Fuel Mileage

[brasso]

When I first got my truck (I bought it used with 40,000 miles) it seemed to get a little bit better fuel milage than it does now…. now It manages about 14.7 average, when before it seemed more around 16 - 18.. anyone know what may of made the change? Anything I can do or check to better my fuel economy? Ive even hurd things as small as keeping your tires around max PSI helps some…

Another question: I remember a guy with a 4.7 on 8" of lift and 35s managing around 18 with a programmer and cold air intake… I actually calculated it myself.. he said before the programmer he was managing only around 15.. Is there a programmer on the market that may help with fuel economy any for my hemi? Truck is a 2012 1500

 

[Flip-er]

Depending on where you live, it may be the crap they ad to fuel for winter months,
colder months, (winter) my mileage drops just a lil.
someone else may have a better answer tho.

 

[Oilbelcher]

CAI will not add MPG. The stick boxes breathes great and has plenty of airflow headroom. The computer limits airflow anyway.

Basic bypass tuners fool the ECU; it doesn't see the extra gas being delivered, so EVIC reports false MPG readings. The tuner companies don't tell you this, for some odd reason...

There are no magic bullets for cheap easy MPG improvements. If there were, they would have come stock.

 

[skHemi64]

There is cheap and easy. Free actually. Change your driving habits. You should be able to EASILY exceed the EPA fuel economy standard. All my vehicles I have been able to beat it. 6.4 hemi - 29% over
96 XL Bronco - 52% over
96 XLT Bronco - 44% over
99 Chev Metro - 66% over.

Personal opinion if you are under EPA, then you have a seriously damaged engine (blown rings, trashed valves) or you have your brake/throttle foot mashed to the floorboard.

 

[hemihustlin]

Spark plugs should be changed every 30k miles. Overdue?

 

[regularcab2500]

basic maintenance is the key!! change plugs, filters and use seafoam every now and then to de-gunk it..people dont appreciate the value of regular maintenance

what octane do you run? 5.7 hemi uses 89 technically so if you run 87 that would help an mpg or so
Sent from my SCH-I510 using Tapatalk 2

 

[brasso]

Yeah I proabably am overdue on spark plugs!I doubt they have ever been changed actually...

I normally run lucas through my gas tank every other tank or so... But use 87 octane... I will proabably start using 89, thanks for that! Im going to go ahead and change my filter while im at it.. this should all help a little..

 

[Andrew09HEMI]

I love the "CAI will not add MPG" comments I see all the time... The last 3 HEMI vehicles Ive had Ive put an intake on it and saw gains with no other mods at the time, no change in driving habits or change in fuel. I guess its a preference thing people say but my experience has been nothing but great. I will say it will not add any power. Tuners also help, I hand calculate and have seen improvements on mpg but guess its same as CAI's, preference.

That said youre headed down the right path, start with basic maintenance and go from there..

 

[regularcab2500]

i dont see why not add a cai..couldnt hurt to make it breathe better if you got the extra money..exhaust wouldnt hurt either unless you have factory duals already

Sent from my SCH-I510 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Crianor]

The only real world long term fixes for mileage is change your driving style, get a lighter vehicle, and/or keep your ride maintained. Most third party independent scientific testing shows that CAI, catch cans, exhaust mods, etc. result in little or no improvement.

If You think about it logically, these things are meant to aid performance at the top end. Not when you are cruising around town using moderate rpms.

If you have convinced yourself that you see real results, I am happy for you. Personally I will save my money and save fuel by feathering the pedal, watching tranny shift points, and avoiding racing from light to light. With these simple steps I average 19 to 21 MPG in my quad cab with a 5.7 and large gears for towing.

 

[brasso]

The only real world long term fixes for mileage is change your driving style, get a lighter vehicle, and/or keep your ride maintained. Most third party independent scientific testing shows that CAI, catch cans, exhaust mods, etc. result in little or no improvement.

If You think about it logically, these things are meant to aid performance at the top end. Not when you are cruising around town using moderate rpms.

If you have convinced yourself that you see real results, I am happy for you. Personally I will save my money and save fuel by feathering the pedal, watching tranny shift points, and avoiding racing from light to light. With these simple steps I average 19 to 21 MPG in my quad cab with a 5.7 and large gears for towing.

What are you watching when monitoring shift points? Is there a remedy

 

[RLJ10X]

I'm a tightwad.

But since I've done the CAI, Hemi Fever 91, and 4.10s, I've kind of written off staring at the mpg-o-meter bar graph. And I doubt that I've lost any mpg, that is, if I drive like a grandpa.

But my focus has shifted towards enjoying the experience. I'm a lot happier now.

 

[Donelam304]

All these comments I keep seeing about nothing adding mpg but watching how you drive. I'd have to disagree. I drive 45 miles one way to work and it's all 4 Lane roads. And when I go in of a morning or come home the next morning I have very little traffic Co I can set the cruise and go at a set pace.

Here's my set up. 2014 Ram 2500 4X4 Crew Cab with 6.4L HEMI. I've had the exhaust done. From stock to 3" true duals from the cats back, done away with the Y pipe, mufflers, and resonators. Have 40 series mufflers installed now. K&N airlifted.

