Aerodynamics vs. Appearance

Im not a mechanic type person etc. but I will say the truck you need is the one that gets the job done the best and will last.

 

It's not about looks. It's about making money.
There are some nose cones that work pretty good. Some even help with a truck roof fairing.

 

How much mpg do you hope to gain? With your somewhat limited mileage I'd think the ROI on all the aero stuff would be tough to get back. Now if you had 200 trucks and gained .05 mpg across the board that would be big.

That's a very efficient looking setup you have there.
I don't know but a nose cone would probably help a lot. If you do any significant empty miles perhaps a lift axle on the trailer. These two upgrades should help whatever truck you have, imo.

 

Honestly with such limited mileage, and so much around town driving, I don't think aerodynamics will play a big part (if any) on your MPG's....I'd be more concerned about getting the spec's of the truck right.....

 

Wont be no ROI based on the mileage he runs.. The truck isn't even getting hot at 300 miles. I'd be more worried about the DPF clogging prematurely .( from a maint. stand point )

Like the lift axle idea, lets go one further and tag axle the mule. Be about all your going to get imo.

 

One other tip, shut it off at every stop or high idle it on the short ones. If not a leased truck then change service interval to severe also. Get equalizers for the rubber and boost to 105.

JMO

 

Fuel mileage according to aerodynamics should only be a concern if you are running all your miles on the highway at 55 mph or more (55 tends to be average speed for most modern trucks with limiters and such).

If looks are that big of a concern for you, buy a used truck (Pre-2007 Pete 379 would be my personally (biased) recommendation), rebuild the motor (go with a CAT or Detroit 12.7 litre) and run it into the ground and repeat. If you are doing a combination of local and highway miles, aerodynamics won't play as big into fuel consumption.

That, and most people who run those older CAT and Detroit motors, and are good drivers, report numbers as high as 7 mpg on-highway performance. What all this new technology is really for is making money off of manufacturers and companies by enforcing all these new regulations. Not actually saving fuel.

And if you think the 579 looks ugly, you probably just haven't seen any good looking ones yet: