Is this normal?

The only mods to my 10JK has been a 2" lift and my gas mileage that used to be roughly 17 around the city has dropped to 15.5 on average. Did the lift cause this? And if so is there anything I should be worried about?

Could it be the change in temp? Bought it July last year when it was warm, lifter it late Fall. Its getting warmer but no noticeable change.

Also, I've heard removing the floppy plastic rock/road debris guard atached to the underside of the front bumper was supposed to aid in better gas mileage. Wrong or right? thanks

 

A lift won't affect your mileage unless you added tires with the lift. Re-install the air dam (floppy plastic rock/road debris guard). That more than likely contributed to your reduced mpg.

 

The air dam was removed after i saw a reduction in mpg. I've seen steel air damn replacements but i believe those are for aftermarket bumpers. I hate rattling and as loose as that plastic one was, I'd prefer it gone. Anybody know of the steel ones that bolt up to the stock bumper/body?

 

Wow 17mpg. I'm only getting 14.5 on bone stock. I only have 3200 miles on it but would love the extra 3mpg.

 

I also seen a 1 MPG drop after I installed a 2.5 lift

 

Hi! It is normal and it seems around 15mpg's average is the going rate. Anytime you lift and remove the plastic air dam you're allowing for more wind resistance, therefore what you're seeing is normal. Add some larger tires, and it will even get worse, unless of course you regear your rig, then you can get those mpg's somewhere closer to what you're normally seeing.

 

The increased height equates to increased wind resistance. The air flow under the jeep is not as smooth as that above the jeep. I would expect minimal change in city driving gas mileage, but noticeable change in highway gas mileage.

I try to not keep track of mileage to prevent myself from becoming so depressed that I might end up buying a Prius.

 

This. Keep your eyes on the road, not on your fuel economy display

 

With a quartering tailwind of about 10mph I got 20.6 mpg on the exway for about 60 miles today!!! Thats with the 2" lift and w/o the air dam. Maybe it was all in my head

 

or it could be wind direction. The rolling brick can be seriously affected by the wind. No aerodynamics result in dragging like a parachute into a headwind and rocking like a rowboat in crosswinds.