MPG goal vs reality?

Putting the cruise at 58 creates traffic problems on busy interstates. I'm all for efficiency and rewarding drivers for hitting performance goals but that is just asking for trouble. Nothing better than waiting in a line of traffic to see who wins when two mega carriers running side by side battle it out for king of the road title.

 

Running back and forth to SLC from Denver the last month, heading WB over 70 loaded (60K gross) about 70 mph, and heading EB across 80 empty with the pedal buried. I've been getting 7.3 WB and 8.3 EB. I'm content.

 

Another factor in the MPG bonus scheme is how are they figuring it. Is the mileage based on odometer, hub, or ECM? One of the companies i worked for based it on Hubmeter readings used at the pump for calculating. I was never able to meet the MPG for the bonus.
Problem was, the hubmeter was off by more than 6%. I took the hubmeter, speedometer, and google map mileage readings and compared. Speedometer and Google Maps were almost identical, while the hub shorted 6 miles per hundred. I brought it to the fuel departments attention and got grief. They said my figures were off. They did change the Hubmeter. Next trip out, the Hubmeter showed it was 375 miles from Dallas to El Paso. So much for their fantasy.
I started using the speedometer readings at the pump and all of the sudden i was MPG higher than their requirement.

 

Weight and Terrain will determine your MPG much more than 58 mph vs 63. I would run at 63 if it were me......unless that fuel bonus comes in at $200- $300 per week. I really think it will be a wash. NONE of these Companies are giving money away! Good luck!

 

For the love of god please stay in the right lane if your gonna go slow. Don't be one of those middle lane idiots going under the speed limit while people pass on both sides.

 

I agree. I'm normally heavy, between 75k to about 78.5k gross, and do lots of grades. My mpgs are never good enough to qualify for any mpg type fuel bonus. Just impossible to compete with dry van loads with only 10k to 20k of cargo running over fairly flat terrain.
I don't really try. I like heavy loads over grades. I'm weird I know. Also, don't like to run slow because of how it can clog up traffic and make a nuisance of myself. That said, I'm governed at 65 and naturally on grades I tend to be slower than other traffic. I can't really control that. But, I don't run slower than 65 unless it doesn't create traffic issues for others.

 

If your trying to bump your mpg up a tad more than stop using cruise. A good driver will do better w/o the cruise control set. Pretend you have an egg under your foot.

 

Idling your truck is the quickest way to plug up your DPF.

 

My goal is 10 mpg, but I would be happy to get 5.

 

The trucks specs have more to do with fuel economy than your speed. They need to be matched to the speed a which you are operating.

Our fleet is running 62/65/68 mph (pedal/cruise/smart pass). Coincidentally, as I was reading this, our weekly fleet average mpg was released. In the last quarter, our fleet has averaged 8.4 mpg, with the 2022s getting 8.6 and the leftover 2018s getting 7.9. This is an all-reefer fleet, and we all know reefers tend to load and run on the heavy side. Its also the complete picture, with all styles of driving included.

If one were to look for the best compromise of power and economy, the FL Cascadia Classic with 2.85:1 gears, DD15 455/1650, and an Automated 12-speed Overdrive can't really be beat. Those are the specs on the 2022s listed above, 8.6 mpg at 65, while you're getting 8.5 at 58.