MPG drop

[ct_corey]

2016 5.3 4x4. I was getting around 16.5-17 combined(mostly back roads, some highway) I brought my truck is for an oil change. I asked them to balance the wheels due to a shake on the highway. Come to find out all they did was drop my tire pressure to try and reduce the shake. I inflated them back to 35 cold. For some reason now Im only getting around 13.9-14.5. My commute is the same and I drive the same. It has gotten a lot colder in my area but I didn't think it would affect it this much. Any ideas?

[Brianibew]

The cold will affect the mpg as the engine takes longer to get up to operating temp, during the warm up period the engine is using more fuel that it does at operating temp.

[cbrsilv15]

Remote starting in the morning?

[Sean Neilan]

These engines seem very sensitive to cold in terms of mpg. Once the temp drops below 50 I find my mpg drops by 2-3 and it goes into 4 cyl mode a lot less.

[LongrangeLauber]

Winter blend fuel is at the pumps now in most areas too

[Cowpie]

Yep, winter blend fuel. Most places all tank supplies get changed over by October 1st. Winter blend has a higher butane level to promote proper fuel vaporization at colder temperatures. And that increased butane also reduces fuel mileage a little.

[powerhaulic]

same here

 

winter fuel and increased idling kills the average

[TxTruckMan]

Winter blend is only responsible for ~3% less efficiency. The cold air likely has more of an impact. Longer warm up times, more friction in components, reduced air pressure, etc.

[p7m89mm]

Why 35 psi? Doesn't the door jam specify 32 psi all around? Not that increasing the psi would negatively affect mpg, but I could definitely see how it could run smoother at 32.

 

 

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[Andy Seibel]

Why 35 psi? Doesn't the door jam specify 32 psi all around? Not that increasing the psi would negatively affect mpg, but I could definitely see how it could run smoother at 32.

 

door jamb on my car says 32, but the truck says 35.

 

I think mythbusters proved that a couple PSI over helps mileage to a point, while also giving less traction.

I believe that running with too low pressure will not only hurt mileage, but wear out the tires faster. I can't believe the dealer would lower the pressure below the recommended amount.

[p7m89mm]

 

door jamb on my car says 32, but the truck says 35.

 

I think mythbusters proved that a couple PSI over helps mileage to a point, while also giving less traction.

I believe that running with too low pressure will not only hurt mileage, but wear out the tires faster. I can't believe the dealer would lower the pressure below the recommended amount.

My truck says 32

 

 

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[SouthernSilveradoGuy85]

Winter blend fuel and also the fact that colder air is more dense so it's more air in the same volume of are. More air means more fuel needed. So it's not just from letting it warm up. If you notice when it's cold the engine seems to act like it has more power, it's from the more dense air.

[Havvkeye]

Is the shake still persistent when you aired the tires back up?

[Dnt]

Could it be stuck in 4whl auto? Maybe the oil change monkey smacked your shift linkage? Find a mudhole and test the driveline............ this is fun anyway so need to do it once in a while just to check the system out. You really should be around 20mpg on your truck, I know it being a 5.3 it will not get the mileage of a a 6.2 but come on man.

[DAY11]

My mileage just dropped about 2-3 mpg too. Darn winter blend and slightly cooler temps. Surprised at the drop off.