2019 Mileage Test

[jpitz31]

Just passed 300 miles on my 2019 classic, did a mileage test, using the fuel economy computer.

22.2 MPG with tailgate up and 22.5 tailgate down. Not hard on the loud pedal, but not like grandpa, 70 on the freeway.

Tonneau cover arriving Thursday, will re-test again

Next time I fill up will test traditional way as well.

Joe

 

[mikeru82]

Too many variables involved to put any stock in your numbers, especially with such a low mileage test. Mythbusters did an episode or two on whether the tailgate has any affect on fuel economy. IIRC, the tailgate up gave them better numbers.

Also, I'm assuming you have a V6 since you didn't say which engine you have. I've never seen even close to those kinds of numbers with the Hemi. Some members claim to have gotten close to that though.

 

[J-Cooz]

It's been proven you get worse mileage with tailgate down.

 

[jpitz31]

I am not saying that my results are right or wrong, but if you are going to quote mythbusters, at least get your facts correct, The mythbusters test was performed at 55 mph, and they used a Ford in their testing.

 

[mikeru82]

I am not saying that my results are right or wrong, but if you are going to quote mythbusters, at least get your facts correct, The mythbusters test was performed at 55 mph, and they used a Ford in their testing.

My bad.

 

[Jako]

Too many variables involved to put any stock in your numbers, especially with such a low mileage test. Mythbusters did an episode or two on whether the tailgate has any affect on fuel economy. IIRC, the tailgate up gave them better numbers.

Also, I'm assuming you have a V6 since you didn't say which engine you have. I've never seen even close to those kinds of numbers with the Hemi. Some members claim to have gotten close to that though.

380 miles from Staten Island to Buffalo, speed limit, cruise control, corona virus traffic (limited brake pedal), 3-4 pit stops, 1 person, empty truck, tonneau cover (value??) and did 23+ with the hemi. Did 24 mpg on one refill coming back from Alabama, flat and straight helps mpg.

 

[mikeru82]

380 miles from Staten Island to Buffalo, speed limit, cruise control, corona virus traffic (limited brake pedal), 3-4 pit stops, 1 person, empty truck, tonneau cover (value??) and did 23+ with the hemi. Did 24 mpg coming back from Alabama, flat and straight helps mpg.

Those numbers are only a dream for me. But then again, nothing is flat or straight where I live. I'd have to travel to a place that doesn't have hills. But my average fuel economy has crept up to about 15.5 mpg. My driving consists of about 80% highway driving, at an average highway speed of 60 mph.

 

[Jako]

Those numbers are only a dream for me. But then again, nothing is flat or straight where I live. I'd have to travel to a place that doesn't have hills. But my average fuel economy has crept up to about 15.5 mpg. My driving consists of about 80% highway driving, at an average highway speed of 60 mph.

I'm sorry to hear that about your mpg. I have the 3.21 and 18" Bighorn wheels. I do know tires can make a difference in mpg but have no knowledge of how rim size (if any) plays in mpg. My mpg is bad in winter (cold & gas blend) with local driving. I don't know how EPA tests city driving but it sure ain't Staten Island, NYC conditions.

 

[jdmartin]

12,800 miles mostly up and down mountains with a couple jaunts to sunny Florida, Leer cap on the back, 5.7 no etorque crew cab 4WD.

My mileage? No freaking idea. I've never checked it once. Years ago I kept meticulous records of fill ups and things like that. Then I bought this truck - perhaps my last new truck - and I said " Why?" I can afford to fill it every time it runs low, and I'm not going to sell it because the mileage sucks (I use it for my business), so why so I care? If it got 9 or 19, I love the ride and the style and so far it's been good reliable. And it hauls all my tools around, so if it wants to eat like a hog I decided to let it

 

[mikeru82]

It's great you're in a place where you don't have to care about how much fuel costs. I hope to be there some day, but unfortunately I'm not fully there yet.

Actually, I'm not as concerned about how much I spend for fuel. I'm more concerned about range. Since I was an idiot and didn't really pay attention to the size of the fuel tank, I didn't know my truck only has a 23 gallon tank until after I bought it. My range is just a little over 300 miles when my truck is empty or not towing anything. Add a load to that and I'm having to stop at every gas station I pass if I drive across the state. It's really kind of frustrating. Other than that I really love the truck.

