How to improve you mileage

[Huck]

I am a bit of a cheap SOB when it comes to gas so perhaps some of you might want to consider some of my tried and true methods of squeezing the last drop out of a gallon of gas.
1--Hit your right foot with a big hammer ---it will become sensative and you wouldn't want to push very hard on the gas pedal!
2--Get rid of them dam big tires---the bigger, the more difficult it is to get them to roll. Stock is a 235X75R15. Anything bigger will hurt your mileage. You could go a bit narrower and get a little benefit but I like the breaking of the stock size.
3--Inflate the tires to 2-3 lbs above the truck mafg recommended pressure. Ie if it's 30lbs---run them at 33. You will get a little less resistance to rolling.
4-- Tune it up---new plugs, wires, points, condenser, fuel filter, air filter. If your carb has been used for several years, consider having it rebuilt by a good carb rebuilder. Ask them to set it lean. You could get 3-5mpg improvement from a good tuneup and carb rebuild!!
5--When you think that duals, headers, edelbrock intake, etc is helping your HP--maybe but it is hurting your mpg. Trust me, the stock intake has smaller primary carb holes that work like a NASCAR restrictor plate. You still have the low end torque but you save some MPG. Headers help in high rpm which you RARELY get into or need. The stock Rams Horns are decent flow tubes.
6--If you are running 373--411--456 rear gears---why are you burning the gas without the benefit?? If you tow a lot, 373 is adequate for 90% of towing needs. So, how many hours a month do you tow a heavy load???
7--Most of the transmissions we have are 3-4 speeds with a 1-to-1 final gear. An overdrive will cut your final gear by 20% which will give you mpg!!
8--Don't waste money on aftermarket MPG devices, addatives, etc. They have all proved to be crap!
9-- If you run with an open bed, get a bed cover. That alone saved me 1-2mpg over 2 years of testing at highway speeds.
10-- Don't waste money on premium gas. Your truck will run fine on regular if you tune it accordingly. If not, you have too much cam shaft for street use.
11-- Run highway at 65 rather then 75. I loose 1-2 mpg when I run over 70.
12--SEE NUMBER 1 AND START AGAIN.
HUCK

[uncle]

Or, you can do like Mr. Ignorant here. Drive a CRX everyday and look at the trucks parked in the yard everytime you come and go.

[semperfidoordie]

that's some good advice...thanks man...anyone else got any pointers?

[MrBeast]

Actually there is one problem I see with your list of things there. A stock intake manifold is made of Cast Iron. Cast Iron holds heat in, a hot manifold has adverse effects on the way that fuel atomizes, thus it can cause your truck to detune as it heats up. A good aluminum intake manifold that is not too radical is the way to go.

Keeping your truck in tune will do wonders as well. There is nothing like old plugs or bad wires to ruin your day here.

[68GMCCustom]

...ride a bike. (m/c that is )

[Pont406]

I would keep the carb tuned to factory specs. Running a little lean might cause overheating or it will take out rod bearings due to spark knock. I also noticed when running lean I have to open the trottle blades more...

[GREASEMONKEY72]

i just drive and put in more gas when needed

[Stocker]

I finally caved in a couple weeks ago and have been driving the Jeep to work. Truck was getting low on fuel and the Jeep still had some... and it uses a lot less than the truck.

[royo]

Originally Posted by GREASEMONKEY72

i just drive and put in more gas when needed

this is what i do but i got a big block so i dont even worry about it . but its not a daily driver

[sickchevy68cst]

well i got a big block with aluminum top end so get the weight of the small block... its a daily driver too

o yea one more thing THINK SKINNY

[Riveted1]

On the above note, stop picking up fat chicks. They really hurt your MPG!

Srsly though, nice post.

[semperfidoordie]

Riveted with a user title like "Tasty Cakes" i would have expected you to be into that kind of thing just joshin...this was an informative post

[exmonkeypunk]

I'm learning to not drive around unless i really have to, or even waiting until I have a list of places to run. I read that if you go to the farthest place you need to go first, then work your way back, somehow it's better on gas. I dunno though. I run a home made ram air on our 2002 Malibu with a 3.1 and when i'm on the highway, the gas mileage is amazing. I was thinking about running one of those dual intake air cleaners with dual intake tubes. That would have to increase a couple things.
I know those Tornado intake things work well on 4-cylinder motors, but not sure about 6 or 8 cylinders. I couldn't see how making a vortex out of the air couldn't help at least a little. What about carb spacers with vortex grooves? do those work?
http://www.tornadofuel-saver.com/?gc...FRZjnAod3BxZVg

There's a product made by BG. Called 44k. You add it to your gas tank like all those other worthless cleaners, but this one actually works if you have any sort of crap in your fuel system, or even if it's just been a year or so since a cleaning. I noticed a considerable difference after a tank or two of running.
http://www.bgprod.com/home.html

There's always higher flow air filters, like K&N.

[MrBeast]

Originally Posted by Riveted1

On the above note, stop picking up fat chicks. They really hurt your MPG!

