What can I check, or what modes do I need to do to bump my fuel mileage up? I’m getting about 14 to 16 every day driving and about 8 to 10 pulling my 5th wheel witch is about 14K to 15K. There is about 160K on it now, I am not sure what has been done to the engine cines I am the 2nd owner. From what I have been reading on the forum what others are getting I am not happy.

 

This 14 to 16 mpg you're getting, is that in town everyday driving or highway everyday driving? If it's alot of in town then thats not bad at all. If thats your highway mileage then it would be crappy. If it's about half and half then still it's not bad. There are too many variables to consider to give you an accurate account. For instance if you drive the speed limit, but accelerate rapidly to get there, then your mileage is gonna be down. Most of the mileage threads on here are when people are trying hard to sqeeze every inch out of a gallon of fuel. When I drive like everyone else on the road, my average goes down to about 15, but when I try hard I can get an average of 20-24 depending on where I drive.

 

I am 66 yeas old, and I am babying it to try get the best MPG, I have ot had the truck to long, cince may of 2009. I have never seen over 16 mpg highway. on the calkulater.

 

Is that calculated by your lieometer/headsup or is that you putting pen to paper?

 

Oh yeah I forgot that in my response, the overhead is usually off quite a bit. Hand calculated is the accurate way to check.

 

Yeah I put pen to paper and was shocked from the difference from the headsup display. I knew it would be off a little, maybe 1-2 few mpg, but I had no idea it would be off by 6-7 mpg

 

My overhead is usually off 2 to 4 MPG, I always Hand calculates, I may try a tuner of some sort, but I really don’t think that will make all that much different.

 

A Smarty Jr will give you a small bump in economy, but nothing huge.

 

We're about the same distance south, living on the flats: hot weather, etc.

We both have 6-speeds.

But mine is 2WD, SRW.

I wouldn't bother with a tuner until you can break out mileage per use (and winter versus summer), plus try to see how long the average trip is while solo. I always shoot for 30+ miles as these trucks really don't warm up all the way until past 15-miles . . and then grease, etc has to come up to temp AND burn off condensation, etc. By which I mean I combine all errands into one long loop. If I can drive limited access roadways, I do it (even if it means another mile or three). I think it VERY important to have the truck warmed up completely EVERY time I drive it. I have a mental map of my route before I turn the key.

Second, learn the average speed at which you are traveling. The elapsed time on the overhead is your friend. Divide miles by that time. I find that if my average speed thus deduced is at least 27 mph then the around town mpg is very good. BUT if it drops down to, say, 21, then the economy suffers.

I run ALL miles between 17-1900 rpm. That means I may run 33 mph in a 40 zone . . but in city that means I have room for gliding thru lights, avoiding turning/entering traffic, etc. I always use first (as Chrysler recommends), and I shift at 1800, clutch to the floor, and no power added EVER until clutch fully engaged. The throttle is ONLY for moving between gears, so use as little fuel as possible to get to the correct gear. By "not stopping" the average speed stays higher AND there are no starts from a stop (a real mpg killer).

Same for highway. I run 1725 rpm/58 mph and my mileage does not drop below 24 mpg. (see sig). On a 300-mile trip the "time penalty" is only about 1/2-hour. Meaningless "savings" by speeding. Plus no lane changing, braking, etc due to trying to speed (which is NOT sign limited, but CONDITION limited). Learn to use mirrors to "flow" traffic around you.

Start by finding engine hours and determine average speed thus far. Record it on a regular basis. And, total gallons used for total miles traveled. Tank by tank doesn't mean much. It's all about the overall average (and then broken out).

Third, keep fluids changed by miles AND time: no fluid should be more than three years old, IMO. Same for filters: I change air, oil and fuel with every oil change. Cheap. Use best quality (BALDWIN or DONALDSON).

Fourth, tires should be carefully balanced and pressures should not be lower than Chrysler recommendations. Obtain the Pressure & Load Table for your brand of tire. Weigh truck (driver plus full fuel plus ordinary junk onboard) at a CAT Scale. (On second and third weigh you can weigh one side only by putting other side tires off of edge). Meet the pressures in the table and exceed by no more than 20%. (Do the same when loaded with trailer for travel).

