Hi, I'm Dramee and i'm new. I am currently considering buying an 06 Dakota Quad Cab 4.7L. I have heard conflicting fuel mileage reports and was hoping someone might answer a couple questions.
What is the correct mileage? Does standard or auto make a difference? Is there a performance chip that helps increase fuel mileage? Any help would be appreciated.

 

Welcome to the site. I will move this thread to the third generation Dakota section,
FF

 

Mileage in the Daks on this forum are all over the place. My opinion is that the biggest variable is the foot on the gas pedal. With that said - my best city mileage is 18.6mpg. While helping someone move and driving in a city with a traffic light/stop sign every couple of blocks gave me about 15.5mpg. Both of those were with a Superchips tuner and 87 Octane tune, 4.10:1 gears in an '05 quad 4.7l automatic. On the highway (before I swapped the gears from 3.55:1) I got a best of 21.7mpg. I'll find out what my highway mileage with the 4.10:1 ratio is on Wednesday when I go to/from San Antonio.

 

I think Rick put it at best...

My personal city best has been 18 mpg... and my worst has been 13-14 mpg. It does all have to do with your foot. My best highway was 22 mpg with mostly level ground driving. Lately I have gotten around 13.7 mpg and the reason I have gotten that is because of my remote start... (HEY its cold out!) Anyways as of right now the only Manual Trans available is on the V6s unless you look for a pre-2007 model. In 2007 the v8 with a Manual Trans option was discontinued. IIRC I dont believe the mpg varied enough to say there was a difference between the Auto and the Manual.

There are a few different tuners for the Dakotas with V8s. To me the economy modes are kind of a joke. The engines are retarded and sluggish almost to the point they couldnt get out of their own way. I havent experienced any more mileage gains as compared to the other tunes. They were all about the same with mileage with the exception of the Performance mode... but hey you cant build HP without fuel Anyways, with the V6, there is only the JET Chip which I really haven't heard much improvement over stock with it, I could be wrong as I havent done much research on it.

With my setup, I have 3.55 Gears, a 5 Speed Auto, a KN77 Series CAI, a Cherry Bombs Pro Exhaust from the Y back, and a Superchips 3865 Tuner with the Towing Tune loaded.

 

Gentlemen, thank you for responding to my thread. I appreciate the input. Rick if you get a chance please get back to me after your trip on Wenesday, thank you.

 

welcome to the forum. I would have to say if mileage is your deciding factor then the Dakota might not be the right truck for you. Hate to say that but it is the truth. Off the lot they are rated at like 14 city, 18 highway and there is not a ton that can be done to improve those numbers much (except the lead foot thing). That being said, if you are looking for a mid-size truck that has plenty of room, can tow a decent amount, has decent prices and is tons of fun to drive then there is nothing to compare to the Dakota, IMO. I love mine.

 

Yeah, not to sound mean but if youre looking for gas mileage, get a sedan with a 4-banger. I average about 15 in the winter and 16 in the summer with mixed highway and city driving. I wouldn't expect more than 15-16 if you ever do anything more than just feather the throttle.

 

I avrage 15.5 mpg with a combination of city and highway when im takin it easy.