Totally....

[Riveted1]

I think I just threw up in my mouth...

And semper, that title is an inside joke.... sry, u had to be there!

[cdowns]

changing over motor tranny and rear to synthetic lubricants helps as does the wheel bearings and properly operating brakes especially on drums those 40year old return springs are a good item to replace
lowered with an airdam limiting airflow under the vehicle has proven to help economy

[69halfton]

some people dont think of it, but LOWER YOUR TRUCKS

if its lower to the ground, the air doesn't move under neath the truck.
an air dam can accomplish this also

carrying around that big toolbox that never gets used, the 50 lbs of hay, and three sets of work boots dont help your mileage much.

[69halfton]

oh and i almost forgot, make sure you vacuum advance is working well, improper timing can KILL your milage.

[imholte]

I always see people driving around with the tailgate down. I saw on mythbusters that it creates more drag to have the tailgate down than up. The best way they found was to install one of those black webbing tailgates. I know on my 97 if I run the canopy my mileage does worse about 1-2 mpg,

[c10addict]

Actually my truck gets 2 to 3 more mpg with high test fuel then it does with regular.... Anybody else have the same results??

[Woody]

Good Post Huck!!

C10addict, I have wondered about this on my 99 Regal. With most stations charging only 10-15 cents more for the 89 oct. over 87 oct. fuel will the car get enough % increase in gas milage to pay for the difference?

A 10 cent increase on $4.00 gas is only 2.5% increase in cost and if you can get lets say a 5 or 6% increase in MPG than it could be worth it.

So if you are getting 12 MPG on 87 oct. fuel, you only need to get 12.3 or better MPG to pay for the difference of the 89 oct. fuel.

However!! I sure that you can adjust timing and other things to inprove this some. On my 99 Regal (and other computer controlled engines) it would automaticly adjust the timing by itself. I have NOT tried this yet....just brainstorming with a couple guys about it.....What do you all think??
Any one try this?

[cruiserman]

Bigger tires have an overdrive effect on the freeway, but the best way to get better mileage is to park the truck.

[exmonkeypunk]

Originally Posted by cruiserman

Bigger tires have an overdrive effect on the freeway, but the best way to get better mileage is to park the truck.

Big time. I run 235/85/16's. Highway cruising isn't all that bad. surprisingly quiet.

Originally Posted by Woody

Good Post Huck!!

C10addict, I have wondered about this on my 99 Regal. With most stations charging only 10-15 cents more for the 89 oct. over 87 oct. fuel will the car get enough % increase in gas milage to pay for the difference?

A 10 cent increase on $4.00 gas is only 2.5% increase in cost and if you can get lets say a 5 or 6% increase in MPG than it could be worth it.

So if you are getting 12 MPG on 87 oct. fuel, you only need to get 12.3 or better MPG to pay for the difference of the 89 oct. fuel.

However!! I sure that you can adjust timing and other things to inprove this some. On my 99 Regal (and other computer controlled engines) it would automaticly adjust the timing by itself. I have NOT tried this yet....just brainstorming with a couple guys about it.....What do you all think??
Any one try this?

I have not tried this yet, but i can say that I don't mind paying the extra .20 for the higher octane fuels. I usually only put in 5 or 6 gallons at a time. Because, you do get better gas mileage riding on 1/2 a tank of gas rather than riding on a full tank.

Originally Posted by cdowns

changing over motor tranny and rear to synthetic lubricants helps as does the wheel bearings and properly operating brakes especially on drums those 40year old return springs are a good item to replace
lowered with an airdam limiting airflow under the vehicle has proven to help economy

First thing i did when i bought the truck was an oil change with Mobil 1 full synthetic. I swear the oil consumption is down, and idle smoothed out as well. I'm sure there's a difference in gas mileage as well, but at 12-14 mpg when i bought it, it's gonna take a drastic change.

[Ackattack]

Running higher octane gas may or may not help your gas mileage.

If you don't run high octane gas in a vehicle designed for it, you will probably see a decrease in fuel mileage; at least in newer computer controled vehicles. For instance, on my corvette, it will reduce the timing to compensate for lower octane fuel. I've heard on the 3.8L supercharged engines (Grand Prix GTP, etc) it really hurts thier mileage.

Now for our old trucks, it's going to depend on your engine and how it is tuned. If it's a 350 running 10.5:1, then you should probably be running premium. If it's 8.0:1, you're pretty much wasting money on premium.

You can also put some less restrictive mufflers on to pick up some mileage.

More extreme: Remove the mirrors (reduce weight, improve aerodynamics).

If you can't get a bed cover, remove the tailgate.

Get rid of the big speakers and other crap. Weight is the enemy here.

I completely agree with the brakes and wheel bearings mentioned above. Also, don't over look the parking brake, make sure it disengages too.

[straitnate14]

buy a bike for your daily driver, i got an old LTD 550 for $750 and it gets 55 mpg and it's almost as fun to ride as my truck is to drive and it's shaft drive so it kinda sounds like it has a blower like the truck, it's a win win situation