Have alignment checked. Brakes checked for no drag. Etc. In other words, back into the details of the mechanical and BE SURE that everything is as it should be.

Add a bed cover, either tonneau or cab high, close fitting topper. Highway rib tires (MICHELIN, stock), no lift kit (stock rake), and an attitude that fuel is $6gl.

Takes some time to change old driving habits. But it pays, big: lasts longer, fewer repairs, less down time, etc.

https://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...g-t264698.html

Good luck

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Some great points. But 58 in a 75 is just crazy, and unsafe IMHO. Not sure what your speed limits are down there, but thats what they are on the HWY's here. People expect trailers to be going slower, but not on bobtail rigs. Yes the mileage may suffer going a bit faster, but is the couple bucks worth the safety?

 

Danggg, I thought I was bad.... 58 in a 75 is a little excessive. I'd probably push it up to 60. After that my mileage goes in the crapper. (probably the 4:10 gears)
I drive mine that way every day to work but our speed limits are 65 which I usually drive with the trucks in (55-60) and use the cruise control as much as possible. I'm getting about 650-675 miles from a tank full. Thats around 22-24 mpg avg. Not bad. For an automatic. My convertoer unlocks at 40 mph so I'm coasting under that, like up to a stop sign or light. Certainly a mileage getter...

 

Is that hand calc? I only get 19.5 when I get 650 from a tank.

 

I'm getting about 16+ non-towing and averaging around 11.5 towing a 13k fifth wheel. Non-towing my speeds are pretty close to 55 mph on two lane roads and 65 on four lane roads. (After chasing down speeders for 20+ years and now in my "golden years" I no longer have the need for speed.) While towing I keep it at 55 on 2 lane roads and around 60 on 4 lane roads. I added the Smarty Jr. last winter, but so far it appears it's added about 1 to 1.5 mpg; I just leave it on stage 1. (Winter time mpg just sucks any/every time I figure it.) All my figures are hand calculated. It'll take quite a few miles to recover the cost of the Smarty Jr., but that doesn't take into account the "grin factor" of having the extra power available when I need/want it.

 

For whats its worth, I get around 15mpg towing. Its probably a smaller trailer than yours but I try and keep it at around 2000 rpm's which means sometimes going faster and sometimes slower than I should (depending on traffic). I was wondering what rear end you have in yours and what you are hauling?

 

You don't have rearview mirrors? Or just don't know how to use them?

It is that simple.

("You" being anyone who "thinks" this way: not-thinking; an irrational assumption).

I drove governed big trucks and learned that 55 (or 62) is no big deal. Let's go through it:

I am liable for my actions. Not that of others.

The SIGNED "limit" is only under ideal conditions of perfect daylight weather and very light traffic (200' spacing distance for reasonability in re stopping/reaction distances). The ACTUAL speed limit is one of prudence where even a decent crosswind or medium traffic DENIES the use of the highest possible speed. And, for limited access Interstates, the MINIMUM is 45 mph. (See state law). You can be ticketed for speeding in ANY state and be well under the "limit".

As to being "run over" (the fear of the sheeple; an excuse to avoid thinking, thus responsibility: the hallmark of citizenry) in the 18,000 miles I recently accumulated on the same stretch of Interstate and divided four lane US highway, I maybe two or three times had others hit their brakes running up on me (day, night, clear, raining, you-name-it).

Rearview mirrors allow me to know what the future will look like. Combined with what is in front of me it is only a matter of time/distance intuitions/calculations about any action I may need to take. The difference between "you" and me is that I know how to make them, and have experience in various tactics. There are ways to "flow the traffic around and past" that I will use on you and you won't be aware I've done it . . . .

A man running down the road within the limits has the ROW. The speeder DOES NOT. (I suspect, rightly, that "you" also do not know the difference between overtaking and passing; the former has ZERO right-of-way when the slow moving vehicle moves to the left lane to pass an even slower vehicle, or to make room for an emergency vehicle on the shoulder, etc). So let me get the spoon out: Speeding is too fast for conditions, NOT the posted high limit, and it includes slower moving vehicles.

