Hello,

Like I say in the subject, I have a '97 Ram 1500 5.2l. Today I towed a very small pop-up camper for 200 miles. The tongue weight of the camper is like 125lbs. (not heavy at all). The Overdrive was downshifting allot on the Highway so I turned off OD for the remainder of the trip. It ran great but when I figured the MPG I came up with 11. OUCH! Does that sound bad? This is my first full-size pickup so I don't really know what to expect.

Also, when I got home ther was a "silver-dollar" splash of oil under the truck. It was coming from a spot maybe 12 inches in front of the oil pan, again I am a rookie so I don't even know what to call it.

Any suggestions or help? Should I upgrade the air filter and exhaust to try and get better MPG or just shutup and accept it?

Thanks in advance!

 

My combined average fuel economy according the the overhead computer on my 02 Dakota with a 5.9 is 11.8mpg, that's since I bought it. I admit I've got a heavy foot and it's mostly in-town.

You really shouldn't tow in OD. I don't run OD unless I'm on the highway. Fuel economy hurts that much more but it'll make the tranny last longer and Dodge has a reputation of trannies dying early.
When you're towing the only time OD is a good idea is if you're going down hill or you've got a good tail wind.