Went from stock getting these readings with the cruise control set and driving at least 40 miles nonstop at said speed and all are hand calculated.
60mph - 11.8mpg
65mph - 11mpg
70mph - 10.2mpg
75mph and up - 9mpg
After mods were done.
60mph - 14.4mpg
65mph - 14mpg
70mph - 13.4mpg
75mph - 13mpg
80mph - 11.7mpg

I have even tested these using an external tank in the bed to measure the amount of gas used more accurately. So something as simple as exhaust and air intake does make a difference. These tests was done going from the same 2 gas stations and with the cruise control set and no throttle manipulation what so ever. I've done these tests in all weather conditions since December 2013 when I got the truck and have almost 19,000 miles on my truck now. I done the same thing with my Silverado with numerous mods on it. CAI, exhaust, programmer, throttle body. And all improved gas mileage in the same driving conditions and trip. Yes, simple maintenance with oil, plugs, air filter and prosper tire pressure will greatly help as well. Also when in stop n go traffic. Don't race from red light to red light. Ease in to the throttle and off it.

 

[loveracing1988]

All these comments I keep seeing about nothing adding mpg but watching how you drive. I'd have to disagree. I drive 45 miles one way to work and it's all 4 Lane roads. And when I go in of a morning or come home the next morning I have very little traffic Co I can set the cruise and go at a set pace.

Here's my set up. 2014 Ram 2500 4X4 Crew Cab with 6.4L HEMI. I've had the exhaust done. From stock to 3" true duals from the cats back, done away with the Y pipe, mufflers, and resonators. Have 40 series mufflers installed now. K&N airlifted.

Went from stock getting these readings with the cruise control set and driving at least 40 miles nonstop at said speed and all are hand calculated.
60mph - 11.8mpg
65mph - 11mpg
70mph - 10.2mpg
75mph and up - 9mpg
After mods were done.
60mph - 14.4mpg
65mph - 14mpg
70mph - 13.4mpg
75mph - 13mpg
80mph - 11.7mpg

I have even tested these using an external tank in the bed to measure the amount of gas used more accurately. So something as simple as exhaust and air intake does make a difference. These tests was done going from the same 2 gas stations and with the cruise control set and no throttle manipulation what so ever. I've done these tests in all weather conditions since December 2013 when I got the truck and have almost 19,000 miles on my truck now. I done the same thing with my Silverado with numerous mods on it. CAI, exhaust, programmer, throttle body. And all improved gas mileage in the same driving conditions and trip. Yes, simple maintenance with oil, plugs, air filter and prosper tire pressure will greatly help as well. Also when in stop n go traffic. Don't race from red light to red light. Ease in to the throttle and off it.

Those are horrendous stock numbers... I think mine are dropping off almost like that because of the cold weather though.

 

[Donelam304]

Winter fuel does do that. I know here in WV we get the winter fuel grade towards the end of October. I need to note that most of my driving is up n down mom tails. Not little Hills. Lol.

 

[brasso]

You think they add winter fuel to texas pumps as well? That would be the reason my fuel mileage has dropped so much

 

[Donelam304]

I'm not sure. I know there are parts of Texas that gets snow and below freezing. I was stationed at Ft hood for 3 years. I don't remember though.

 

[dtru1222]

Yeah I proabably am overdue on spark plugs!I doubt they have ever been changed actually...

I normally run lucas through my gas tank every other tank or so... But use 87 octane... I will proabably start using 89, thanks for that! Im going to go ahead and change my filter while im at it.. this should all help a little..

Spark plugs will make quite a difference. From what I have seen the plugs installed from the factory were all incorrectly gaped. The recommended octane is 89, running anything less will reduce performance and MPG. In DFW I have tested many different brands and octane and running anything less than 91 octane is a waste. But that is my area so experiences will vary.

The only real world long term fixes for mileage is change your driving style, get a lighter vehicle, and/or keep your ride maintained. Most third party independent scientific testing shows that CAI, catch cans, exhaust mods, etc. result in little or no improvement.

If You think about it logically, these things are meant to aid performance at the top end. Not when you are cruising around town using moderate rpms.

If you have convinced yourself that you see real results, I am happy for you. Personally I will save my money and save fuel by feathering the pedal, watching tranny shift points, and avoiding racing from light to light. With these simple steps I average 19 to 21 MPG in my quad cab with a 5.7 and large gears for towing.

I couldnt disagree more.

All personal experiences and the majority of posts from other users show increased mpg with certain mods. I have tested catch cans on 4 09+ Dodge vehicles and all of them reduced ST and LT knock retard and increased MPG. A carbon intake will dissipate heat much quicker than the stock box and the increased filter diameter increases flow. Both of which improve performance. It wont be anything drastic but the temps and performance will be more consistent.

I know this is a different vehicle but with a catch can, LMI fender pull intake and a Diablo 91 tune on 93 octane I was getting 30mpg highway in my 5.7 Challenger. Same engine, different tuning but I would expect similar results. Not nearly as high of course but the right mods will absolutely increase mpg.

 

[brasso]

Your saying a catch can will increase fuel milaege??

 

[Oilbelcher]

I agree with crainor. Most people don't do statistically significant studies with well controlled environment to prove that a mod increased MpG or power. Worse yet, if the measurement instrument is EVIC, the results cannot be trusted.
A higher flow filter is meaningless in a stock engine stock ECU; the engine will retard it's call for air to ensure a constant flow. You can remove the filter and see no difference. You must have a proper computer tune to call for more air.
A catch can COULD improve longevity, maybe, but it will not increase MPG.
Most mod claims are linked to salemen or those who purchased and trying to justify the expense. Yes these are generalizations, that apply to the average stock setup where someone is exploring bolt ons.

A bypass tuner is a great example. Many will claim they see EVIC MPG improvement but this is not real. The ECU computer is purposely fooled/hidden from extra gas delivered for the increased power, thus understating MPG.
Retrax claims my bed cover saves 10% in fuel. After 7800 miles, there is absolutely no difference in economy. None, as expected (I bought for function only).

There are no easy low dollar magic improvements to MPG improvement; if there were, the manufacture would have made them standard to improve competitiveness and get the Government off their backs.