Quote: In their readership survey of Durango owners about a dozen or more years ago, Popular Mechanics magazine reported that the owners wrote that the 360 apparently got 0.75 MPG less than the 318
It is so much easier to get MPG increases with low rolling resistance tires, And simple aerodynamic improvements That those two areas should not be overlooked.
Improving innate engine efficiency is hard... But getting to a better area of the "island" of best efficiency on the BSFC graph Is mostly about using a numerically lower differential ratio, And perhaps selecting a camshaft to match the rpm range of whatever diff ratio you go with.
Thats interesting... and i suspected as much. However... i think the MPG difference would be a bit greater in a much lighter vehicle with optimized gearing. Heavy vehicles/drivetrain and small engines is a good combo for crappy mileage.
