That's better than mine used to get.. Mine used to get 14mpg... That's it.. 14.. Never got better. That was a regular cab, shorty, 4x4, 300/5 speed/3.55's. My donor truck got 19 mpg with the 302 in it, but it was driven by my grandfather, so the go pedal didn't go very far. I wouldn't count that as a good comparison. LOL

 

hmm.. well like it has been mentioned there is no way this debate or discussion can or will be settled..both are great engines..how ever i love the 300 more than the 302 in a truck...but it depends on personal preference.. the best mileage i have seen or recorded in a 5.0 truck is 17mpgs..in my 92 flarside i had i would consitantly get 23 mpgs on the highway...

to each his own....me its a 300 in a "work" truck..

 

All I know is I think the 351W is better suited than either for a truck.

 

i would agree with that statement texasguy..

how ever i do like the fuel mileage out of the 300 more lol

 

I get 12 in town and 16-17 highway.

In my 87 F150 with the 4.9/auto, single cab, 2wd longbed I got about the same, maybe 13 in town which I could get now if I drove like I had any sense. Now I have a F250, SC Longbed 4wd with the 351/auto.

 

I would suspect that any gasser with 190K miles would tend to be a little tired.


It would seem to me that a 4.9 with a 3.08 is not geared properly, so it should be geared properly as is being suggested for those who doubt the 302.

I own a 4.9 and I agree that it has its drawbacks. I still love it though. The 300 is simply not made to turn the same RPMs as a V8, so it will have a completely different powerband. If other folks don't like that, then they don't have to get one. It'll leave more of them for those of us who like them.

Deal?

 

Im just curious how come the trucks with a 4.9 always got taller gearing every 302 I ever seen had 3.55

 

It's not tired. The 300 has no problem going 250-300k miles most of the time. Plus, my 302 had 203k miles when I rebuilt it. The 302 ran better IMO and it still had great cross hatching in the cylinders. The 300 should wear better being a straight 6. So I'd say the one I drove isn't too tired.. I feel like 3.08s are alright for the 300 being that it keeps them at LOW rpms where their power band is. That's just me. 3.55's would be better and we will be swapping that truck to 3.55's in the near future.

My truck had 3.55's with the 4.9L. It wasn't much better than the one I drove last weekend with 3.08's. I've also seen quite a few 302s with 3.08s too. They were just mixed and matched.

 

I love my EFI 300 for its reliability, low end power band, and ease of maintenance. With 3.08s I'm able to cruise at a good clip on the highway but the Mazda 1st and reverse suck. My old 94 had 3.55s and it was good but really didn't move any faster than my current truck and it didn't have the long legs on the highway.
I have had several 302s in carb and EFI mostly in cars. My 83 F150 had the 302 2v AOD and 3.55s. I did adapt a Quadrajet for it and it had 218k on it when retired. It did not have the low end torque of the 300 or 351 but it hauled a 4500 lb trailer OK and it had no trouble with 305s or 318s that challenged it at stoplights.
I never had any trouble getting power out of the 289/302 and considered it one of Fords better ideas.
302 or 300 ?
Blonds or Brunettes ?
I'll take both
regards
rikard

 

Wow! Yeah mines identical; single cab 4x4, 6ft box. It's only got 119k mi on her though and she just had a fresh tuneup.

I don't really drive it hard either on a daily basis. Usually shift @ 2k.

 

Yeah, we changed the cap/rotor, plugs, wires, coil, etc. Basically did a good tune up on mine to see if mileage would come up... It didn't. LOL. Maybe it's the hills around here or something. It was always floored trying to get up hills. Sometimes I'd have to downshift to 3rd gear to get up them. haha

 

i think what most ppl are over looking is the relability of the 300, the majority of them run 250k to 300k with no major problems. yeah you may have a 302 last that long every once in a blue moon but not very likely....i ve seen alot more 302's blow up than 300's and i want my truck motor to do work thats why i bought a truck if i wanted a bunch of horsepower i would of bought a dam supersnake mustang lol... bottom line 300= great worker, problem free motor

 

Ah haha yeah that may be why. I've never had to floor it up a hill. I can usually make it up pretty steep ones in 3rd or 4th at part throttle, even maintaining 55-60 or just barely accelerating up some of the larger ones. Odd too, because I live in a generally hilly area too - I'm in a valley.

 

The 4.9 generally got taller numerically lower gears to keep the RPMs down.

Not every 302 got 3.55 gears. Many got 3.08 and 3.30. They were mix and matched like Stash said. I have no idea why Ford did that though.

In my opinion Ford should have never put anything worse than 3.55 in a 302 truck. Mine has 3.55 now and it is ok and would be better if I had stock tires instead of the 31s.

 

I also see it like this. You guys know how 2 trucks can be identicle with all the same specs but one runs better from day one? Well if someone gets the better running I6 and really likes it thats great. Maybe someone else gets the other truck and never much cares for it.