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Poor gas mileage

Motor trend and Cans D aren't the most reliable sources, they did get busted faking dyno numbers not too long ago.

That said, it's not about making more power with higher octane, it's about not losing power. It's a fact that pinging/detonation cause a power loss by the PCM pulling ignition timing. It's also a fact that pulling ignition timing reduces power output at a given RPM.

It's not unreasonable to see mpg gains from reducing or eliminating knock retard, especially in southern climates when it's hot.
I'd have to call it more reliable than an internet forum! You are not seeing 12% gains in mpg going from 87 to 89. If that were the case the greenie weenies would be clamoring daily for the government to mandate its use regardless of choice. Think of the forced regulations that are in place now not doing squat (eco mode). Just come back to reality.
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Don’t sweat it. The mpg 3.21/3.92 gear argument is overblown. There is minimal difference
IF you are towing heavy, 3.92 is a little better, but unloaded 3.21 a little better. Even with the 3.92, with a soft foot and speed control over EGO, I can get a consistent 22+ on a long trip, and up to 25.
 
IF you are towing heavy, 3.92 is a little better, but unloaded 3.21 a little better. Even with the 3.92, with a soft foot and speed control over EGO, I can get a consistent 22+ on a long trip, and up to 25.
Wow, that's impressive for any truck. I've found a 19 that checks most of the boxes of wants but it has 3.92. 4x4 if I thought I could get 20 on hwy consistently I would do buy it tomorrow.
 
Wow, that's impressive for any truck. I've found a 19 that checks most of the boxes of wants but it has 3.92. 4x4 if I thought I could get 20 on hwy consistently I would do buy it tomorrow.
20 mpg highway is easy with 3.92's as long as you go slower than 75 mph.
 
I have a 2021 RAM w/ 5.7 (non etorque) 4x4, 3.92, w/ 1900 miles on it. I am currently averaging 12.5 mpg with gentle driving (about 80% city / 20% hwy) using 89 octane only.

Is this normal? Will it get better after the break in period?
I doubt it will get better...but I have similar driving as you and get 13.x-14.x depending on how much interstate driving gets mixed in.

Mine has 16K miles on it now for reference.
 
I'd have to call it more reliable than an internet forum! You are not seeing 12% gains in mpg going from 87 to 89. If that were the case the greenie weenies would be clamoring daily for the government to mandate its use regardless of choice. Think of the forced regulations that are in place now not doing squat (eco mode). Just come back to reality.
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Well, you're free to believe what you want, I've verified it multiple times on Dallas to Houston trips so as far as I'm concerned, it made and makes a difference.
 
I think someone else said it already but from my experience, the bigger the engine the better the following technique is. Go heavy on the pedal, get up past the speed you want to go, and coast. Rinse repeat. This works especially well with the Hemi's MDS cause it almost always comes on when you're coasting. Basically, if you have a "wider" speed range, where you're fluctuating between say 58 and 74, that will do better than just hanging on the pedal trying to keep a consistent speed that's somewhere in the middle of that range.

I had a couple of V4 vehicles, and a couple of smaller volume V6ers in the past, and all of them did better with mpgs on cruise control. But on the larger V6 (3.6L Pentastar in my JGC) and the two V8's I've had (4.6 in a Mustang GT and my current Hemi 5.7), cruise control was/is worse.
 
I think someone else said it already but from my experience, the bigger the engine the better the following technique is. Go heavy on the pedal, get up past the speed you want to go, and coast. Rinse repeat. This works especially well with the Hemi's MDS cause it almost always comes on when you're coasting. Basically, if you have a "wider" speed range, where you're fluctuating between say 58 and 74, that will do better than just hanging on the pedal trying to keep a consistent speed that's somewhere in the middle of that range.

I had a couple of V4 vehicles, and a couple of smaller volume V6ers in the past, and all of them did better with mpgs on cruise control. But on the larger V6 (3.6L Pentastar in my JGC) and the two V8's I've had (4.6 in a Mustang GT and my current Hemi 5.7), cruise control was/is worse.
I use the cruise control 95% of the time on the freeway. The only time I click it off is for hills. I can keep it in 8th gear most of the time, where the cruise control will shift down to 7th.
 
I use the cruise control 95% of the time on the freeway. The only time I click it off is for hills. I can keep it in 8th gear most of the time, where the cruise control will shift down to 7th.
Used cruise for this truck 3 separate times now and I think I saw the Eco light come on one time for a few seconds. I do much better, like 3-4 mpg average better, not using it. I have 3.92's so it might be a little different for 3.21's, but this is just something I noticed with bigger engines/heavier vehicles in general. Gotta use their own inertia more.

edit: just noticed you have the 3.92's also. Probably also depends on grade/elevation changes. I'm in central PA, mini ups and downs galore. I don't make up in coasting down them what it takes to get up them with cruise on.
 
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Used cruise for this truck 3 separate times now and I think I saw the Eco light come on one time for a few seconds. I do much better, like 3-4 mpg average better, not using it. I have 3.92's so it might be a little different for 3.21's, but this is just something I noticed with bigger engines/heavier vehicles in general. Gotta use their own inertia more.
If you're trying to use the CC on hilly terrain, that makes sense. My commute to the airport is relatively flat and the CC works very well. The ECO light comes on quite a bit on the 60 mph sections and only occasionally on the 70 mph stretch. It's very unlikely that I would see a difference in mileage using vs not using it.

I can easily tell who is and isn't using CC on the freeway. There's always one guy that you are playing cat and mouse with as you pass and get repassed multiple times because he can't hold a steady speed within 10 mph. :ROFLMAO:
 
If you're trying to use the CC on hilly terrain, that makes sense. My commute to the airport is relatively flat and the CC works very well. The ECO light comes on quite a bit on the 60 mph sections and only occasionally on the 70 mph stretch. It's very unlikely that I would see a difference in mileage using vs not using it.

I can easily tell who is and isn't using CC on the freeway. There's always one guy that you are playing cat and mouse with as you pass and get repassed multiple times because he can't hold a steady speed within 10 mph. :ROFLMAO:
Best is when you're on CC coming down a slight grade and the guy behind you wants to kiss your trunk/tailgate, then you hit a big up-grade and suddenly there's a tractor trailer sized gap haha.
 
Can we go back to when the cars didn’t tell us our mpg?
I was literally just thinking about this yesterday. I don't usually subscribe to the mantra that ignorance is bliss, but in this case...

We definitely be glancing at that little arch going up and down every few seconds when we should have our eyes on the road lol
 

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