thanks for quoting the original post.......

 

hey did you guys know that internal combustion engines (ice) are only about 30 percent efficient? That means that 70% of your fuel keeps the motor turning over, while 30% drives you down the road. weird to think about.

Did anyone know that ford has a bulletin on "customer expected fuel mileage vs actual" or something to that sort... it covers a BUNCH of ford and mercury vehicles. they basically tell you that you arent going to get what the sticker says you will.

Maybe its not the trucks fault, maybe gas just sucks now? In the "old days" couldnt you leave the same gas in your snowblower/lawnmower in the off season, and it would fire right up the next year? it doesnt work so well anymore does it?!

Another thing is that while MPG ratings have not gone up, hardly at all, in the last 10 years, HP ratings have gone through the roof. The old timers out there probably know about V8's that put out 150HP back in the day. Did you know that in the 70's HP ratings changed too? SO if you are wondering how that BOSS Mustang 428 has over 400 HP, well it doesnt..... in todays terms. Your driveline alone subtracts about 30% of your horsepower, to compare, subtract 30% from the old cars, or add 30% to your car. That changes my trucks HP from 205 to 267 HP. Convenient huh?

Now maybe we can talk about improving mileage, or should we say efficiency? Ford makes these trucks to spec so that you can drive it forever and hopefully they will never have to replace anything under warranty, so it will go for a while without making ford mad(its the same for all brands). So if we want to break those specs, here would be my list:
-Complete intake-pipe, filter, including all sensors.
-Exhaust system, the intake gets the air in quicker, exhaust gets it out faster, or a muffler if you are cheap will help too.
-Supercharger or turbocharger, but I hope you like premium fuel, cuz now your truck does.
-High compression heads, once again premium fuel.
-Big lobe cams- get those valves moving!
-performance tune on the PCM?
-MSD ignition system, more powerful spark, bigger explosion in the combustion chamber.
-fuel injectors to dump more fuel, literally dump.
-tonneau cover for aerodynamics
-electric cooling fans- crank driven fans take a small ammt of HP, be picky if you choose.
-bore out the cylinders, pretty much an r and r motor job there huh.
-remove AC compressor/bypass it, drags while running, extra pulley while off.
-lighter rims and tires, get them spinning quicker.
in the process we have pretty much thrown any emissions compatability out the window, if anyone was wondering.


my top for efficiency alone, which means cost effective too: intake, muffler, tonneau cover. An MSD ignition set is pretty expensive for a relatively small gain. Oh and non oxygenated fuel too if you can find it anymore. 5w30 oil too for best mileage, its thinner.

 

lol

ditto. i can see where the wording should have been better in his original post. i also saw the "go buy a rice burner" attitude that really p***es me off, so that's the route i took


nice points thehawk.

btw, i get roughly 12/14 with an alltime high of close to 15 driving low-er speeds highway. just thought i would point that out too (usually I'm at 12-ish or a little lower depending due to mostly city driving). So, 16 is not that unrealistic to back up others responses.

 

I forgot to mention, i get about 15 MPG with my 4.2 2WD no matter what, city or highway, it doesnt seem to matter. oh, 5spd as well.

 

im getting about anywhere from 13-15.5 now. still only a 1-2mpg increase after everything i've done. I hardly do any city driving. but most my driving is on really hilly back roads with all the real hard curves going up hill ( so it seems ). I get about .5-1mpg gains if i use 93 over 87 octane. oh by the way i have a k&n intake, gibson cat back exhaust, tuner chip, changed the plugs about 2,000 miles ago. And i just cleaned or replaced the egr, pcv, and maf sensors.

 

Hi, y'all! About 2 weeks ago, I finally got my F150. Picked up a 2000 Lariat 4x4 with leather and most of the goodies along with a Pendaliner. Has the 5.4 and 78K+. Took a 300 mile trip to pick up my dad down in Puyallup(I live on Whidbey Island) and got what I figured I'd git, 18mpg. That is road, 50-70 mph. Majority at 65-70. I drive with a feather foot and believe that is probably just about the most I can expect from this stock truck. Gonna put a flow thru muffler on it in next couple of weeks. Otherwise, it is gonna stay stock. FYI, I traded in an 87 Ranger 4x4, 2.9 V6 with 194K that was still in excellent condition for its year. When I first got my Ranger from my dad, the only mods I made were a Jacobs ignition and wires. I got an honest 1.5 mpg jump and better performance just from that mod, alone. I also realized that the 235 tires that came with it made that V6 a dog. Looked good, tho! I went back to the original size 205's when I had to replace the tires and performance made big leaps. There is a reason Ford ran 205's on that truck! Anywho, gonna keep the F150 stock (cept the muff) and will let y'all know what the new muff performs like after a spell. Good thread. Jim

PS: It's a S/C with towing option.

 

i rechecked mine since u posted this andi get 15-16 on regular gas, and about one more mile better for each of the higher octane gases. I also just put on the turbonator and that gave me another 1-2 miles per gallon

 

Same here on highway mileage - only thing, its not completely stock. I do have a K&N filter replacement and 2 1/4" exh.

 

I have a Edge Moniter on my truck and it displays my average and Instant MPG if i want. When I check it and check my MPG manually there within a couple 10ths normally. I get about 13-15 depending on the wind going 70mph down the interstate. 17-19 goin 55 down the high way. Ive noticed that any wind at all really affects these trucks. Probably due to the lack of torque. Also for those of us that use cruise control are greatly affected by our trucks automatic down shift on hills. These trucks are very happy to drop a gear while going up a hill to maintain speed instead of droping 1 or 2 mph or even holding the gear and more throttle. If you kick your cruise off on hills and be gentle you will see some gains in your mpg. This is more of a problem with the 4.6 l than the 5.4. Just depends on how big the hills are.

 

Also... thehawk789 is a bit wrong with his previous statement... hes probably right about the ICE is only about 30% efficiant at best, but the other 70% is lost in the form of heat and unburnt gas's. That 30% is the converted fuel( and it turns your motor, that turns your wheels). Now there is a theroetical idea called the Carrnot engine. And its some 90 percent efficiant but i dont think there is any way to make one. Im not completely sure how it works anymore. My physics class's were a couple of semesters ago. But i just wanted to clairify that the information wasnt completely right.

 

yeah its too good to be true, thats why no one has built one. But still, 30 percent efficient, take it how ever you want.