I have driven my new 97 approx. 300 miles in the past week and so far I have only been able to get 14 mpg (13.8 actually). It has been a good mix of highway driving, idling, stop and go and even a 20 miles of hauling a load in the back. I was expecting to do at least 16 under these conditions especially considering I have been keeping the speed at or below 65 (2000 rpm). I am working on swapping out the stock replacement K&N to a BHAF but I have also been looking at doing a fuel filter and pre-screen. Can these things negatively affect fuel economy if they are old? Obviously I have no idea how old they are so I figured why not?

When I look at how to change them out it seems like they are sort of a pain due to all the stuff in the way. Is there a quick and easy way to do this?

Any other cheap/ez suggestions on increasing my mileage on this truck?

Sorry for the dumb questions and thanks for your help!

I would love to swap out the 4.10's but after reading around on the web it seems like even with them I should be able to get at least 16 while empty all the time with this thing - right?

 

you should be able to get better milage closer to 20, if not 20. When i first bought my truck I changed the filters and noticed a increase of about 3mpg, and it seemed to run better with all new filters and oil. You can also bump ur timing up alittle to get some more mpg. The 4.10's won't hurt milage unless u run constantly at like 75 where the rpms are high. The bigger pump might affect milage compared to a 160 pump, but u should definently see better milage.

 

Lots of little things, try fuel filter, injector cleaner, new intake or filter, and also try to find out if your wastegate is operating properly or if its pinched off or plugged.

 

Sorry for my ignorance - but is the wastegate below the turbo? Is there a picture or something I can use as reference and what am I supposed to look for to see if it works?