If you’re wondering “how to get better gas mileage in a truck?” you need to keep regular maintenance, reduce idling, use the correct gas, plan and combine your trips, and cut on A/C.
⚠️ If It's Broken, Don't Fix It - Get Paid Cash for Your Vehicle ⚠️
Truck lovers argue that their vehicles provide the best towing capacity; However, one of the biggest drawbacks of trucks is the gas mileage.
For the truck to provide you with this huge towing capacity, it must consume a lot of fuel, and understanding how to save on gas mileage is a must for any truck driver.
This article provides you with ten simple tricks you can follow to improve your truck’s gas mileage.
How to get better gas mileage in a truck?
While it's not that trucks do not provide you with the best gas mileage, this doesn't mean that there are no simple tricks I can implement to help reduce gas usage.
Some tricks might involve installing additional improvements, while others are more about changing your driving habits slightly.
Let's take a closer look below at some of the tips you can follow to help you answer the question of “how to get better gas mileage in a truck?”
-
Regular maintenance
One of the quickest and simplest ways half improving your truck's gas mileage is through regular maintenance. You can always refer to your vehicle's owner’s manual to determine what type of regular maintenance you must keep up with, especially those affecting the vehicle's fuel economy.
For example, you need to keep an eye on your truck’s tires. If the tires do not have the optimum pressure level, it can affect the overall fuel economy of your truck. If the tire is under-inflated, it creates what's known as drag, which requires using more fuel.
Also, monitoring your vehicle's alignment is another thing to keep in mind when it comes to regular maintenance. If your truck does not have the right alignment, it will put some stress on one side over the other, which means that your engine will work much harder to accommodate the access load.
Another important, regular maintenance you need to have is an oil change. Since oil provides your engine with the required lubrication to keep it working properly without stressing it out, it is important never to skip an oil change. The longer you wait on, the older change, the more contaminated the engine oil is, the more your engine will work hard. As a result, your truck consumes more fuel.
-
Cruise control
Did you know that driving with inconsistent speed can lower your vehicle's fuel economy? Yes! According to experts, if you continuously change between accelerating or D accelerating, your vehicle will consume much more fuel.
That's why automotive experts recommend that any truck driver use the cruise control system. This system basically allows you to keep a consistent speed as you're driving on the highways. Unless you're really forced to change the speed, you'd better stay with a consistent speed and avoid accelerating or decelerating as much as possible.
-
Less idling
Experts consider idling as “a waste of gas,” which makes a lot of sense. If you are looking to improve your truck's gas mileage, you need to eliminate idling as much as possible.
By reducing idling, you won't burn fuel for anything. Therefore, if you plan to park your truck for a long time, you recommend that you turn the engine off to save on gas.
-
Good trip plan
Another thing that could cost you a lot of gas without paying attention is not planning. If you know that you have a couple of errands to take care of for a certain date, you need to plan and select the right routes to take care of all errands without wasting many guests.
When you plan, you don't have to worry about stopping for longer distances while idling the engine is burning fuel because you don't know where you're going next.
-
Less load
The more load your truck is hauling, the more your engine works, and the more gas is consumed. Consider reviewing all items you're holding on top of the truck bed. Do you really need to take these items everywhere you go? Can you drop them off in your garage?
The fewer items in the list loads you put on the truck, the less gas you will waste, which means that your truck's fuel economy will improve significantly if you consider taking off some items that you're not paying attention to.
-
Low oil viscosity
Since oil has a drug relationship with your vehicle's fuel economy, you need to use the right oil, especially in winter.
You can first start with your vehicle's owner’s manual and get an idea about the best oil to use for this car.
However, keep in mind that the lower the viscosity, the thinner the oil, the less load on the oil pump. When there is no major load on the fuel pump, your vehicle tends to use less fuel.
In winter, oil becomes a big challenge to your vehicle, which affects the fuel economy significantly. That's why it's recommended to perform regular oil changes and use less viscous oil in winter, so you don't have to worry about stressing your engine and lowering the fuel economy.
However, the lower the viscosity, the harder it is for your truck to haul large are loads., which means that you need to have a balance between the viscosity level and the number of loads you're planning to carry.
-
The right gas
Using the right gas helps your vehicle save on fuel economy. Start with your vehicle's owner’s manual and see the recommended gas type for this truck.
Spend a little time and effort reviewing the best gas brands and find those who have some specific additives to help clean up the system every time you add fuel.
