So I was talking with my service manager yesterday, or more complaining, that my truck only gets 13MPG well...wherever I go. Highway or city. This has also been calculated with pen and paper. And I know there's quite a few threads about improving gas mileage, and I've seafoamed the truck, cleaned the throttle body, replaced the air filter (I'll be doing the intake when I can afford it), and used a gas-additive fuel injector cleaner. I run on premium gas all the time as well.

And now, the problem isn't my right foot. I drive this thing like it's rolling on gold usually.

But it's coming to the 60k mark, which calls for spark plugs and wires (amongst other things). My service manager thinks it could make a difference in mileage, but seemed slightly skeptical. It always helped my Saturn's mileage. He also told me Dodges are made to run best on Champions. Is there any truth in this?

 

Several things,
1 you done need to run prem, youll save more with 87 and whatever the mpg decreases to.
2 I hope you made sure the plugs weren't the orig when you bought it as they are to be replaced every 30k
3 there are no sparkplug wires to replace
4 look under the hood you need champion copper 40 gap rc12mmc4 (that's off of memory) check the the hood to be sure on the model number.
The idiot that will sell you the coppers (firestone doesn't carry them) will insist his computer says to use plat plugs, just tell him to give you what you wanted.
4 you don't need to use a fuel cleaner every fill up. Don't know if that's what you meant, there's not enough build up in between fill ups.
5 seafoam is good, I use mystery oil pour some in the gas tank and on your next oil change put 5qts oil and 1 quart of the mystery oil in the crankcase.
For oil I run amsoil 25k mile oil and replace every 7500.

 

The premium fuel is what increased my mileage from 11mpg to 13mpg in the first place. The plugs were replaced at 30k. If there are no ignition wires to replace, why are there eight of them running across the top of the engine? I only used the fuel injector additive to this fill up only. I'm planning on changing the oil later this week, already bought 7 quarts of Royal Purple.

 

wow didn't know you were getting 11 before, my buddy has an 02 with 90k and he still gets 13 with reg gas.

As for the plug wires just called dodge and they said they dont change em till 100k.
RP is a good oil as well. Have you checked your rear diff to see how the teeth look?

 

I've done all the scenario's, and I get the best mpg for the money spent using 93 octane gas, but that's with a Superchips Flashpaq with the Performance Tune, so it's apples to oranges.
Every truck I've ever had (eight full size one's, all 4x4's) have always seemed to get better mileage with higher octane gas, and benefitted with the addition of a better flowing exhaust andCAI (and now, the addition of a tuner on the last two).
I've always been big on synthetic fluids and have mainly stayed with Mobil1 and their oil filter or a Wix filter. However, I just found a buy one/ get one sale on Royal Purple when I changed the oil in my Grand Cherokee about a month ago. This made the RP about $1.25 per quart cheaper than Mobil 1, so I decided to try it. I can't tellany performance change, if there is one, but myfuel economy hasincreased about 1.5 mpg's over this past month and I have pretty much gone from home to work & back, same as always, so it's a very fair comparison. Based on that, you may be pleasantly surprised when you do your oil change...

 

you could always get a 6 speed manual transmission that would change gas mileage significantly[:'(]

 

Tire pressure is another thing that will help your mpgs too and is often over looked. I have seen trucks lose4-5mpg because they had under inflated tires.

 

Very true, good point.
It is recommended that for best fuel economy you run your tires at a minimum 80% of the manufacturer's max psi...
I keep my FCII's (max. 50 psi) at 40-42 unless I'm off-roadin', and carry a compressor in the truck at all times (mainly for air bags) to air up before heading back on the highway.
I keep my BFG's on the Grand Cherokee (max. 44) at 36-38 psi and consistently get 21-22 mpg out of it and it's a 4wd, 4.7 H.O. V8, which I think is very good fuel economy...

 

Yeah, tire pressure is actually something I check at least weekly, due to working in an auto shop. That is actually something I had considered as well.

 

At least concerning the tire pressure issue, i run nitrogen in mine. It doesnt deflate 1 lb per month like regular air and i havent noticed any handling changes.