Reggie wrote:
While ON's rig may indeed be able to get to the magical 30mpg number, for a lot of us it seems the ONLY way to get 30MPG will be on the back of a tow truck. I just finished a 700 mile all highway trip and although I did get better than my usual 20.5 mpg, my actual mileage for the trip was 25.9 mpg. Speed was 65 - 67 mph most of the way dropping to 60 mph in some areas, my tires were at 36 - 37 psi cold, new air filter, just changed rear axel fluid as well as xfer case fluid. The diesel down here in the Houston area has to conform to TX-LED so it has a minimum cetane of 48. The last batch I tested was 53, but there is no telling what the fuel quality was in Denton where I topped off at. My rig has over 13k on the odometer so I don't expect any big increase from continued break in. I think the only way I can get near 30 mpg will be to change the muffler and/or exhaust, fill up with VW 506.01 oil, and find a way to play with the injection timing. Also driving on flat surfaces on a cool day with no AC on and no wind will also help. Good luck in your quest.
Help me out on this one ON, my city driving is 20.5mpg vs. an EPA estimate of 21mpg and my all highway trip was ~26mpg vs an EPA estimate of 27mpg. Since the EPA estimates are estimates - not specs - how would I have a leg to stand on in the eyes of the dealer and STAR? Don't get me wrong, when I have the time and resources I'll start looking into it myself, but it would be much easier and cheaper if I could get DC to fix it for me. I'm sure if a definative answer could be found there would be a lot of happy drivers here!
Did I miss something here? I was I thought talking to someone who could not get above 19 or 20 mpg, you are in the normal zone with the 20/26 mpg's as my window sticker listed highway mileage as 26 to 28 mpg's. There may be suttle differences in our travel routes such as alititude, weather, fuel or the vehicle that made mine do so much better then yours. Just remember these engines increase mpg's as break happens. On some it seems to take 20,000 miles or more, but I have often figured that increases after 10k to 15 k miles was because that was the learning curve of the driver/owner of the vehicle.
Your mention of VW 506.01 oil makes me wonder what oil you are using. A true synthetic Class IV or V oil such as Mobil 1 0w-40/5w-40 or something else that is not a true synthetic and not quite as slippery as some would say.
If you are not happy with 26 mpg's highway on a 4300 lb 4x4 SUV you're a sick puppy.