The cleaner the system, the easier it is for your fuel system to supply the engine with the minimum fuel.
-
Less A/C
The air conditioning system increases the stress on your engine, requesting more fuel. Unless you need to turn on the air conditioning, do not use it if you are planning to improve your truck's gas mileage.
You can check the temperature outside and see if it's worth turning on the AC. Also, consider parking in shaded places to help enhance the internal temperature of your vehicle. Closing the sunroof is another good idea to reduce on using AC system.
-
Bikes and carpools
While it's not easy for many people to use bites everywhere or carpool, it is still a good idea to consider. If you know that to have a family member or friend going to the same location, it might be good to save on gas bills by joining them and having some fun time together.
Also, if you live in downtown, walking or biking can be a great option to help save on gas bills and help the environment.
-
One trip
Another good tip is to combine as many trips as possible. If you know that this weekend you must go to a doctor's appointment and do some shopping, you can combine the trips if they're in the same direction or location. This way, you can save a ton on gas mileage.
What truck enhancements can improve the fuel?
Most truck drivers understand that trucks are not very fuel-efficient. That's why many researchers and mechanics suggested several recommendations and enhancements to the truck to help reduce fuel usage. Here are some of the top improvements drivers usually implement at their trucks to improve fuel economy:
- Free flow exhausts
- Add vortex systems
- Modify the computer's
- Use cold air intakes
Is it worth the modifications to get better gas mileage in a truck?
According to experts, most truck enhancements do not really provide significant fuel mileage improvement. That's why there is still a debate about whether these modifications are worth it or not.
In general, deciding whether it's worth modifying your truck to improve gas mileage is consider on a case-by-case basis and depends heavily on your own circumstances. What we recommend here is doing the right math and see if you can see a huge difference in gas mileage after implementing truck modifications.
Here are simple tricks to consider when evaluating whether it's worth modifying your truck or not:
-
Understand the current gas mileage
While we all hear about the expected gas mileage of a certain truck when we purchase it, it is not always the case, and depending on your driving habits and environment, you might achieve different gas mileage.
Start by calculating your vehicle's overall gas mileage. To do that, you need to determine how many gallons of fuel you burn each year. For example, if you know that you drive about 30 miles per gallon and usually drive about 30,000 miles each year, you need to calculate how many goals you burnt each year.
To do that, you simply divide the number of miles you drive each year by the number of miles you can get per gallon. So you basically do 30,000 divided by 30, and you get 1000 gallons each year.
-
Determine how much is your total gas cost
Then, you need to calculate the total cost to pay for the gas each year. To do that, multiply the number of gallons you will need each year by the average gallon cost in your area. For instance, if your area says that fuel is about $3 per gallon, your total cost would be $3 X 1000 = $3000.
-
Understand the modification gas mileage
Once you have a baseline about how much you already pay for gas over a year, the next step is to compare that cost to the mileage savings you will get when performing certain modifications.
Reach out to the manufacturer and get the expected MPG when installing the modification. Once you get that, multiply it by the number of mileage and by the current gas price.
-
Compare the current gas mileage to the expected after improvement
Once you have two final numbers, you can compare how much you already pay for gas per year versus how much you will pay when installing a certain improvement.
If you notice that there is no huge difference, it's never worth spending your time and effort adding advanced improvements without getting the best advantages.
In most cases, improvements might work well for those who drive their trucks a lot and continuously haul many large items.
Conclusion
Trucks are amazing vehicles, especially for those looking to haul large items. However, the biggest drawback about owning a truck is the gas mileage.
This article provided you with ten simple tips you can implement to help improve your truck’s gas mileage. Most of these tips have to do with your driving habits, and by implementing them, you'll see a big difference.
If you notice that your truck is consuming more fuel than expected even after applying most of these tricks, it can be an internal issue indicating that your vehicle is reaching the end of its lifetime. If that's the case, it's always worth evaluating whether you should sell your truck to Cash Cars Buyer.
Cash Cars Buyer is one of the top-rated car removal companies in the nation that guarantees to pay you the top dollars and will provide you with free towing despite your living location around the United States.
The best thing about Cash Cars Buyer is that our process is very straightforward and doesn't take more than a couple of days to get your vehicle removed safely and for the most money.
To learn more about our process and our team, you can reach out to us by giving us a call at 866-924-4608 or visit our home page click on the free instant online offer.