Trying to get good fuel mileage

[KennethS]

My wife and I went to Washington,Pa about 30 miles one way to Wall Mart to but blue jeans. The fuel mileage reads 16. 1 so I drop my speed to 60 and no cruise control and the mileage started to go up. When I got back home I was up to 17. 2. Not bad for a new truck that only has 125 miles on It. We all need to get better fuel mileage with the cost of fuel today. Any tips on how to get super fuel mileage please let us know. I should have drop the tail gate some say that helps?

 

[osiris]

i dont think dropping the tailgate really helps well thats what they "proved" on myth busters but their test wasnt the most accurate... they took 2 trucks that were the same model and had one guy drive with TG down and then the other drive with it up the one driving with it up made it like another 60 miles before running out of gas

 

[KennethS]

OK I will leave the tailgate up. My nephew lives In outside of your town Cheyenne. His name Is Bill Acklin and he a Dodge diesel nut. I was there last summer. A bit windy place

 

[pwr2tow]

I have owned a 99 dodge cummins and now the 05 dodge cummins. The 99 I modified with every piece of equipement, fluids, and oils, out there that advertised better fuel mileage and none of them proved to increase fuel mileage. The only thing that has proven itself to increase fuel mileage is more miles on the engine and slowing down. The 99 didn't improve until it reached almost 70,000 miles and close to 50 % of those miles were with 23,000 lbs combined weight. Even at that miles it only increased 1 mile per gallon. I can gain 4 mpg by driving 55 MPH instead of 65 MPH.



I calculate all my MPG by hand.

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Kenneth, just a suggestion. . . on a brand new truck the best way to drive it won't get you good mileage now, but may help it get better mileage later on, because it will be broken in better. Featherfooting or driving a new truck easy isn't going to help the motor seat in very fast and will delay the time it breaks in a MPG improves. The two times I had new trucks I didn't try to get good mileage for the first 500 miles at least because I drove them moderately-aggressive and varied speed a lot. Got good mileage on both after 5k miles and especially 10k mi.

 

[Bekim]

Kenneth, just a suggestion. . . on a brand new truck the best way to drive it won't get you good mileage now, but may help it get better mileage later on, because it will be broken in better. Featherfooting or driving a new truck easy isn't going to help the motor seat in very fast and will delay the time it breaks in a MPG improves. The two times I had new trucks I didn't try to get good mileage for the first 500 miles at least because I drove them moderately-aggressive and varied speed a lot. Got good mileage on both after 5k miles and especially 10k mi.

Total agreement here. Diesels need heat to keep parts from coking up. Vary workload and really work it sometimes, maybe hard up a grade. These motors need much more work to break in and stay clean and healthy. IMHO
Mike
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[SBeretz]

Well, I am not sure how much it will improve, but I picked my truck up from Lou Fusz on Saturday with a full tank, first tank I went 530 miles, put 35. 6 gallons in the tank, drove it the rest of the way home and calculated the mileage when I filled it up yesterday, 595 miles and I put 33. 3 gallons in the truck so that works out to be 17. 86. Seems pretty good, I varied my speed between 65-80 the whole way home. If my mileage never goes up I will be a happy camper. Truck has great power, and runs smooth. I love it. Best vehicle I have owned to day, SO far. Anyhow, just figured I would pipe in with my figures. Oh, the overhead is reading about 17. 8 right now, reset at each fuel up. Scotty