MPG before and after lift

[ilovetacos]

Originally Posted by sechsgang

I am in the camp that thinks it's the tires that really cause the mpg decrease. I lifted my truck 2" and there is no difference in the gas mileage I get.

Same here and it's FACT... I had my truck lifted without up sizing the tires for a good 6 months and never saw a decrease in mileage. As soon I as put on the aftermarket wheels and 32" Mud Terrains I saw a 2mpg decrease.

[eyedoc]

Originally Posted by sechsgang

No change here. But I went with tires about the same weight as stock.

this is the key right here ^. I am getting over 21mpg with my 3" lift. bigger tires/rims = greater rolling weight/resistance = decreased mpg. simple.

aerodynamics are the same lifted 3" or not. Now, if you jack your truck up 6" that'd be a different story.

tires/rims/driving style are key here.

[kevintomb]

ANY lift at all will figure into extra gas consumption...its relative to how many percent higher it is off the road compared to what it was previously..sorry guys its a fact..the lower to the road the LESS air drag it will have. You may not notice much if you only lift it a small amount, but it will decrease the mileage..its simple physics.....

[kevintomb]

Originally Posted by ilovetacos

Same here and it's FACT... I had my truck lifted without up sizing the tires for a good 6 months and never saw a decrease in mileage. As soon I as put on the aftermarket wheels and 32" Mud Terrains I saw a 2mpg decrease.

A FACT??....nope its not a fact..you just didnt NOTICE a decrease due to the variables in calculating mileage..etc.....but it has to decrease it a small amount.

[EricS76]

Also, be aware that when you increase tire heigth it will make your speedometer and odometer read slower than they should. This will appear to cause a loss in MPG. And the larger the difference between stock and aftermarket tire sizes, the slower the speedometer and odometer will read. I'm not saying this is where all the MPG goes, but it does make a small difference. Here is a good website that will tell you how much difference there is:

http://www.dakota-truck.net/TIRECALC/tirecalc.html

[eyedoc]

Originally Posted by kevintomb

ANY lift at all will figure into extra gas consumption...its relative to how many percent higher it is off the road compared to what it was previously..sorry guys its a fact..the lower to the road the LESS air drag it will have. You may not notice much if you only lift it a small amount, but it will decrease the mileage..its simple physics.....

in an off road tacoma, the difference in being 12 inches off the ground or 14 make ZERO difference in gas mileage and I'm living proof of that. you won't be able to find a difference by common folk mathematics. lifting my truck and keeping stock rims and tires made ABSOLUTELY NO DIFFERENCE in my mileage. if you've lifted your truck, the thing has exactly the same aerodynamic footprint from the front of the truck as it is sailing through the wind....as the suspension lift is hidden behind all sorts of sheet metal. the only thing that is exposed more is another inch to an inch and a half of tire on each side of your truck. if you find a difference, you'll find that you'll have to calculate out to the thousanth degree or more......and that is rather complex physics, not simple at all....

Now, that being said, 1 inch off the ground vs 14 inches should make a significant difference....but I have no experience with ground hugging trucks or cars.

[AnimatedMechanic]

Owning a lifted 1993 Ford F-350, I would say that the tires you use makes the biggest difference in fuel economy, not just the lift alone. Bigger tires equals more weight and aggressive tread causes increased road resistance thus forcing the driver to be heavier on the gas pedal and decreasing fuel economy. I use 39.5 inch Super Swamper TSLs which are much heavier than the stock 33 inch tires, and have seen a decrease from 14 mpg to about 10 mpg. Putting the stock tires back on with a 6 inch lift set it back to normal again.