That idler pulley will really cause a drag on your engine too...its a wonder
you have not eaten a belt already. That's an easy fix.
Rascal
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net
[mailto:owner-dakota-truck@bent.twistedbits.net] On Behalf Of Bill Pitz
Sent: Tuesday, November 08, 2005 8:46 PM
To: dakota-truck-moderator@bent.twistedbits.net
Subject: Re: DML: Front Control Arms
JameyWelch@freightliner.com wrote:
> I have been experiencing very poor MPG recently and I get about 270-280
> miles out of a 22 gallon tank which averages out to a little over 12 miles
> per gallon. I have 4 worn out ball joints, tires that are worn from
driving
> on these worn out seals, and a truck that cannot be aligned due to the
ball
> joints being worn out. I have a K&N filtercharger and Flowmaster exhaust
> and I cannot understand this poor mileage. I found out that I had a mil
> light come on due to a blown fuse in my purge solenoid, I fixed that and
> nothing has improved. It has only been about 10,000 miles since I changed
> the spark plugs and I run Mobil 1 synthetic oil with Lucas Oil additive.
> What should I do and what can I do to improve this poor fuel economy.
Also,
> I was told by the stealership that I had a air intake gasket blown, a
> leaking water pump, and a seized idler pulley. The water pump doesn't
look
> to be leaking and the temperature is staying around 195, the engine
doesn't
> use a lot of oil so I don't know about the air intake gasket, and I am not
> hearing a squealing noise so I don't think the pulley is seized. Please
> help me with all of these questions guys. Thanks for your time!
Are you throwing any codes right now?
If your truck is out of alignment, it can be hell for your mileage.
Poor alignment can also lead to uneven tire wear, which can also serve
to further deteriorate mileage.
First things first, I'd get those ball joints replaced and then get the
truck aligned. That alone ought to make a difference. Once you've got
that ruled out, it should be easier to start isolating what other
problem(s) you might have.
How much oil are you losing? Does it leak at all?
For the sake of completeness, I'd also send an oil sample to Blackstone
when you change the oil next time to be sure there isn't anything nasty
(like coolant, lots of metal, etc.) in your oil.
Anyway, start with the ball joints and the alignment -- that's most
definitely contributing at least slightly to your mileage problem.
There are countless other things that *could* be the problem, but we're
just speculating until you solve something that *is* part of the problem.
-Bill
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