Everyone is looking for a way to save a few bucks at the pump, and Chevrolet has recently performed a simple experiment that may help you as you seek to maximize your mileage.

To illustrate how drivers reduce their fuel economy via 10 common mistakes, Chevrolet drove two identical compacts on a representative workday commute. The results reveal a sensible driving style and that simply paying attention to your vehicle can save drivers as much as $100 a month at the pump.

GM fuel-economy engineers Ann Wenzlick and Beth Nunning drove identical Chevrolet Cruze LTs, EPA estimated at 24 mpg city, and 36 mpg highway. Both cars were driven for 20 minutes on a route through both city streets and urban highways, as well as a coffee stop.

Wenzlick got 37 mpg by driving in the most efficient manner in a well-maintained Cruze. Driving wildly and with an unmaintained vehicle, Nunning managed only 21 mpg.

Extrapolating over a year at 15,000 miles with $4 gas, Nunning would get 250 fewer miles on each tank of gas. Wenzlick would save $100 a month or $1,200 in a year.

“Ann and Beth's results support data from OnStar that shows the fuel economy of drivers in identical cars can vary by 75 percent," said Roger Clark, manager of the GM Energy Center. "With a well-maintained car, the best drivers get up to 25 percent more miles per gallon than average. When you combine a poorly maintained car with inefficient driving habits, the fuel economy of the worst drivers can be 50 percent below average."

“The fuel economy of every vehicle is greatly affected by how you drive, and how you care for your vehicle," he said. "Often, relatively small changes to your driving habits and vehicle maintenance can make the difference between being on the bottom or the top of the fuel-economy scale."

Five Ways to $ave at the Pump

1. Get out of the drive-thru lane

"While Beth waited in the drive-thru with her car running, I shut off the engine and went inside for my morning coffee,” Wenzlick reported. “Idling for 15 minutes burns through an average of a quarter of a gallon – adding another $1 to the cost of your latte."

2. Take it easy

"In the city, I accelerated smoothly while Beth demonstrated one of the most common mistakes we see on the road: Jumping on the gas at every light, only to hit the brakes as she caught up with the traffic ahead, Ann added. “Such aggressive driving isn't going to get you home any faster, while driving smoothly can improve your mileage by 20 percent."

3. Drive 70, not 80.

"On the highway, I drove 70, compared to Beth's 80. Again, a 10-mph difference likely won't add much time to your daily commute, but it will save you up to four miles per gallon on the highway."

4. Use cruise control

"I tried to maintain a constant speed during our drive, while Beth's fluctuated with traffic. Try using cruise control when possible, and maintaining a constant speed over time, which is much more efficient than speeding up and slowing down over and over again."

5. Roll up the windows

"One of the most common questions we get is, 'Is it better to drive with the A/C on or off?' At slower speeds, turning off the air conditioning can save you a little, but I always roll up the windows on the highway,” Wenzlick concluded. “Beth was driving with her windows down, and the increased air pressure acted like a parachute trying to slow her down – consuming much more energy than air conditioning ever will."

Five Ways to Keep Your Mileage Up

1. Keep tires properly inflated

"All four tires on my car were five pounds under their recommended air pressure,” Nunning admitted. “That's not enough to change how the Cruze drives, but it does make the engine work much harder to turn the wheels. Check your tires at least once a month, as a tire 10 pounds under pressure can cut your fuel efficiency by more than 3 percent."

2. Remove roof ornaments

"To show support for my Detroit Tigers (Denver Rockies or Broncos around here), I put up window flags on my Cruze for every home game, but, when the boys hit the road, the flags will come down,” Beth said “At highway speeds, up to a third of your fuel is used to overcome wind resistance, so even small changes to your vehicle's aerodynamics will have a big impact in fuel economy.“

Most of the gains made in recent years had to do with both engine efficiency and aerodynamics.

3. Don’t haul dead weight

"I had six bags of water-softener salt in the trunk I bought on sale at the hardware store, but, according to EPA estimates, every 100 pounds of weight can reduce fuel economy by 2 percent. While I saved at the checkout, that 240 pounds of salt added almost 5 percent to my fuel costs for the trip."

4. Don’t ignore service alerts

"I called OnStar to run a remote diagnostics check on my Cruze, because the check engine light was on. Turns out the light was on because the gas cap was loose, but, more serious engine problems can cut your fuel economy by up to 40 percent." (Make sure your gas cap is fully closed after filling.)

5. Organize and plan errands

"An engine at operating temperature is up to 50 percent more efficient than a cold engine. So, when possible, it's much better to run five errands in an afternoon than running one errand every day of the week.” (However, newer cars don’t need to warm for more than two minutes or you are wasting fuel.)

So the next time you pull in to your favorite filling station in the Denver Metro area, whether it’s a national franchise, convenience store or grocery facility, remember to tighten the gas cap, check your tires and these other eight tips as you proceed with your day and driving.

It’s not hard to find something to do with an extra $100 in Denver, as my fellow Examiners will be happy to point out.