Quote:
Originally Posted by Scubawise
If we travel less with our 2 golden retrieves (130 pounds)
Will we save 1 mpg?
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Not sure about your comment/question.
My response to RSKDSK’s comment did not imply most of the fuel savings will come from weight savings. There are two separate issues, and while related, shouldn’t be taken as one.
When Mercedes Benz switches from a V6 to I4 diesel, most of the fuel savings should come from the smaller engine being more efficient at lower power loads. For example, at idle, a 2L engine burns much less fuel than a 3L, everything else being equal.
I expect a 2L I4 will also weigh less which will lead to greater cargo payload, and to a much lesser degree additional fuel economy due to lower weight. Again, most MPG improvement should be due to thermal efficiency, not weight.
In your case, eliminating two dogs weighing 130 pounds will make very little MPG difference in fuel economy, particularly on the highway. It’s negligible. However, if you were to save 130 pounds by swapping the 6.8L V10 with a 5.0L V8, I expect an additional 1 MPG should be possible when driven at slower speeds; like 60 MPH or slower.
Likewise, I expect smaller Sprinter vans will be significantly more fuel efficient with smaller Diesel engine, particularly when driven easy, but I’m not as sure about improvements on large Sprinter Class Cs where the engine has to work a lot harder. We will have to wait and see.