MPGs

[TGibbs]

I am curious as what I can do to raise my MPGs across the board. I cant get any better than 14. 5 or so right now and with even a small trailer it drops a lot. I have 305 75 R16 mud terrain tires on and need to get new ones in the next few weeks. Should I go smaller? I also have 3. 54 rear end, should I look at changing that to a 3. 73?



A lot of people talk about 20 mpgs so whats the trick??



Thanks

Tristan

 

[Regcabguy]

I am curious as what I can do to raise my MPGs across the board. I cant get any better than 14. 5 or so right now and with even a small trailer it drops a lot. I have 305 75 R16 mud terrain tires on and need to get new ones in the next few weeks. Should I go smaller? I also have 3. 54 rear end, should I look at changing that to a 3. 73?



A lot of people talk about 20 mpgs so whats the trick??



Thanks

Tristan

I think your gearing's way off. With 35's and towing,4. 10's would return you to stock engine load you had with 265's. Downsizing to 285's will help. Hold out for "E" rated tires. BFG TKO's are available in "E"s now in 285-75-16. Braking will improve also,a plus for these heavy trucks.

 

[EricBu12]

with those size tires and being mud terr. the gearing is very low... you need to go down to 285 like he said or get 4:10 gears... .



the cummins needs to be reved a little even when going down the road. I have what relates to a 33" tire but they are 19. 5" "F" rated tires for towing... . I have the 3:54 gears as well and the 6 speed which also helps... . If you have an auto, you're pushing too much for the rpm's hence the bad mileage...



I get around 20 if not pushing it and I tow a 15K trailer and get 10-12 mpg. average.



Think about what you use the truck for MOSTLY... any off-roading? more trailer towing? Future activities changing? getting bigger trailer? All these things, size and type of tire, gearing, Lift kit, speed, engine mods, all affect mileage.

 

[TGibbs]

How big of a deal is it to change to 4. 10 gears? Cost and time? Just trying to compare vs. getting new rims and tires. We have a trailer dealership so I haul everything from little 1000 lb trailers up to 10,000 lb living quarters. The trailer I pull the most is about 7-8k depending on how many horses so if I set it up for that specifically then I think that would be best. What do you all think I should do?



Thanks

Tristan

 

[keimmmo]

Tire tread type also affects fuel economy. If you really NEED aggressive mud tires, fine. If not, consider a highway tread.



Steve Keim

 

[J&LRam]

TGibbs

staying stock is a big help. Also having a 110 mile a day hiway commute is another help. My current truck will average 22+ mpg on that trip and has for over 55000 miles. My previous truck was a '01 2500 auto 235/460 engine 3. 54 gears with stock LT265/75-16 "E" rated tires and would get 19-20 on the same commute.



JIM

 

[KWheaton]

Bigger injectors and an Edge box are whats killing your milleage. Higher gear ratio only means more rpm=more fuel. I recently took my Edge box off and drove stock (except for injectors) for a few days, my milleage was way up. I have E-rated 285R-16's BFG Rugged Trails. Properly inflated tires with a mild tread pattern will help.



With my Edge box on #1 = 15mpg highway, 12 city, 8-10 towing



Without my Edge box = 15 mpg city, 19-20 highway, 12 towing



Just my $. 02



Kevin

 

[KWheaton]

After reading your signature again, you want all that horsepower and good mileage. Your gonna have to trade one for the other.



Kevin

 

[blacksheep4x4]

Bigger injectors and an Edge box are whats killing your milleage. Higher gear ratio only means more rpm=more fuel. I recently took my Edge box off and drove stock (except for injectors) for a few days, my milleage was way up. I have E-rated 285R-16's BFG Rugged Trails. Properly inflated tires with a mild tread pattern will help.



With my Edge box on #1 = 15mpg highway, 12 city, 8-10 towing



Without my Edge box = 15 mpg city, 19-20 highway, 12 towing



Just my $. 02



Kevin

My milage actually increased by 2mpg when I put my Dynomite Diesel extrude honed injectors in.