Ok I need some help here. I'm looking for real world mpg numbers from guys with the hemi mega cab. I've got a stock 4x2 and am wanting to upgrade gears but have to prove to the wifey its not another 'waste' to the truck. I've read of the improvements of city mileage and well that's where I could use the help as here in so cal there's a signal light every 100 feet it feels like. I'm averaging about 13 which is typical. City about 8 and highway about 19. Yes all by hand. I drive like a granny on the freeway. Even big rigs pass me. But I can get it to hold steady at 21.8 until I run into hills. But 8 and almost 20 is ridiculous. I'm also thinking e fan when I can find one in local junk yard. Thanks for any insight.

 

Damn I wish i got 21 on the highway but i get around 11 in the city. I live in OC too. A way that you can raise the MPG is you can lower the truck a little. Im not say have it dropped but either lower the front and inch and level the truck out. Then go inside and take out any thing you never use to reduce weight (you wont see any gain but you do gain MPG in a clean truck, its a FACT ha), But the most effective aftermarket parts for raising MPG is to buy the E-fan, a programmer, exhaust, and a high flow filter. Most importantly, don't put bigger tires and wheels on it or raise the front up, that killed my MPG but i think look offsets the cost. Now you wont be seeing a huge improvement but you could see 2-5 mpg higher over all which over the lifespan of the truck is a big difference.

 

Gears will most certainly raise your city mpg's but your highway mpg's will slightly suffer. I have a Superchips tuner and have the trans option. My shift points are all raised so to keep my truck in a lower gear than stock which is essentially the same as getting gears from a mpg standpoint. I get much better mileage around town and my highway mileage is still slightly lower than stock(mds disabled which you don't have), but not by much.
I think that going gears if city driving is the majority of your travel will benefit you in the long run. It'll keep your truck in the powerband which makes it work much less, but if highway is most of your travel, I say leave the truck alone as the cost of gears won't be beneficial in the long run.
It seems 10-11 city and 13-15highway is typical for Mega's. Getting 19 is much higher than the norm for a Mega. My light duty 1500 doesn't see 16...ever, but I do get 13city on average because of my Superchips tuner.

 

Great replies. Thanks! Most of my travels are freeway actually, 76 miles round trip for work. So yeah I'm a road warrior. Just looking for ways to minimize the city to highway difference which is so far spaced. And picking up on butt dyno is just a bonus. But would really like so see my 475 a month average gas bill dwindle down a little.

 

You could park it like I do and purchase an inexpensive car for distance travels. Even with paying additional insurance on another car, plus the expense of the car...You will make out.
I picked up a car for $1200 at the auction and within 6months, it paid for itself with the amount of gas I that would have spent on the truck.
The overall cost included the money spent on gas for the beater car, insurance, DMV fees and all of the maintenance such as plugs/oil..etc So, since I broke even after the 7'th month, I basically had a free car. It paid for itself. This was a 96 Stratus 4cyl 5spd that got 32mpg's.
So maybe you could get a beater for local running around...lol

 

Hmm I like your thinkin. Obviously never thought of that. Still looking for numbers though.

 

I agree with Dirty Dog definately worth getting a beater car. Money better spent. Just some rough figuring your commute is about 20,000 miles a year. In your truck if it's getting 15 average that's about $4250 a year just in gas if the price is $3.20 a gallon. Now a beater car which averages 25 will cost you about $2560 a year to run or just shy of 2 grand less. These numbers don't include maintance which is gonna cost you more on that fairly new truck than what it will cost you on a older beater.

With that kinda commute you're more likely to get in an accident because of your time on the road (I've usually get rearended in the DC area at least once every 2 years because of folks being distracted, being stupid or combination of the two). Your chances of an accident are the same reguardless of what you drive, but would you rather smash a $2000 beater vs your $35,000 truck? I'm in the same boat as you but only worse. I have about a 120 mile a day commute so I had the same decision to make. My wife and I figured I was spending $10,000 a year in vehicle costs IE fuel maintance etc when I drove my 01 Ram daily.

As for the truck the most cost effective thing to do is pull off the mechanical fan and install a Efan. Not familiar enough with these trucks to know if the next restriction in the system is, but I'd hunch on either the intake tract or the exhaust. I'd bet though your gains would be minimal with those two though.

Food for thought.

 

19 with a mega cab!! I get 12.4 highway with a quad cab 4x4 fml

 

Well we know how you drive. I get over 16 on the highway at 75. Lol. I'm pinned lately at 58-59mph on cruise control. I've gotta get more bang for buck. So does anyone have any numbers I can show the wifey? With the gear upgrade that is. As long as its an improvement I might be lucky enough to get to do a mod =D

 

The improvement will be very minimal at best. It will surely take a LONG time to recoup the initial cost for the gears prior to actually starting to SAVE money... but don't tell the wife I said that .... I mean, yeah, you should be up around 25 MPG easy

I have never seen anything more than 14.3 with my 3/4 ton quad cab hemi, but I have not done any "highway" driving either (but they are country roads... no stop lights). I think you are doing fine with a mega cab. I am usually around 12.5 with mine.