It isn't rocket science. It involves thinking, what separates men from boys . . . if I used "your" form of argument about firearms "you" would be all over it: I am not allowed prudence within the law due to the ignorance & irresponsibility of others, thus I am barred from the use of firearms when others may be present (concealed carry). Etc. Knowing the law means having thought about it's ramifications.

Why do you think you HAVE rear view mirrors? Or signalling devices, or marker and clearance lamps and reflectors? Your vehicle is required to have two headlights, windshield wipers, etc. Or that the roads themselves are marked, signed, graded and paved? Driving falls under a set of sets of rules.

"Crazy", sir, is the one who thinks his childish wants supercede those sets.

I can imagine that "you" are also one who gets down the road with cruise control on into blind curves and over hills . . that X-ray vision would be a handy upgrade I can't yet afford. I don't need to imagine that you are also one who travels along in the packs of cretins, bumper-to-bumper for all practical purposes, as this now constitutes 90+% of Interstate traffic.

I'll also bet that "you" are also the one who changes over to the right lane -- with no use, or improper use, of a turn signal -- and cut off my braking distance (huge ROW violation) so that the tailgating left-lane morons -- geez, they're faster -- can proceed. And pat yourself on the back for your "courtesy".

Texas has more miles of roadway than the old Soviet Union. And of every conceivable type as well as speed limits to 80 mph. I have not ever found being slower than the majority of traffic -- in nearly forty years -- to be a problem. Ever.

"Your" argument about "safety", lacking merit, is as inaccurate as "a couple of bucks" in regards vehicle operating costs. Americans seem to think that the finance/principal payment and fuel cost are the sum of their ownership costs. On a new, stock, truck (one of ours) that cost is in excess of 96-cents per mile (60k over 5-years), yet how often does that thought cross the mind when hitting the key to run to the c-store for a pack of something? Never, is my guess.

Americans are now averaging 20% of before-tax income for transportation costs, the highest in the past century.

That $48k 2010 Ram "costs" $72k after 5-yrs/60k out-of-pocket.

If I use 650 gallons to cover the past 15,000 miles (actual), and your truck has used 1,000 gallons (15 mpg, as reported by an aftermarket tuner in a poll of users), then it is more than a couple of bucks. At $3/gl it is $1,000. At $6/gl (foreseeable) it is $2,100.

Fuel is a variable expense. Most of the others are not. Perhaps I should ask, "Why add the complexity of an aftermarket coolant filtration system with attendant leakage potential", as there is no evidence that the stock system is inadequate? (Great write-up, an "idea" I agree with, but what fleet users are blazing this path . . I suspect there are none, as it's utility is near moot). Added maintenance, complexity and the rest are often just ways of shortening vehicle life (with the ironic opposite intention). The "payoff" cannot be found (except to personal satisfaction). And coolant is slippery stuff . . your truck pukes it . . you slow . . and I have to hit the brakes while rolling through that stuff? Safety? Economy? Get real.

Especially as the faster you run, the shorter the vehicle life will be. Component by component, and overall. Same for tuners, lift kits, excess baggage, etc. Same for exceeding weight limits of any sort. Excuses, justifications, magical thinking.

The only magic, in re fuel economy, is how easy it is once one starts to practice. Practice starts with reviewing and understanding the rules of the road.

60 mph is the point where aerodynamic resistance is the chief impediment to fuel economy.

On a 300-mile drive, the difference between 70 and 60 is about a half-hour, and, as I have stated elsewhere, "you" will spend more time that same day with the channel changer. So learn to place the appropriate value where it belongs: lower fuel bill, longer component & vehicle life, reduced liability, greater scope for action, decreased stopping distance, are all a heckuva lot more valuable than running with the sheep herd toward the rendering plant gate.

A truck is a tool to make money. Or, at least to forestall the expense of not having one. And what are the statistics regarding pickup trucks in accident data where "speed" is the primary or contributing factor? In all cases it is below speeds deemed prudent for cars. I'm afraid "your" argument not only lacks merit, but plain common sense for what a truck was intended and is capable. That "you" wish to confuse desire and reality is not, unfortunately, any longer uncommon among adults in this country.

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