Diesel Mileage

[saber_jack]

I have been thinking about gettting a diesel pickup and was wanting to see what kind of mileage that folks are getting with their vehicles.

I will be towing a trailer with it and wanted to see what current owners of diesels are getting with thier rigs towing verses non-towing.

My current gas rig went from 15-18 mpg non-tow to 7-9 towing.

I am not too particular on brand so I will leave it open to the board to see where it leads.

Thanks for the advice.

Saber-Jack

[iwanttofish]

I use mine mostly around town and I do pull my 19' boat to the river and to the coast. I am averaging about 17 mpg on my 2006 dodge quad cab with cummins. I drive about 2k per month.

[luckyr]

As a breed over all,you could expect 18 to 20 freeway 16 to 18 in town and 12 to 14 towing. I have a 96 powerstroke with a 5 speed and 410 gears the best I ever got was 21 going to sisters. Town 17.5 freeway 19 towing 13. If you are going for mileage,go manual transmission whatever brand you buy.

[Herring Problem]

I'm on my third diesel, 2005 Cummins with auto trans, Around town 16.5 to 17.5, Open road empty 20 to 22 mpg. Depends on the rpm's.

But pulling my 9000 29ft komfort trailer and the truck loaded I pull around 14 to 16 on the hwy.

Pulling the Trophy 2052 around loaded I see a good 16 from Redmond to Bend, would be better if I didn't have to mtns to climb to and from.

Downside- fuel cost At 3.50 a gallon and you need 32 gallons =$112.00 for a fill. but then you do get around 600 miles on the tank on the open road.


Running my 1999 Dodge Auto Diesel to Penn State College from Redmond Oregon ,I averaged 24 mpg at 85 mph on cruise control. 3200 miles This truck had the 3:55 rear ends

I am running 3:73 rear ends in the 2005 and the mileage has dropped a littlewith the lower gears.

[MattPark]

If you are buying "heavy duty" light pickup, diesels are pretty much the only option any more. GM discontinued their 8.1L gas, and Dodge no longer has the 8.0 V10. The biggest GM has is the 6.0 (not big enough for large loads) and Dodge with the 5.7L Hemi (not any better for large loads). Ford still has the 6.8 V10, which is a good motor for getting work done, but it will drink the fuel. Probably a better choice than the problematic Powerstrokes (the brand new 08 Fords have been recalled due to flames out the tailpipe).

Seems like all the new half tons are rated to tow 10,000lbs anyways now, so that may or may not matter. I haven't towed that much with one, but I know it would not be fun with an older half ton.

My Dodge diesel manual 4x4 gets 18ish empty around town, and 19-21 on the freeway, empty. Towing a 6000lb boat, 16ish, a little less over the mountains.

I've taken a buddies Duramax on a couple trips and it got 21 from here to Bend and back. It gets about 18 around town and about the same as mine towing the same load. Another friend's 05 Ford diesel gets about 16 around town with me driving, 12-13 towing the boat to the same places.

[cptdarel]

98 Cummins 4x4 utility box, auto, cab over camper, towing boat 12-13mpg

[PGJPJ]

The bad news is the new ultra low sulfur diesel that is required for the EPA 07 emissions standard has less energy per unit volume. So diesel mileage is going to go down for everyone.

[MattPark]

ULSD has been the only fuel available around these parts for months. The engergy content is only in the neighborhood of 1% less.

I think wind speed would have more effect on fuel mileage.

[SummitOne]

2001 Ford 7.3 Diesel with 6 speed man trans - 18-19 ave, 13-14 towing
2006 Ford 6.0 Diesel dually with auto trans - 15-16 ave, 12-13 towing

Both crewcab 4x4, boat and trailer weighs 8000 lbs

[duckcall]

My '01 Dodge Cummins gets 21 emptly on the freeway regulary at 60MPH, and around 17 in town. I towed our 23' trailer to NW Territories last fall and got 11.5 av. for nearly 7000 miles.

[RODACTION]

6.0l PSD.......12-13mpg

[SlipKnot]

06 Dodge Cummins- 6sp Manual (7000 miles on it)

15-18 around town depending on driving style

18-19 freeway under 70mph

14-16 towing 22' boat

My mileage varies greatly depending on driving style.

[saber_jack]

Thanks to all who responded. Will start looking around for truck. Have my eye on a 7.3L Ford 2002 manual tranny. Might be the right fit.

Saber-Jack

[SummitOne]

Saber Jack - I have a 2001 Ford F350 4x4 Crewcab long bed, 7.3 PSD, 6 spd trans, loaded, 85K miles. I am just getting ready to put it up for sale. PM if interested.
Paul

[roguesteelheader]

Originally Posted by SlipKnot

06 Dodge Cummins- 6sp Manual (7000 miles on it)

15-18 around town depending on driving style

18-19 freeway under 70mph

14-16 towing 22' boat

My mileage varies greatly depending on driving style.

