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Small diesel truck - at last
Couple O'points
1) It usually does not pay to be a technology adopter on the front end of the curve, the version 2.2 is ALWAYS better. So hang around until small diesel engine trucks are routinely available. Talk to the iPhone folks about this, those who waited a year got a much better deal.
2) Off road diesel is duty free but not profit free, I have frequently found the price of off-road diesel at my agric co-op to be higher than that I could buy at the Speedway, in fact I no longer bother with the red stuff.
3) The notion that the backyard mechanic can on average do a better job of supplying fuel economy to a vehicle vs the original manufacturer is bogus, the vehicle market is fiercely competitive on fuel economy and manufacturers know that is one area they will be judged heavily on. They make their vehicles as fuel efficient as possible given the other competing factors the vehicle is judged upon (like acceleration for instance).
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Small diesel truck - at last
Ann, as usual, has made some excellent points.
One I would like to clarify though. It doesn't matter where you buy your diesel fuel, if it's not used on the road in a licensed vehicle it's road tax-free, period.
Keep your receipts and send them in to your State Revenue people (usually accompanied by a form from them) and they'll send you a refund cheque.
Best of luck.
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Small diesel truck - at last
KT, I set the cruise control for 62mph and it stays there nearly the entire trip. Going to work at 4AM has the advantage of empty roads 
Frank, it's hard to compare cost per mile when you don't have the option to compare straight gasoline vs. E10. All I know are gas prices are high and won't go much lower, mileage is low and isn't getting higher, and another 3-4 mpg would be nice. Today's ECUs can only do so much - they can't add more BTUs to the fuel and they have to maintain the optimum air-fuel ratio to ensure complete combustion with minimum emissions. It could be that optimum mileage is a lower priority for the programmer than low emissions or maximum power. It's all a compromise.
Ann, you bring up good points. To be an early adopter the truck would have to be beta or rev 1.0 but supposedly it's been available in other countries for a few years now. That said, it makes good sense to delay a purchase until some reviews of the US version come in and they get something of a dealer network going first.
Regarding mileage, generally I agree that the backyard mechanic cannot do better than the factory all things being equal. But since diesels are ~30% more efficient *and* there is no small diesel pickup available in the states it seems quite possible that a backyard mechanic could do better given time and money. Not that it would be cost effective. The easiest way to increase mileage would be to reduce weight. Who needs those pesky passenger seats anyway?
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Small diesel truck - at last
Ken, two more questions if you don't mind: are you running synthetic oil and maybe even in your differentials? Also what about your tires? Some of those off road tires have to get worse mileage both tread wear wise and mileage wise than car tires.
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Small diesel truck - at last
I'm running synthetic in the engine, dino in the diff. The tires are LT highway rib, not really off road.
The drop in mileage correlates directly to the date when Mobil started selling E10 in Oregon. I keep a mileage log and the date the mileage dropped 3mpg was after the first fill on E10. I always buy Mobil and I emailed them to confirm the date of conversion.
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Small diesel truck - at last
Ken, is not Mobil and Exxon the same company today? I think I mentioned this earlier but for years I have used Exxon off and on and at times for weeks on end but it those years it never gave me as good of mileage as did some other brands even the no name ones. No idea why. I first noticed in with a 94 or so Dodge Dakota as it developed valve rattle and solved it with change of brand of gas. My father in law had same pickup and bought Exxon from same station and had same results. Just because of convenience my wife and I still will buy from there once in a while and if we run about two tanks we still notice a difference. Now it is Toyotas. When my wife had her Maxima don't think we noticed any issue with it but then it used premium.
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Small diesel truck - at last
Talk about senior moments, I meant Chevron not Mobil. I couldn't tell you where a Mobil station is around here.
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Small diesel truck - at last
Kenny as far as drag on a pickup bed, I've read a few engineering studies on leaving the tailgate up. It actually decreases drag and increases mileage. I forget how covering the bed fares.
Those Chinese 4x4 "trucks"--I rode in one. They're fine if you like to be VERY close to your passenger, like a very spartan interior, like road and engine noise and a bumpy ride. And being a cab-over I just don't feel safe. And they're not that cheap--$5-10K. They sure get looks though being a right-hand drive. I used to put my hands behind my head while my buddy drove.  Look ma', no hands!
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Small diesel truck - at last
EW, I use to make a mostly open road round trip of about 250 miles. I got a little better mileage with tailgate down. The wind still whips some around the cab in the bed as pine straw will pile up behined the cab if memory is correct. This with short bed pickups. When I had a long wheel base it did get noticable better mileage with tailgate down. But the fiberglass or such tops level with the bed are suppose to give you something like 2 to 4 mpg as it cuts out the wind in the bed.
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Annnnd, it was uphill both ways too I'll bet
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