How to improve gas mileage

As an example: I recently followed a friend on his Ural motorcycle. That bike can only go about 60 max. So I set the cruise for 55 on a long flat stretch of road for about 50 miles and got 20 mpg. If I keep it under 70 I'll get 17 on the highway, over 80 it drops quickly. Thats with a soft tonneau and 20" aggressive mud/snow tires.

 

So... I was running about 12-13 loaded with tools and gear. Put 35s on... got worse. Then I went to a 5.29 rear-end. Went up about 2-3 mpg. Then did a 38 gallon tank for the range. Stopped carrying as much weight. Getting about 18 MPG now and I'm really happy.

 

My truck is a tool. Do I want a fancy tool that feels good using it? Heck ya. Do I mind it costing a bit more than another tool and is more reliable, certainly not. Mine does add up as my advertising billboard, my office and my workshop. If I can't pay the gas its like I can't pay for rent, office supplies or ads.

 

If paying for fuel is a problem, there are much bigger problems at hand.

 

My KLR gets me the best mileage out of my Tundra just not when it’s cold

 

The forum members that know me know that I bought the showroom slut with all the balloons on it. It was a dealership build that came with a 7" lift and 37" tires on 20's. On the very first drive I knew the gears would need to be changed to go with 37" tires. After I had the new gears installed, I saw a 2 MPG increase. Not only will the correct gears for tire size save the tranny, but it will also improve the MPG.

 

I put a throttle body spacer and cold air intake in my stock 2014. I gained about 1.5 more gas mileage. I added a 3.5 RC lift and new wheels and 295/70R18 tires. And lost about 2 to 3 mpg. So, I’m in the negative. I’m told re-gearing will bring me back to where it was. But I’m not doing that yet. Maybe I will if I put on 37s.

 

If you put on bigger tires, your speedometer may read slower than actual speed. (Ex: 45mph reading at 50mph actual) Seems the odometer might read fewer miles traveled as the larger diameter tires have a longer revolution. These factors may skew accurate MPG calculations.

 

18.3 yesterday on highway some tailwind involved.

 

Man, the best mpg I can get is 15 and I have completely stock set up with no mods. I guess it’s probably due to mostly driving through stop lights and in town, 80% of the time. Oh well, I still would not trade my 5.7 for an ecoboost engine. Been there prior and not a fan of the issues with Ford.

 

A 7 foot lift? Impressive! How do you get in it?