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290 Posts
14 mpg with mixed driving for me...1,700 miles and counting.
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Just went nearly 300 miles and avg. around 14 hwy. miles. RPM at 65 around 2000 engine purring.. I've never had a speeding ticket but tonight in small town I got pulled over by police officer. He said I was doing 49 in a 35 zone but I don't know how because I had just stopped at a flashing red light and was about to pull into a Sonic. I really think he wanted to look at the truck. Needless to say he let me go...whew! My mileage might improve if I could get over the power and the desire to pass any other truck on the Hwy. Man, this thing is fun to drive!
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290 Posts
With a 2 wheel drive and the tow package (3.36 rear end) I'm at exactly 2,000 RPM going 70 MPH.
I'm curious to see what the rev range is at going 70 for those without the tow package in 2wd, and what it is for those with 4wd and the offroad package or the tow package?
Karl
I'm curious to see what the rev range is at going 70 for those without the tow package in 2wd, and what it is for those with 4wd and the offroad package or the tow package?
Karl
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290 Posts
Thanks Tony, what are you averaging on gas mileage?
Karl
Karl
Do you vehicle enthusiasts or people in the industry have a feeling for what drives the gas mileage in a typical vehicle? Of course you always hear the argument that manufacturers "have the technology" to make 40 mpg SUV's, and there's some kind of Big Oil consiracy preventing higher gas mileage engines from being developed. Regardless of whether this is BS or not (is it?), the fact that gas mileage in the typical pickup hasn't changed much in many years makes me wonder what's going on. Is there some sort of basic lack of material or combustion research that is preventing further progress? I know in jet engines, efficiency continues to increase as higher temperature materials become available. Higher combustor temps lead to more complete fuel combustion, better efficiencies, and less emissions. With automobiles comes economy of scale. If your basic half ton pickup could increase it's average gas mileage 50%, from 15 to 22.5 mpg over the course of a few years, can you imagine the overall savings? Even a 20% increase would be huge. You'd think manufacturers would be pursuing this... obviously they're not. They keep making 15 mpg trucks, and we keep buying them.
gas mileage may have stayed the same for as long as any of us can remember BUT horsepower sure hasn't. I believe you could have your 22mpg easily if you were satisfied with the same output as compared to 20 or more years ago. Horsepower sells, so that's the direction the efficiency has gone in my opinion.
General Motors says they are pursuing this goal. In the near future they plan to have Displacement on Demand in their V8s to improve highway mileage (fuel delivery to some of the cylinders will be cut off at highway speeds). And later in the decade they claim they will have hybrid drivetrains in their big pickups and SUVs. One thing you probably wont see in the future is a weight reduction in pickups and SUVs. Look at what happened to the 2004 F-150 and the 2004 Durango. They both gained 400-500 lbs over 2003. And when rear wheel steering becomes more affordable from Delphi, that will make the big vehicles even easier to maneuver and park.
On CBS news tonight, they were predicting $3 a gallon gasoline by this summer. That will hurt!
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