 

[Biga]

I get 21-22 on the highway with my Hemi about the same as I got with the 4th gen.

 

[Neurobit]

I keep meticulous records because the engineer in me loves stats. That's all (see Fuelly sig below).

Cheers,

 

[Sir Ramcelot]

It's great you're in a place where you don't have to care about how much fuel costs. I hope to be there some day, but unfortunately I'm not fully there yet.

Actually, I'm not as concerned about how much I spend for fuel. I'm more concerned about range. Since I was an idiot and didn't really pay attention to the size of the fuel tank, I didn't know my truck only has a 23 gallon tank until after I bought it. My range is just a little over 300 miles when my truck is empty or not towing anything. Add a load to that and I'm having to stop at every gas station I pass if I drive across the state. It's really kind of frustrating. Other than that I really love the truck.

You should see the guys on the Chevy/GMC forums. Ford offers an optional 36 gallon tank, Ram offers the optional 33 gallon tank but Silverado/Sierra owners only get 24 gallons with no option for bigger. There's a thread on here you're probably seen where guys have spent just shy of $500 to upgrade their tank to 33-gallon but finding one off a wreck and then installing it etc. so that could be an option to get what you want on an otherwise great truck you love.

 

[haRAMbe]

Hi All,

I'm new here and this seems like a good place to ask. I just bought a 2019 with 15.5k miles on it. I hit my first 150 miles which was about 40% Hwy and only 10% city - the rest was back roads mostly flat - I had the truck full with my kids for much of it so was driving like a grandpa and my trip computer is showing an abysmal 14.4 Mpg.

I was going to buy the classic but thought the mpg increase would be helpful but the room to walk around carseats sold me! Looks like there really isn't a difference in the MPG though.

What's nagging at me is that when I drive like a grandpa and take my foot off the gas, it feels like some sort of engine braking (no e-torque though). I put it in neutral to see if it could coast fine and it did - so I don't think there is a dragging brake.

Given the rough mileage and the weird drag, I'm wondering if there's something wrong and I should switch before my 250 mile/7 day "buyers remorse" deal runs out.
The dealer said that the transmission learns your driving habits or some crap like that.

I'd appreciate any thoughts.

 

[Jeffjad]

Hi All,

I'm new here and this seems like a good place to ask. I just bought a 2019 with 15.5k miles on it. I hit my first 150 miles which was about 40% Hwy and only 10% city - the rest was back roads mostly flat - I had the truck full with my kids for much of it so was driving like a grandpa and my trip computer is showing an abysmal 14.4 Mpg.

I was going to buy the classic but thought the mpg increase would be helpful but the room to walk around carseats sold me! Looks like there really isn't a difference in the MPG though.

What's nagging at me is that when I drive like a grandpa and take my foot off the gas, it feels like some sort of engine braking (no e-torque though). I put it in neutral to see if it could coast fine and it did - so I don't think there is a dragging brake.

Given the rough mileage and the weird drag, I'm wondering if there's something wrong and I should switch before my 250 mile/7 day "buyers remorse" deal runs out.
The dealer said that the transmission learns your driving habits or some crap like that.

I'd appreciate any thoughts.

I get about what your getting (14.5mpg) highway and city combined but I have a 3.5" lift with 35" tires so I would expect you to get a little better than that with a stock truck. When I tow my boat I get like 8.5mpg .

I'm with @jdmartin on this one, I didn't buy a truck with a hemi for the gas mileage.

Truck details are in my signature.

EDIT: I have 10k miles on my truck.

 

[JJRamTX]

I just crossed 37,000 Miles. When I tow i am getting between 7-9 at 70 MPH. Daily driving commuting I am getting between 15.3-15.7 depending on weather, temp, traffic, and Summer or Winter blend. Very happy as my previous Ram got the same towing but only 13.8-14.4 in daily driving.

 

[haRAMbe]

Thank you all! Yes, I agree with your consensus. I didn't buy it for the MPG, but the low MPG plus the weird drag had me concerned that I got a lemon. I am a consultant and could probably pay for all the gas in the time I am researching this. We have a minivan and it gets about 17 mpg overall, though it's hard to say how often it is "left running" for things like naps.

As long as the MPG appears normal (and it seems like it does). I am getting running boards put on it and don't want to do that if there was something wrong.

