AM radio noise and static

From : art harrington

Q: i get 18mpg city and 21 to 22 mpg on highway using the cruise. have a 96 dakota xtra cab slt 98047 miles with 3.9 v6. bought it used with 48000 miles in 2001. change oil every 3-4000 miles use only synthetic mobil1 10w30 change the pcv & air filter at same time. when i bought it i changed the oil and added a quart of synthetic treatment i think it was called one-lube or something comes in an orange & blue box and be bought at auto zone & wal-mart. next oil change i added synthetic oil treatment for engines at 50000 miles. i also put in a gel treatment in the auto-transmission to smooth shifting can only add once in a lifetime to a tranny found it at auto zone but havent seen it on shelf lately. at about 51000 miles the mpg finally reached 22 mpg on highway was getting 15city/17hwy when bought it. i put valvoline fuel injector cleaner synthetic in fuel tank twice a year. i run bridgestone duelers h/l 225-70r15s on the wheels. once a year or so i take the breather off the throttle body/intake with engine running and spray gumout to clean the butterfly and upper area where breather sits have to be careful not to overspray on hot exhaust or u will see flames. truck still starts and runs good although i need to replace the starter it has developed a dead spot that requires several key turns to get past for starter to turnover. i bought a used 96 dakota club cab 3.9 v6 with automatic nearly a year ago. the truck itself is close to being a cherry but the gas mileage sucks. the plug wires and dist cap appear to have been new when i bought the truck. when pulled the plugs also looked new. the cat rattled so i had it replaced. i put in new thermostat just in case. the air filter has been changed. the tires are properly inflated. the rear end gears are 3.5. i use 10w-30 oil. there are no trouble codes registering. the truck runs just fine even with 97000 miles on it. however the gas milage sucks. even though no codes were registering i took an uneducated guess and changed out the after-cat oxygen sensor. i drive it with a very light foot. before replacing the oxy sensor i was getting 12 to 12.5 mpg city. now after a new sensor i am getting 14-14.5 city. is this the best i can expect from this truck. what are others getting as city mileage with a simliar dakota. what cost effective measure can i take to try to up the mileage oldtimer .