Put on a bigger lift, get better gas mileage
Thread Starter
JK Freak
Joined: May 2008
Posts: 759
Likes: 0
From: North AL
Put on a bigger lift, get better gas mileage
I'm not sure if this is the norm, but after going bigger, my average mpg has increased over a mile per gallon.
Previously I had Teraflex 2.5" coils with 3/4" spacers in the front. I put on 35" MTR/Kevlars last August and have averaged 15.5-16 mpg ever since. I occasionally dropped down to the 14's or went up to lower 16's, but could always count on my average to be in the upper 15 mpg range.
Late May, I installed a Trail Master 5" kit that included all eight control arms and drive shafts. It got rid of the vibration/shimmy I had in my steering wheel. I was happy knowing that I might get a few more miles out of my tires since the control arms seemed to correct the geometry of the suspension and let the tires roll with a little less resistance.
What I wasn't prepared for was the change in mpg. For the past month, it's been nothing but local driving back and forth to work, no highway trips. I have gone through four tanks since I installed the new lift and my mileage is as follows:
16.7 (1/4 of this tank was before the new lift)
15.5 (This one includes a trail ride so it doesn't really count)
17.1
17.7 (just filled up today)
I always had calculate the mileage and also installed the superchips programming when I put on the 35" tires. So is this typical when going to adjustable control arms or has my jeep been humping a Prius when I wasn't looking?
Previously I had Teraflex 2.5" coils with 3/4" spacers in the front. I put on 35" MTR/Kevlars last August and have averaged 15.5-16 mpg ever since. I occasionally dropped down to the 14's or went up to lower 16's, but could always count on my average to be in the upper 15 mpg range.
Late May, I installed a Trail Master 5" kit that included all eight control arms and drive shafts. It got rid of the vibration/shimmy I had in my steering wheel. I was happy knowing that I might get a few more miles out of my tires since the control arms seemed to correct the geometry of the suspension and let the tires roll with a little less resistance.
What I wasn't prepared for was the change in mpg. For the past month, it's been nothing but local driving back and forth to work, no highway trips. I have gone through four tanks since I installed the new lift and my mileage is as follows:
16.7 (1/4 of this tank was before the new lift)
15.5 (This one includes a trail ride so it doesn't really count)
17.1
17.7 (just filled up today)
I always had calculate the mileage and also installed the superchips programming when I put on the 35" tires. So is this typical when going to adjustable control arms or has my jeep been humping a Prius when I wasn't looking?
JK Newbie
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 5
Likes: 0
From: Brandenburg, KY
Lucky you!
I would say this is definitely not the norm. Most people don't see much change in mileage with a lift. What will change it is an increase in unsprung weight, like bigger tires, but not really that noticeable when you do the math. When you go higher, you didn't change anything because your Jeep is about un-aerodynamic as it gets to begin with.
You mentioned you have less rolling resistance now, and that will help your mileage.
Lucky you! Keep putting on those mods and your Jeep will be sippin' the gas with it's pinky out!
You mentioned you have less rolling resistance now, and that will help your mileage.
Lucky you! Keep putting on those mods and your Jeep will be sippin' the gas with it's pinky out!
JK Super Freak
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 1,595
Likes: 0
From: The Badlands (near Lafayette, IN)
Getting more air under your Jeep does not help MPG. I lost MPG when I lifted, which is what normally happens when lifting.
The new suspension components corrected an alignment problem that was holding you back.
The new suspension components corrected an alignment problem that was holding you back.
