Anyone else a bit surprised and disappointed after doing the math, and coming up with 20.3mpg for the "gas mode"? I know extra weight for batteries wiring and electric motors, but no trans and drive shaft. I would have thought it could at least achieve the current pentastar hwy mileage of 25mpg since it should be able to operate near it's most efficient point most of the time.
I'm not surprised, nor disappointed.
It is pushing a lot (presumably) of extra weight, but also the physics are that converting mechanical output from an ICE to electricity and then back to mechanical output is not remotely as efficient as just converting that mechanical output from the ICE directly to wheel rotation.
Plus, I'm just going to guess that when you run the battery all the way down and are driving the truck on gas, there will be some of that Pentastar output that will be going to recharging the battery. But, that will be interesting to see. Maybe it has a mode where you use up all the battery and it does no recharging while driving - so you can maximize range from the gasoline, then charge at your destination.
My lifetime average on my last Hemi was 14 MPG. My current average (over 37k miles) in my EcoDiesel is 22.0. If I were to get an actual 20 out of the Ramcharger Pentastar, I would be SUPER happy. After all, with a Ramcharger, I wouldn't be driving it on gas any time except road trips. So, less than stellar gas mileage only makes a small difference in my overall cost per mile.
They are saying 690 miles of range. There is no way it's going to be that driving at 80 MPH (my normal road trip driving speed). But, if I can actually get on the highway and drive 500 miles without stopping, that will be as good or better than I could ever do with my last Hemi and 33 gallon tank.
And, if I can drive 1000 miles without it taking any longer than it would have taken me with my last Hemi (i.e. no extra time required to stop and wait on charging), then I will be super happy.
I just read an article the other day from some blogger who bought a Tesla for doing long trips. He claims it is great. But, he also said that you should just expect the trip to take about 20% longer. And THAT is where my line is and why I wouldn't buy a pure EV. I am not willing to accept a vehicle that takes, really, ANY longer to get where I'm going. My time is worth far more to me than the extra money I spend on fuel for an ICE (versus what it would cost to drive an EV the same distance). When I get off work on Friday and drive 5 or 6 hours to get to where I'm diving the next morning, an extra hour to get there is an hour of sleep lost. Screw that. LOL!