Should I be seeing better Avg MPG

[BearFootSam]

The list makes sense save for one thing -
IFS vs. solid front axle - It's not really an argument if you have the stock air dam covering all of that. Plus all of those parts on the Jeep are rounded, not flat like IFS parts.

IFS has things hanging down as well.
The evidence of that is that I am usually the only person laying under the front of their car at a car show wiping the bugs off the lower control arms, front cross member, drag link and other parts under the front of my SX4. I don't need to do that with my JT - at least before I removed the air dam.

The lower control arms of IFS hang down low and are parallel to the front of the vehicle, making them worse than the front of a JT with the air dam. The LCAs on my car have flat fronts. The bars under my truck are rounded, not flat.

It's really a wash because the axle of the JT sits higher than the front cross member on my car that holds the lower control arms but it's prevented from catching wind by the air dam (or even a skid plate of similar shape)

I bet the IFS on my car presents more drag than the solid axle on my JT.
I noticed a drop in mpg when I removed the air dam on my truck.

This catches a LOT of stuff - and the bugs I have to wipe off the fronts of the control arms and other parts prove it -

The only saving factor is the skid plate (adding about 40 pounds) but the control arms and outer steering and suspension still catch a lot of bugs and stuff -

The air dam under the front of a Gladiator actually do a good job of routing the air around the front suspension and steering parts, but when we remove them to add weight, we will lower the mpg.

There's a reason that IFS vehicles have plastic air dams and shields that divert air and make the underside smoother - it all catches air under there.

That makes sense, but I suppose it depends on the vehicle. My former Forester, which had a skid plate, to be fair, was very flat under the front to mid-section of the vehicle. Compared to the gladiator, even with the air dam, the forester was much sleeker underneath.

Sponsored

 

[ShadowsPapa]

That makes sense, but I suppose it depends on the vehicle. My former Forester, which had a skid plate, to be fair, was very flat under the front to mid-section of the vehicle. Compared to the gladiator, even with the air dam, the forester was much sleeker underneath.

Exactly. But if you compare bare vehicles, no air dam, no skid plate, it's likely a wash on most.
Some, like the modern Grand Cherokee, have things tucked up high - there's shielding and such, but even stripped, it would be pretty clean as far as air down there.
You nailed it - it's a "YMMV" thing, depending, etc.

One thing that is a curse and advantage at times, catching small details when not trying to. Observations that were not intentional but come back later - like recalling seeing a bit on some very different topic when researching another topic, then later I'm asked about something and that side note on the other topic comes to mind. I don't have the ability to ignore.
It's killer hard to live with, but I've leveraged it at times - and pulling back to mind little things I've done and then realizing the impact it's had on other areas, like MPG, can be handy sometimes.
I used to both piss off my boss and amaze him in meetings 2 months later I could recall some little comment he made - he was hoping no one caught LOL On the other hand - things he wanted us to remember - that was harder.

Anyway, we gotta face it, these are made for rocks and mud and crawling through areas even t-rex might avoid and not made for top mpg with smooth bellies.

That being said - this JT blows away my 2011 Silverado in mpg. Best I EVER did with it was 55 mpg on I235 through Des Moines I hit 21. Never saw over 18 again after that for some reason.
Towing my 5,000 trailer with car on I got better mpg than my Chevy did. I'm pleased. It's a JEEP, it's a TRUCK. it does better than my WJ did and beats the 12 mpg my 73 Javelin does. I can do mid-20s with my SX4 but then I can't haul 1200 pounds of landscaping block with it, either.

 

[OM Jeep]

If you drive with any urgency and don’t keep it under 2,000 RPM in the city and under 60 on the highway you’ll get crappy gas mileage. I’ve tried and tried but I’m right where you are.
Easily the most disappointing thing about the Gladiator.

 

[BearFootSam]

Exactly. But if you compare bare vehicles, no air dam, no skid plate, it's likely a wash on most.
Some, like the modern Grand Cherokee, have things tucked up high - there's shielding and such, but even stripped, it would be pretty clean as far as air down there.
You nailed it - it's a "YMMV" thing, depending, etc.

