VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – This heat wave is probably leading you to crank the air conditioning during your commute, but is that leading to a bigger gas bill?

Most people would probably say it does use up more fuel to have the A/C running in your car.

But, according to BCAA, that is not true.

Associate Vice President Ken Cousin says overall, having the air conditioning on will not cost you more. “It will have a minimal drag on the engine therefore use a minimal amount of fuel and the percentage depends on the vehicle.”

If you thought driving around with your windows rolled down would save you money, Cousin says think again.

“Having the windows down can create enough drag to increase the fuel consumption by 7- 10 per cent, the modern school of thought thinks about that, so it is a little interpretive because cars and trucks are built differently.”

He says if you want to save money in this heat, two things to maintain are your coolant system and tire pressure.