[spacemanspif]

Logic doesn't work and its just because of the type of person she is and not necessarily that she's a woman. I come from both sides of the car world and many people have the same issues. Whether you want to save gas or consume a whole bunch more there will always be people who don't "get it" because part of them doesn't care. The OP's wife is probably like most other people in the world today who have a car to get where they need to go and don't think anything about it as long as the it starts and runs. To them care maintenance is a hassle and modifications are a waste of time and money. They will always ***** about the price of an oil change or brake job but would rather pay than learn and the reason is usually something like "cars are dirty", "I don't have time to learn or do the work", "I have more important things to do" etc.

Even money isn't a motivator because its too much of a "hassle to think about all that stuff while I'm driving". No matter how many times my dad told my mom to coast up to a light she'd still be on the gas until she needed to be hard on the brakes...and my girlfriend is the same exact way. So we've even tried to just give 1 little tip and it still doesn't sink in because they don't want it to or don't care. I have tracked my mileage on every tank since I started driving; when I met my GF she didn't even know how to calculate MPG ("it's miles PER! gallon" was how the conversation went). But even now, I'll talk to her and say "I did really well this tank and got 40mpg" and she'll say an unenthusiastic "congratulations"...the same "congratulations" when I got my engine swap done AND continue to run personal best 1/4mile time....she just doesn't care about cars.

I think its because of people being distracted and in a rush. If you are distracted, you have enough trouble driving, adding "alternative driving methods" to the equation could lead to a melt down. And while rushing around it actually makes you feel better to get to the next light; and the next light, and the next. Even though WE ALL know they aren't getting there any faster (and sometimes slower) it fools their mind into thinking they are doing better. Get there faster by going slower? I don't think so...

Moral of the story: You can lead a horse to water but you can't make it drink.

Advice to OP: drop the subject if it is going to cause fights between you 2. Like said above, the savings are negligible for her to gain a slight improvement.