2014 Ram Gas Mileage

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So I do a LOT of driving for my job, and they provide rentals. My rental this time is a '14 Ram quad (correct term?) cab 5.7L with the Torqueflite 8-speed. I have had a very bitter taste in my mouth concerning Dodge from my mom's '09 Journey 2.4L (I know, Dodge and Ram are separated now, and Fiat now has part ownership). I wasn't thrilled when my only option was the Ram. Especially considering they have MDS. Supposedly the technology has improved since '08 (my 1st experience with cylinder deactivation - GM - my sig explains all), but I'll leave this alone.

My work drive habits consist of 70% hwy (60-75 m.p.h. using cruise control), 30% city, and typically about two hours of idling each night. I never drive the same route, always varies. Tank filled each night with 87 octane no ethanol (E-0) and fuel economy gauge reset with each fill. So far my lowest average has been 22.1 mpg and my highest 24.8 mpg. The highest mileage at any given time was about 40 miles after filling, and the computer showed 27.9 mpg.

After 2,600 miles in the last 6 days, I must say that I am..... impressed. I just wanted to share this, and get other thoughts. But I no longer have a hatred for Chrysler/Ram (at least post-bankruptcy and with Fiat intervention).
 
Some have Chrysler products of various age and they do very well (even considering their advanced age).One of mine is a 1988.There are lemons in anything.I had 3 GM lemons in a row.That stopped my GM support many years ago.
 
Even knocking 10% off for the computer's probable "fudge factor", that's quite impressive fuel economy for what is essentially a brick with a V8 under the hood!
 
I rented the same truck to go from Salt Lake City to Logan UT and back last month. 22.4 mpg with 80% highway use, hand calculated, and I wasn't easy on it. The 8 speed trans and ECO mode are awesome. I had a '97 Ram that was garbage, and swore to never buy one again. I would seriously consider purchasing the 2014+ Ram 1500 with 5.7 and 8 speed if I needed gas powered truck. Fit and finish we're great too.
 
Dodge is steadily gaining market share in this segment. You can really get bang for the buck these days in a truck if you keep an open mind and shop carefully.
 
This is why no matter how many posts knock them that the Dodge will be high on our list when my Wife purchases a new PU truck this year or early next.

That ZF 8 speed is the bomb, giving great go power and fuel economy even with the V6. The Hemi is such a loafer it never even has to rev to make that great big monster scoot...
 
my 2014 with the same 5.7l zf8 is getting around 17 with mostly city driving. I only have around 2600 miles on it. the only highway miles was me towing 7000lbs and got around 12-13mpg. i'm very happy so far.
 
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My 12 crewcab gets bout 14 around town everyday driving...might get 20.0001 on hwy trips at 70 with ac off downhill with a tailwind..but who drives 70 on the hwy pffffftt.......typical is 18 or so at 80 mph ac with cruise on..i think the 8 speed has helped the new ones alot...have to work at it to burn the tires
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Originally Posted By: tony1679
So I do a LOT of driving for my job, and they provide rentals. My rental this time is a '14 Ram quad (correct term?) cab 5.7L with the Torqueflite 8-speed. I have had a very bitter taste in my mouth concerning Dodge from my mom's '09 Journey 2.4L (I know, Dodge and Ram are separated now, and Fiat now has part ownership). I wasn't thrilled when my only option was the Ram. Especially considering they have MDS. Supposedly the technology has improved since '08 (my 1st experience with cylinder deactivation - GM - my sig explains all), but I'll leave this alone.

My work drive habits consist of 70% hwy (60-75 m.p.h. using cruise control), 30% city, and typically about two hours of idling each night. I never drive the same route, always varies. Tank filled each night with 87 octane no ethanol (E-0) and fuel economy gauge reset with each fill. So far my lowest average has been 22.1 mpg and my highest 24.8 mpg. The highest mileage at any given time was about 40 miles after filling, and the computer showed 27.9 mpg.

After 2,600 miles in the last 6 days, I must say that I am..... impressed. I just wanted to share this, and get other thoughts. But I no longer have a hatred for Chrysler/Ram (at least post-bankruptcy and with Fiat intervention).


Your mom's Journey was a product of the Daimler/Chrysler and Cerberus/Chrysler era. Cerberus buys companies, milks them for all they are worth (destroying them) and sells them off.

Fiatsler seems to be dong better.

Originally Posted By: NHGUY
Some have Chrysler products of various age and they do very well (even considering their advanced age).One of mine is a 1988.There are lemons in anything.I had 3 GM lemons in a row.That stopped my GM support many years ago.


1988 was before Daimler
 
Originally Posted By: tony1679
So I do a LOT of driving for my job, and they provide rentals. My rental this time is a '14 Ram quad (correct term?) cab 5.7L with the Torqueflite 8-speed. I have had a very bitter taste in my mouth concerning Dodge from my mom's '09 Journey 2.4L (I know, Dodge and Ram are separated now, and Fiat now has part ownership). I wasn't thrilled when my only option was the Ram. Especially considering they have MDS. Supposedly the technology has improved since '08 (my 1st experience with cylinder deactivation - GM - my sig explains all), but I'll leave this alone.

