C Schomer

We're feeding a lot of C.I.'s when not loaded. I've been running the stack extreme tune w/o using the Puck and getting 22 with my 4.10. The right combo of timing, duration and pressure really boosts efficiency and it always feels like it's loafing but we have to spin 6 cylinders when it only needs 1 cylinder. Then, there's my friend who has an EZ and he believes the OH numbers. He has the only 03 that gets 27 mpg. Craig

cjones42

Did you ever check Speedo to make sure you are going the right distance and the MPH is close. We have checked 3 trucks two 2006 and my 2003 and all of the speedo's were off. We have been check with a combo of GPS MPH and trip meters on 20 mile drives to see how close they match. The final test which isn't perfect but just lets you know how close you are is stop your truck at a mile marker on the highway set you trip to 0 then take off and compare to each mile marker you pass. Between comparing those 3 things the 3 truck where off between 2-3 mph.

Lost Lake

You guys mean you're NOT getting 30mpg???

I just drop one of those mileage pills in my tank and it aligns the neutrons of my fuel particles and I also run a tornado air vortex generator in my intake and that aligns the airflow for better atomization and power.

You know I really can get 30mpg though if I'm on the level and cruising at 52mph. Start to go uphill though and all bets are off as my 8,000 pound truck drinks fuel under load like a sailor on leave drinks beer.

I am averaging 20 though, so I'm swapping out tires to destroy that some more....

MikeyB

I can get my overhead 'Guess-O-Meter' to read over 30mpg if I drive around 40mph on level ground. I'm not willing to do a hand calculated number at that speed though.....

MikeyB

Rednecktastic

LOL, yup.

Rednax

There's a fair number of us with 2WD's seeing 24-26 hwy on essentially stock trucks (no tuners). Maybe a few changes -- cam and some timing -- would put us closer (given proper tires and a bed cover), but what you all are missing (in main) is the driving skill being applied in this long daily commute.

Taking the highway service road/frontage road is hardly "being in the way of others" (a complaint of the sheeple) and it certainly takes the edge off of high fuel prices given that the average CTD is seeing below 20 mpg for this sort of driving.

This is performance driving.

Any monkey can stab-n-steer, but squeezing out maximum distance from each gallon requires the development of skills, it's a lot more than just feathering the throttle. I guess that when fuel prices rise yet again the answer for some of you all will be to buy yet another vehicle (always more expensive) than to maximize your transportation dollar by finding out what that Cummins can really do.

Still, when that day comes we can all pity the Ferd drivers again.

.

Jona Gold

I get 22 hand calc on mine regularly in the summer- about 20 in the winter. I've seen above 30mpg on half a tank- but never a full tank. It's all driving style and conditions. My commute is 40 miles- all two land country roads with 55mph speed limits. I can average 25mpg on the commute pretty easy (it's outside the commute that drops my average- hauling stuff), and the 30mpg happens if I try really hard. I also have the 6speed manual and I will coast out of gear a lot to get the higher MPG- I rarely use the brakes and go real easy on the throttle.

Trying to hypermile a mega cab is a bit different than a honda- but I figure if there are guys out there getting 150mpg out of hybrids, there is no reason not to shoot for 30 out of the truck. The problem is the driving techniques required are a bit dangerous, and not much fun.

Only mods are the AFE intake and an Edge programmer set to Fuel Economy mode (mode 1).

Lost Lake

I have an auto... That stick would be nice for mileage!! With my bigger tires, 52 mph just locks it into overdrive and lets me idle the engine down the road. I will put it in neutral down hills, but the up hills is what kills the mileage!!!! I have to let it slow down to dangerous levels like you said. Driving for extreme mileage is not fun.
On the flip side I have gotten as low as 8 mpg pulling a trailer hell bent on making time!

Shorts

What abut an MDS system? Would it work in a Cummins? Run on three cylinders when cruising.

4wd Dodges have to start unhooking the front axles for 2hi driving from the factory. Meaning the owner not having to install a free spin kit. So much wasted energy with the front dshaft spinning that heavy front end when not in 4wd.

Rednax

The problem is the driving techniques required are a bit dangerous, and not much fun.


This is a misconception, overall. Just because some may use weirdo practices doesn't mean that trying to achieve highest fuel mileage is either dangerous or "not fun".

Best FE is what I make it. That is, if I do it all the time. I agree that some methods are too much work. So the key is the changes I'm wiling to make.

I don't see other pickup trucks being driven any differently than cars, that is, having some respect for their size and weight. It's easy to make a full-on stop in a Honda and have quite a short distance. But what excuse is there in a pickup that weighs twice as much if we are considering cross-traffic for the same rate of speed around town? None, IMO. It isn't responsible. So try looking at high FE as being fully commensurate with best safety practice.

Etcetera

Before too long one is re-weighing calculations about driving that may never have been conciously made (this is America, after all, "no reading the instructions required"), or that were acquired in ones teen years in a smaller vehicle. Or that were ****-poor to begin with.

Running 5 under in town, and 10 under on the highway means I have more room, more time & distance to make the minor corrections necessary. "Fun" may be the problem of those for whom falling out of the dog pack is frightening. (Learn to use the mirrors is the quick answer. Learning to "manage" overtaking traffic is to learn that it isn't passive. Takes time and experimentation).

For 97% of you, the driving you do currently means you'll cut in front of my 18-wheeler far too early in order to "get out of the way" of someone speeding just that much faster than you . . . a distance ahead of me not commensurate with much-vaunted "common sense". You and your family will die for this . . by not knowing something as simple as how to drive in the vicinity of big trucks. It's part of FE: the most work for the least fuel. Read up on the rules of the road.

Same with blocking intersections, stopping on or too close to RR tracks, etc.

Approach the problem differently. FE will follow.

.

Jona Gold

I was referring to the hypermiling techniques employed by the people getting 150mpg out of hybrids as being dangerous and not fun.

I don't consider tailgating semi's to reduce wind resistance, exiting the interstate at full speed to conserve momentum, stopping only if necessary (rolling through stop signs), and other extreme practices safe or fun. I can't stop my 8800lb truck on a dime, so I'm not tailgating anybody, nor am I willing to apply my brakes late. I will conserve momentum where I can do so safely, but not to the degree hypermilers do.

I have no problem going under the speed limit (or even at the speed limit- which annoys many drivers in my area).

AH64ID

Just because the load is lower doesn't mean the power being used is lower.

Using just the dyno graphs from Predator lets look at the math and load.

Stock at 2250 rpms (hwy rpms) is about 150 rwhp, 30% load is 45rwhp. Extreme is 300 rwhp, so 45 rwhp is 15% load so within the realm of what the SG shows. Load is effected by timing and boost, so even thou the load shows less the power being produced is nearly the same.

67HotRod

Here where I live. I44 has 175 semi trucks pass the weight scales per hour. That plus traffic running 80+ mph, Im not going to be a rolling road block -20+mph. So I drive the cobalt and get 33mpg. It would be nice to get better mpg, but I bought the truck to tow.

Course, a diesel hybrid would be interesting.