One thing that is a curse and advantage at times, catching small details when not trying to. Observations that were not intentional but come back later - like recalling seeing a bit on some very different topic when researching another topic, then later I'm asked about something and that side note on the other topic comes to mind. I don't have the ability to ignore.
It's killer hard to live with, but I've leveraged it at times - and pulling back to mind little things I've done and then realizing the impact it's had on other areas, like MPG, can be handy sometimes.
I used to both piss off my boss and amaze him in meetings 2 months later I could recall some little comment he made - he was hoping no one caught LOL On the other hand - things he wanted us to remember - that was harder.

Anyway, we gotta face it, these are made for rocks and mud and crawling through areas even t-rex might avoid and not made for top mpg with smooth bellies.

That being said - this JT blows away my 2011 Silverado in mpg. Best I EVER did with it was 55 mpg on I235 through Des Moines I hit 21. Never saw over 18 again after that for some reason.
Towing my 5,000 trailer with car on I got better mpg than my Chevy did. I'm pleased. It's a JEEP, it's a TRUCK. it does better than my WJ did and beats the 12 mpg my 73 Javelin does. I can do mid-20s with my SX4 but then I can't haul 1200 pounds of landscaping block with it, either.

Those small details are my bread and butter. I pay attention to the minutiae, which can be a headache but then the boss is impressed when I recall that in the x-facility we visited months ago, such and such machine has too little clearance to allow cargo Y through. It pays the bills!

 

[Dougstdig]

Speed is a big part of it. I’ve never done the math on any of my cars to see if it matches this data from DOE, but I know once I get over 70mph I notice a significant MPG drop.

Add in even slight elevation changes and wind directions along with unnecessary idle time and the average can be significantly reduced.

 

[Jeeperjamie]

It's worse on Jeeps like the Gladiator and Wrangler due to the frontage and drag and lack of a closed underside and other factors.
That's for "typical" vehicles. These are far from "typical".
I can tell you that WIND matters - from home to Overland park - a full tank of fuel - said I had 50 miles left when I got there, 15 mpg.
On the way back - 22 mpg, adding remaining range and miles traveled I could have gone 450 miles. I got home with well over 1/2 tank left.
Same highways, same speeds there and back. The difference was the wind direction and speed.

These typically don't do their best mpg until at least 6000 miles on the clock.
Mojaves are heavy and sit high - both big strikes against them for mpg (you don't buy a Mojave gasser for mpg - buy it for many other reasons)
Any time you raise a vehicle, you present it to more wind, but you also expose the rough under-belly which catches wind.
Bigger, heavier, wider tires matter in a huge way as well. Allow wind to get into the front wheel openings- another strike (meaning stubby bumpers or bumpers well below the fender fronts)
Wind resistance increases exponentially with the biggest impact on a typical vehicle above 60 - thus the embargo-era, oil cartel-era 55 mph national speed limit.
Since these are built like 1960s vehicles, no accounting for wind and drag, expect them to behave about the same with increased speed.
I have to laugh at times - drive 70-75 and talk about mpg? It's like talking about acidic drinks and eating candy all day and wondering why your dental bills are so huge.

Face it - we drive bricks.
We want them to sit taller and catch more wind underneath. We want wider tires to add frictional losses and we want taller tires to add weight - and we ask mpg.
Ever wonder why modern pickups have air dams up front - some even retract for off-road or heavy-duty use, but move down for higher speed highway driving? Wonder why the tires don't stick past the fenders? Why windshields slope way back?

