Mechanical

25 MPG possible in a Jeep Wrangler, using just common sense? I've done it still had a completely functional Jeep without any gimmicky devices.

About this Jeep

1999 Jeep Wrangler SE
2.5L inline four cylinder engine
31" BFGoodrich Mud Terrain tires
Stock height
Hardtop


What I did to get 25 miles per gallon out of it

• Accelerate SLOWLY. You'd be surprised how quickly most people get on the gas from a stop.
• Shift at around 2000 RPM. Seems to be the optimal range for maximum mileage.
• Use the cruise control on flat roads. The computer can keep an even pressure on the gas petal better than you can. Do NOT use cruise control on hills.
• Drive SLOWLY. On county roads I drive 45 MPH, on state highways I kick it up to around 50-55 MPH. The primary reason Jeep Wranglers get low mileage is due to the extremely poor aerodynamics of the body. It's like driving a brick down the road. Driving 60 MPH+ significantly increases wind speed and lowers mileage tremendously.
• Use synthetic oil such as Amsoil. Not only is this better for your engine and transmission but it lowers friction allowing an extra mile or so per gallon.
• Remove any extra weight from your Jeep. Storing that 50 lbs. bag of dog food in your back seat isn't helping things.
• Keep your fuel system clean. Dump a can of ChemTool in your tank every so often to clean out your injectors.
• Don't purchase fuel that is cut with ethanol! You will get noticeably worse gas mileage at the same cost!
• If you have lockers for your axles that you have to get out and physically turn, turning them off will net you 2-3 MPG.

Sure these methods won't make everyone on the road with you happy, but for most of us it's perfectly legal to drive 45 MPH everywhere we go. Not only do you save big on gas, but you also save on tickets and insurance. You will be able to avoid animals and various accidents much easier than before as well. Another thing I noticed is that driving slower is more enjoyable. You realize just how quickly the world goes by!

I also experiented with 3 ounces of acetone per 10 gallons of fuel. At first I noticed a jump from 20 MPG to 23 MPG, however after trying a few tanks of fuel without acetone my mileage was maintained. That leads me to believe something was clogged up a bit and the acetone just cleaned it out. It's certainly worth a try in your Jeep, especially if you've never used a fuel system cleaner before.

So there you have it. No "tornado fuel savers" or wierd chemicals, just some common sense (and a bit of experimenting). I believe I could push 26-27 MPG if I still had the stock tires as the BFG Mud Terrains are built for off-road use. If you have a six cylinder Jeep Wrangler using the above methods should net you around 18-19 MPG (if you are mostly stock).

Have fun and good luck!

I recently performed an oil change in my Mazda RX-7. Since the engine was a recent rebuild (around 10K miles on the engine at the moment) I decided to switch from Valvoline 5W-30 "dino" oil to Amsoil 5W-30 Synthetic. I was told by the original owner that using anything other than cheap dino oil would be a waste of money, however I've since changed my mind after doing research on both the rotary engine and synthetic oils.

The 13B rotary engine outputs a great deal of heat. Fossil oils tend to break down under this heat prematurely, even with oil changes every 1500 miles. This doesn't bode well since the rotary heavily relies on oil. Synthetic oils do not have this problem with breaking down under rotary temperatures, even when the vehicle is taken to the track. It's also superior for cooling the turbo chargers.

Synthetic oils are also great for colder climates as they remain fluid well below -40°F. This prevents your engine from having the bad effects of a cold start (majority of engine wear occurs at this point).

I decided to go with Amsoil after much research on the incredible BobIsTheOilGuy discussion forum. In conjuction with an Amsoil EAO oil filter I won't need to change anything for 25,000 miles or one year, whichever comes first. While I won't be doing this on the RX-7 (probably will change every 5,000 or so miles), on my Jeep Wrangler I certainly will. Amsoil is considered by many the top oil in production, even over Mobil 1 and Redline.

Either way I'm happy with the initial results on my RX-7. I haven't changed the oil yet in my Jeep Wrangler though that will be happening within the next week. Once the initial 5,000 miles are driven I will change the oil and hopefully find a still clear gold fluid showing a clean oil. The fossil oils always changed to jet black after 1,500 miles so this will be a true test of Amsoil's product.