PowerBoost MPG - WTH??

[dafish]

Picked up my new-to-me '22PB KR in Cleveland yesterday. I'd rented a V-8 4x4 crew cab Ram 1500 from Budget as a one-way rental to get there. For a rental truck I ended up being really impressed. Part of that was the 20MPG average at 77-78mph for the <500 mile trip.

The PowerBoost? 16.7 mpg. Our almost identically built '18 Ecoboost can pretty reliably deliver 18mpg at those speeds. And I mean all but identical. Same bed, both max tow, both 3.5 turbo SCREW's, even same tow mirrors. Heck, same power folding side-boards. Of course the '18 will be 500lbs or so lighter. I suppose I expected too much, but I had hoped powerboost would have added 1-2 MPG on the highway. Fuelly sort of supported that hope, so did reading around the web. Yet the only way this was gonna get 20MPG was off a cliff.

Yes, in 2 wheel high, yes in eco mode. I'd blame the cold weather, or winter fuel, but the Ram 1500 just delivered 20mpg over the same trip. I wasn't towing, and I didn't see it running on boost. Wind not significant, and it did as poorly headed south as it did headed west. No error codes, 41psi in the tires, 27k miles on the truck, so it's broken in. Hybrid mode as least superficially works, for I can drive gently around a parking lot for a couple hundred feet, and watching power delivery mode today I see it occasionally hitting "hybrid mode".

Doing worse than the '18 is a bit of a surprise, doing worse AND having hybrid support to keep it off the turbo on hills and etc was REALLY a surprise. Sure slowing down helps, but the point is the PB just crapped the bed relative to it's peers.

Thoughts? Phone number to a suicide prevention hotline?

Thanks in advance,
-d

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[Viper]

it will get better with miles, and the winter fuel will also eat into it (I lost 3-4mpg when the fuel changed).

 

[HammaMan]

Weather dependent. It'll be aight in no time.

 

[UGADawg96]

PB excels in the 35-50mph range when driving at least 15miles.

 

[mb1983]

With 27k miles, have the tires been replaced? If they have and they are heavier than stock (tough not to be) that would cause a milage drop. Also, if the previous owner had a level or removed the active air dam, that would drop it as well. Tow mirrors drop it as well.

At the end of the day, the hybrid doesn't help (actually hurts due to the added weight) at highway cruising. I normally get 18-20 at 80mph, but if I slow to 65-70 I can get 22ish. Cold weather kills it as well, a combination of winter fuel and the truck needing to run to keep the engine temp up and provide heat.

As mentioned above, the 35-50mph range that's long enough to negate the loss during warmup is the sweet spot. In that area (when the temp is favorable) you can easily beat the EPA ratings.

 

[dafish]

Thank you, sorta. I appreciate input, and I don't want to be argumentative, but ya'll aren't reading quite carefully enough.

Again: Same weather. Same time of year. Golly, only 12 hours apart, and the PB relatively fell on it's face. So no, cold weather and fuel don't explain it. Heck, I used the exact same fuel stops going both ways to boot. And again, the '18 Ecoboost does at least as well and the RAM easily beat it.

BTW, no codes show, seems to run OK.

 

[dafish]

With 27k miles, have the tires been replaced? If they have and they are heavier than stock (tough not to be) that would cause a milage drop. Also, if the previous owner had a level or removed the active air dam, that would drop it as well. Tow mirrors drop it as well.

At the end of the day, the hybrid doesn't help (actually hurts due to the added weight) at highway cruising. I normally get 18-20 at 80mph, but if I slow to 65-70 I can get 22ish. Cold weather kills it as well, a combination of winter fuel and the truck needing to run to keep the engine temp up and provide heat.

As mentioned above, the 35-50mph range that's long enough to negate the loss during warmup is the sweet spot. In that area (when the temp is favorable) you can easily beat the EPA ratings.

Fair questions.
They appear to be factory tires, certainly factory size and appearance, but I'll go look for brand/model. Not that I would expect that big of loss over a tire brand change, but it's at least something to check.

FWIW, this was a company truck and I think it took mostly highway miles.

Leveling kit. No. A very unmolested truck. Spotless maintenance history too.

Active air dam. Didn't know it had one. Guess I need to look. The '18 has the active slats in front of the intercooler removed.

All:
Hybrid mode: Is there a way to check how much time it was using hybrid mode? I seem to recall it showing 0 electric miles during the trip which I found odd. Had hybrid been off for some reason maybe, just maybe, the extra weight of the PB would account for the difference experience relative to the '18.

sigh.. Looks to me like I need to go RTFM right away.

 

[UGADawg96]

It really doesn't hybrid at 70+ on the highway. At that speed, you're just a heavier Ecoboost.

 

[UGADawg96]

I have a 157wb PB with tow mirrors and larger 285/60/20 load E tires. I get 20-24 around town and 19-21 on the highway in the generally flat southeast. With about 25k miles, I've never seen below 19 when driving at least 5miles.

 

[dafish]

It really doesn't hybrid at 70+ on the highway. At that speed, you're just a heavier Ecoboost.

Well that's not good. I'd picked up the belief that they used the PB for hills and etc and stayed off the turbo. If not then yea, thats gonna explain it. Which is pretty odd, for I'd read pretty carefully, and I'd believed PB did help on hills and etc and helped stay off the turbo. Unless running in Tow/Haul mode of course.

Not the first time I've been wrong today, prolly not the last either. Heck ask my wife.

 

[Samson16]

Fair questions.
They appear to be factory tires, certainly factory size and appearance, but I'll go look for brand/model. Not that I would expect that big of loss over a tire brand change, but it's at least something to check.

FWIW, this was a company truck and I think it took mostly highway miles.

Leveling kit. No. A very unmolested truck. Spotless maintenance history too.

Active air dam. Didn't know it had one. Guess I need to look. The '18 has the active slats in front of the intercooler removed.

All:
Hybrid mode: Is there a way to check how much time it was using hybrid mode? I seem to recall it showing 0 electric miles during the trip which I found odd. Had hybrid been off for some reason maybe, just maybe, the extra weight of the PB would account for the difference experience relative to the '18.

sigh.. Looks to me like I need to go RTFM right away.

It’s in hybrid mode if the ICE is running! Please let’s be clear and consistent 4 years in.

 

[scott011422]

18 is pretty average in the winter. I’ll take a couple of trips in December being on the tollway at 75 to 80 mph. Every year same trips in December and every year I’m 17.9 to 18.2

at those speeds, the v6 has to work harder to get the same power needed to go 80 as the V8. So slightly better on a new v8 doesn’t shock me.

 

[Samson16]

That’s what my PB can do.

 

[UGADawg96]

It’s in hybrid mode if the ICE is running! Please let’s be clear and consistent 4 years in.

Sorry, I was referring to electric mode.

 

[UGADawg96]

That’s what my PB can do.

I can't drive 55 ?

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