My work drive habits consist of 70% hwy (60-75 m.p.h. using cruise control), 30% city, and typically about two hours of idling each night. I never drive the same route, always varies. Tank filled each night with 87 octane no ethanol (E-0) and fuel economy gauge reset with each fill. So far my lowest average has been 22.1 mpg and my highest 24.8 mpg. The highest mileage at any given time was about 40 miles after filling, and the computer showed 27.9 mpg.

After 2,600 miles in the last 6 days, I must say that I am..... impressed. I just wanted to share this, and get other thoughts. But I no longer have a hatred for Chrysler/Ram (at least post-bankruptcy and with Fiat intervention).


There's a reason Ram outsold Chevy for a month last spring.
wink.gif


For me its just really nice to see my favorite brand make such a roaring come-back with so many outstanding products. The haters still hate, but they sound really weak when they try these days. I've owned Mopars from every era, and liked almost all of them... But then, I knew beforehand not to buy things with the 41TE (like the Journey) or with the 2.7L v6, or with any of the Mitsubishi-sourced oil burning engines. Knowledge of the product line really helped during some of the bad years...

To be totally fair, there's not a lot of Fiat involvement in the Ram trucks, other than the engineers finally feeling like they had the backing of a company that would step back and let them do what they could do best, which they didn't with Daimler or Cerberus. The truck itself hasn't changed greatly since 2011, but that 8-speed automatic is a miracle worker when it comes to fuel efficiency. And also when it comes to letting little engines like the Pentastar and the VM Motori EcoDiesel do the kind of work the older 4.7 v8 (like I have in my 08) used to do... and in fact do it better. I'll probably keep my 08 forever since it was my Dad's last truck before he got sick, but most of the time I'm driving it I really wish it were a 2011 or later. For comparison: the BEST highway mileage I've gotten out of it is 22 and around town 15-16 is about the limit (mixed freeway, jammed freeway, and city streets). That doesn't exactly stink for an almost-6000 pound vehicle of that size, but compared to yours it does. And you have almost 100 horsepower and (more importantly) a ton more low-end torque than my 4.7 does.

Don't worry about the Chrysler cylinder deactivation system, either. Its very trouble free, and somehow they managed to avoid the high oil consumption issues that GM had with their system. The one exception was in Challengers with a particular rear-end ratio and the automatic transmission. For some reason, sustained use of the MDS system set up a harmonic vibration (or something) that beat up the timing chain to the point of failure. There's a recall going on for that vehicle that is well WELL discussed on the Challenger forums, but neither the stick-shifts nor trucks seem to be affected at all.
 
I just drove across the US from Washington to Ontario in a 2013 RAM 1500.. 5.7L. What a truck. Air cooled seats, incredible infotainment system that is easy to use, great interior, great power... I would buy one in a heartbeat. Had no problems pulling a trailer for 4000KM either.

Love it!
 
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8

That ZF 8 speed is the bomb, giving great go power and fuel economy even with the V6.


I love the 'Jay Leno's Garage' episode with the Challenger Hellcat. Jay does a burnout (yes, I wish people would do something ELSE with the Hellcat for a change) and you can hear the Torquieflite 8 rip off about 3 bang-shifts *during* the burnout. Its quite a piece of work, whether used for performance or for hauling. Very versatile.
 
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8

That ZF 8 speed is the bomb, giving great go power and fuel economy even with the V6.


I love the 'Jay Leno's Garage' episode with the Challenger Hellcat. Jay does a burnout (yes, I wish people would do something ELSE with the Hellcat for a change) and you can hear the Torquieflite 8 rip off about 3 bang-shifts *during* the burnout.


my truck does it too, very intoxicating.
 
Originally Posted By: cptbarkey
Originally Posted By: 440Magnum
Originally Posted By: SteveSRT8

That ZF 8 speed is the bomb, giving great go power and fuel economy even with the V6.


I love the 'Jay Leno's Garage' episode with the Challenger Hellcat. Jay does a burnout (yes, I wish people would do something ELSE with the Hellcat for a change) and you can hear the Torquieflite 8 rip off about 3 bang-shifts *during* the burnout.


my truck does it too, very intoxicating.



Haha, I bet it is!

I'd like to take a few here to the strip one day. A good burnout and a couple of full throttle passes might just loosen 'em up a little....
 
Originally Posted By: kkreit01
It must have very high gears (3.21), and 2wd. Still impressive.


It allows the manufactures to gear down in the transmissions.

The final drive ration on the new Silverado with 3.08's and the 6spd is lower than the old 4spd with 4.10's. I'm sure Ram is the same as is Ford, so no more 4.10's anymore.
 
Well to give an update, I had to return it. But two things to mention:

1. The fuel economy gauge was pretty accurate. I checked on two fill-ups and it was within .5 both times.

2. I had it between 5,200-8,100 miles. The buttons on the steering wheel for the cruise were already malfunctioning. You know the old "how many licks does it take...." phrase. How many times did I have to press the button for the cruise to turn on? The on/off button was totally screwed. I pressed it hundreds of times. Fast, slow, hard, soft, hold, give it ten minutes, turn the truck off... It didn't matter. But here is the hilarious part. When I banged on the top of the 'spoke' of the steering wheel above the buttons, voila! It worked! Seemed like loose wiring.
 
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