatic vehicles running sometimes even more efficiently than manual transmission cars.
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