Now I just have to figure out what the drag issue is. It matches the description of etorque regenerative breaking but I don't have etorque!

 

[Boston]

Ignore first tank out if the dealer. They spent time idling. Too few miles to get a truthful assessment

 

[JimD007]

I have the V6 and just went over 5,000 total miles on a long trip. The trip was 1,000 miles each way. On the way out I was not in a hurry and cruised at a maximum of about 73mph (using cruise). I got 24.7 and 25.9 on two tanks doing that (not from the on board computer, calculated just now in a spreadsheet). Coming back I was trying to pick up my doggie and went faster when possible (cruise normally on 75 or 76 mph sometimes faster to keep up with traffic). I got about 22 mpg doing that (21.7 and 22.6). The furthest I went on a tank was 591 miles (took almost 24 gallons to fill the tank). I have the 3.21 rear end and my truck is 2WD.
It makes sense to me that how fast you go is important since the air resistance of trucks is high due to greater ground clearance and large frontal area. I have a tonneau cover.

The reason the mileage of a truck will be worse with the tailgate down is due to the air resistance. It is the difference between the air force in front of the truck and behind the truck. When you lower the tailgate, you reduce the area of the back of the truck reducing the force from the air pushing the truck forward. The tonneau cover helps by reducing turbulence which reduces the pressure in the air reducing the force on the back of the truck. If it helps you accept what I am saying, I am a mechanical engineer (retired). You cannot prove small effects like this using the truck's calculations. The truck's computer is measuring fuel flow with a relatively low accuracy instrument. The truck should be viewed as a rough indication capable of something like plus or minus 1 mpg at best (that number is my guess). I've seen numbers as high as 28mpg in my truck (average, not instant).

I don't think my single tank mpg I quote above is exactly true either due to variability in when the pump shuts off (I don't trickle in more after it shuts off). But I think it's more accurate than the truck's calculations. Probably good to something like plus or minus 0.5 mpg. Long term, my spreadsheet calculations are much more accurate because the pump variability evens out. My mileage over 5204 miles is 22.01. It will probably go down since I have no long trips planned but probably not a lot, it was 21 mpg before I left.

 

[Jako]

I have the V6 and just went over 5,000 total miles on a long trip. The trip was 1,000 miles each way. On the way out I was not in a hurry and cruised at a maximum of about 73mph (using cruise). I got 24.7 and 25.9 on two tanks doing that (not from the on board computer, calculated just now in a spreadsheet). Coming back I was trying to pick up my doggie and went faster when possible (cruise normally on 75 or 76 mph sometimes faster to keep up with traffic). I got about 22 mpg doing that (21.7 and 22.6). The furthest I went on a tank was 591 miles (took almost 24 gallons to fill the tank). I have the 3.21 rear end and my truck is 2WD.
It makes sense to me that how fast you go is important since the air resistance of trucks is high due to greater ground clearance and large frontal area. I have a tonneau cover.

The reason the mileage of a truck will be worse with the tailgate down is due to the air resistance. It is the difference between the air force in front of the truck and behind the truck. When you lower the tailgate, you reduce the area of the back of the truck reducing the force from the air pushing the truck forward. The tonneau cover helps by reducing turbulence which reduces the pressure in the air reducing the force on the back of the truck. If it helps you accept what I am saying, I am a mechanical engineer (retired). You cannot prove small effects like this using the truck's calculations. The truck's computer is measuring fuel flow with a relatively low accuracy instrument. The truck should be viewed as a rough indication capable of something like plus or minus 1 mpg at best (that number is my guess). I've seen numbers as high as 28mpg in my truck (average, not instant).

I don't think my single tank mpg I quote above is exactly true either due to variability in when the pump shuts off (I don't trickle in more after it shuts off). But I think it's more accurate than the truck's calculations. Probably good to something like plus or minus 0.5 mpg. Long term, my spreadsheet calculations are much more accurate because the pump variability evens out. My mileage over 5204 miles is 22.01. It will probably go down since I have no long trips planned but probably not a lot, it was 21 mpg before I left.

I had similar experience on my 400 mile trek to Buffalo and back (post #8). Going 377.8 miles driving as per post 23.79 MPG , coming home pushing it 389.7 miles and got 19.79 MPG. Traffic was heavier on the 19.79 mpg trek home. Similar results on a trip to Alabama.