Same here with my 05 Dodge 3500 4x4 Dually

[lentz]

94 F-250 7.3 Turbo Diesel, Auto tranny
1. 15 on the hi-way with no load
2. 10 " " " pulling my 23 ft trailer

Just remember that with the diesel you will have the higher cost of fuel and that maintainance and repairs always cost alot more. Some times it just makes more sence to buy a gas burner.

[Maverick Maxcat]

I've got a 2002 Chev 4x4 crew cab dually 1-ton for sale, Duramax and Allison auto. 15-17 empty, speeding, over the passes. PM me if you're interested.

[Chuckster]

04 F350 6.0L PSD W/ 5spd torque shift auto, no mods, but use a fuel addititve.

16-18 around town

20-21 unloaded on the highway

12-15 hauling a 28 ft 5th wheel

[retaliate]

Originally Posted by Maverick Maxcat

I've got a 2002 Chev 4x4 crew cab dually 1-ton for sale, Duramax and Allison auto. 15-17 empty, speeding, over the passes. PM me if you're interested.

Hey! Maverick, You throwing in the boat?

[Thumper]

2007 Mercedes/Dodge Sprinter motor home. 21-26 mpg. It's interesting when your little motor home gets the best mileage of all your vehicles.

[owens cruiser]

1995 Dodge cummins, 3.54 rear,20 in town,24 freeway.250,000 miles and still going strong,and amazingly on the same auto trans.

[I bleed fish]

Has anyone tried modifications such as "Banks Power" exhaust packages or anything like that? Their website says that some of the packages can ad up to 12% fuel economy. I'd be interested if there's any good or bad experiences with them.

[Thumper]

[QUOTE=I bleed fish;1494819]Has anyone tried modifications such as "Banks Power" exhaust packages or anything like that? [QUOTE]

I had Banks install a turbo on my 1986 Ford diesel at their shop in LA. They tuned it to emphasize "economy", rather than "power". Mileage stayed the same, power improved very slightly, and replacement frequency of glo plugs tripled. And oh, by the way, it suddenly cost $400 just to get to the plugs and controller.

I trust their products have improved.

[baltz526]

i have a nonturbo 7.3 diesel, my neighbor has a 7.3 with banks turbo/exhaust. he gets about 1 more mpg with about 30% more power and his has lower gears with manual trans.

[MattPark]

I sell a lot of that stuff (not so much the Banks (overpriced IMO), but the Edge and other brands).

Don't expect a huge economy improvement. 1-1.5mpg TOPS with any of them.
One of the reasons economy improves is you can tow that same heavy load, that you used to have to tow in 4th or 5th gear, in 6th gear. The substantial power increase you get with some of the upgrades allows you to keep it in 6th, (or any higher gear) and keep the RPM low.

[WAID]

Originally Posted by I bleed fish

Has anyone tried modifications such as "Banks Power" exhaust packages or anything like that? Their website says that some of the packages can ad up to 12% fuel economy. I'd be interested if there's any good or bad experiences with them.

Mom and dads '86 F-250 6.9L and 4 spd manual gets about 18. Moms friend has an '89 with the 7.3 that she put the turbo and exhaust kit from ATI or something like that and she gets 20mpg under most light load conditions. Can't remember if that one is a manual or not, but it tows great.

[scottishsetter]

'02 cummin's 17 in town(I-205 South)19-21 hwy

my '90 got 23 all around till I put lrg injectors in it then it dropped to 19.

[Dinikin]

My 97 PSD 4x2 with 3.55 gears got 21 hw. and around 16 combined.

Looks like many diesel owners are smiling when filling their rigs up (now).

[SeanD]

I dont know about smiling. Just cuz the gas guys are getting ripped even worse, doesnt mean $110 fill-ups don't hurt.

[ICHTHYDEMON]

Originally Posted by SlipKnot

06 Dodge Cummins- 6sp Manual (7000 miles on it)

15-18 around town depending on driving style

18-19 freeway under 70mph

14-16 towing 22' boat

My mileage varies greatly depending on driving style.

My '07 Cummins 4x4 6spd is getting the same numbers. Mine only has 3600 miles on it. The more I tow my boat and trailer,the better the MPGs are getting.

[jvp]

Originally Posted by SlipKnot

06 Dodge Cummins- 6sp Manual (7000 miles on it)

15-18 around town depending on driving style

18-19 freeway under 70mph

14-16 towing 22' boat

My mileage varies greatly depending on driving style.

06 ford i get a bit less but my wife i just subtract 3-5 for her driving style.

[julezilla]

my 7.3 liter '03 excursion's getting about 15-18 highway, 11-14 city and about 10-12 towing, depending on the road we're on and who's driving.

[HuntnCoug]

I have a 96 cummins that I had turned up by Dyno Mite diesel in Monroe and I get 18 miles per gallon pretty much everywhere. I pulled a double axle U Haul loaded to the max, and a full beef in the back of my truck from eastern Montana in the snow, to Everett (Four Wheel Drive a lot of the time) and I dont think I got below 16 mpg on average.