Recently got a 1998 dodge ram 2500 v10 long box, and took it on a 140 mile round trip. I only got 8 mpg round trip. I noticed the truck never got up to temp, and was wondering if this is normal, and if I should invest in a winter front cover like what people put around here on diesels. I think it's full on coolant, but I will double check tomorrow. But what I'm wondering, is is that normal that it didn't get to temp?

 

From my experience the V10 gauge does read a bit low. It should have at least a 190 degree stat.

 

Also, I forgot to mention ambient air temp was between 29-34 degrees

 

I thought the same thing when I first got my V-10...... so, I changed the thermostat. Oddly enough, the gauge read exactly the same as it did before the change... So, I plugged a scanner into it, (which I should have done FIRST....) to see what the PCM thought the temp was. 190 degrees....... I think my gauge only comes about a third of the way across the scale, and that is actually where it is supposed to be.

 

Ok, thanks for the replies. It also probably would have helped if I had checked coolant. It's low, and probably could use some.