Wind is a huge factor, getting up
into those fenders will put a lot of drag on the already bricks we drive. That's why I opted for a full length high clearance bumper to close that gap up and push as much wind around the jeep as I can. Some will think I'm crazy but I'm pretty positive that and driving habits are about 90% of the reason I can maintain above 17 in mine , and letting the ESS do it's thing. All things that affect MPGs

 

[RavensEyeOffroad]

My all time average is 15.14.
I've tracked every tank of gas as well.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

Wind is a huge factor, getting up
into those fenders will put a lot of drag on the already bricks we drive. That's why I opted for a full length high clearance bumper to close that gap up and push as much wind around the jeep as I can. Some will think I'm crazy but I'm pretty positive that and driving habits are about 90% of the reason I can maintain above 17 in mine , and letting the ESS do it's thing. All things that affect MPGs

If I were buying a bumper today, with less limited budget, I'd go aluminum for light weight, and upswept ends to close that gap and keep air from getting up to the top parts of the tires - where the tire tread catches is and tries to move it forward again. Any spinning object, but especially with less than a smooth circumference, "throws air", and it's like trying to blow back in a fan, having that open like that. I know people hate those fillers on the sport, but it helps the fleet CAFE numbers. Between the air, the birds roosting on the ends of the bumper, and the bumper on mine getting covered with sand, salt and mud in the winter (the bumper gets more dirty than a lot of the rest of the truck, I sort of wish I had those fillers.

 

[Idlethunder]

My 3.6 22 Rubicon with stock suspension and tires got better mileage after I hit about 6,500 miles. Before that I was averaging 14 to 15 with a 50/50 mix of in town and highway driving at 65mph. Since then it has gone up to 16 to 17.5 under those same conditions. Those numbers are checked from tank to tank by hand and corespondent very closely with what the JT shows. I’m in Oklahoma with lots of hills and wind. My best tank was filling up in Fort Worth, TX coming home I averaged 20.2 with an approx 20mph tail wind.

 

[DBravo]

I took this pic yesterday at a red light after a 56 mile trek from my home to Pittsburgh Pa. 46 of these miles was Interstate driving at the cruise set at 74 MPH and the beginning average was at 14.5, Granted at the time of the pic I only have 1001 miles on my stock Mojave Jeep and I took delivery September 1st 2022. The jeep gets driven usually on the weekends mostly rural driving. Or have I not even driven it enough to be concerned of the Avg MPG yet lol.

Stock 2020 Gladiator Overland, Automatic, 18" wheels, 50k + miles, Goodyear Wrangler Radials. My average stays right around 22.7, I normally drive 65-72mph hwy.

If this is correct, Mojave runs a few hundred lbs heavier: https://carbuzz.com/compare/jeep-gladiator-mojave-vs-overland


Mojave Gladiator

Engine
3.6L V6 Gas 3.6L V6 Gas

Horsepower
285 hp @ 6400 rpm 285 hp @ 6400 rpm

Torque
260 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm 260 lb-ft @ 4400 rpm

Transmission
8-Speed Automatic 8-Speed Automatic

Drivetrain
Four-Wheel Drive Four-Wheel Drive

Curb Weight
4,948 lbs 4,676 lbs

 

[Mr._Bill]

This was a trip from Las Vegas to Mesquite on November 25th. I had just filled the tank that afternoon. I was talking on the phone, so I had the ACC set to 65mph for the whole trip. It's a stock 2020 Overland.

 

[Gren71]

A while back i did a MPG experiment and had some interesting results and learned a lot.

i compiled most of it into the first post to make it easier to read w/o going through a mess of pages.

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/forum/threads/mpg-experiment.53810/


-your mods will impact your mpg
-wider / heavier tires will impact mpg
-driving style will impact mpg

Im still averaging 20-22mpg year round. Accept when towing of course.

 

[jeepinmike]

Your mileage looks pretty accurate for the 3.6. Been tracking mine since new. Laoded rubi with hardtop. 10k of these miles have been on stock 33’s and remainder on the 35’s. The 35’s lowered it about 1mpg on the highway. I live on the flat coast of NC..

 

[VT rider]

I just did a road trip from R.I. to central Florida. On the trip up, I got 24 mpg. On the way back, I got 27.4 mpg. Odometer now has 4,300 miles on it. I try to keep the rpm's below 2,000. Anything above that kills your mileage.

 

[soupbill]

I was getting 21.4 life time avg. for the first 8K miles, then took it in for a stalling recall & they reset everything. Now with 17K on it I'm at 19.2 life time( from the reset) on winter gas now too. its exactly what my last 2 Tacomas were but more fun to drive.

Sponsored