Well, I'm getting to know her pretty well by now and it's a mixed bag. I'm still in New York with 2 more weeks to go on this trip. Total so far 2700 miles on the trip, about 7000 total on the truck. Probably 1700 or so towing the 5er which weighs 16,500 lbs, give or take a full or empty water tank. Truck tows wonderfully and the Tow Haul is great, more than great in the mountains. I love it when I can hit the brake and down shift rather than all the stuff I had to do on the 7.3 to get some back pressure. Everything on the truck seems to be working as designed. And, it tows so well that I could never go back to my old truck. But, the fuel mileage stinks, period. No use sugar coating it, she just drinks it. On a level interstate pull I can hold about 58 MPH and squeeze maybe 9.5mpg, that's it. On secondary roads, in the mountains or towing across Brooklyn (it's a long story but I had to do that on Atlantic Ave) I was down around 8 mpg. I'm sure I pay some price for having the 4.30 but this is worse than I expected. When I drop the trailer I'm like everyone else 12-13. Have not had a good highway run without the trailer. Bottom line: I love the truck for towing so I'm gonna get a bigger fuel tank and not watch the lieometer. I can afford the extra fuel but if you are considering this truck just be ready to increase your fuel budget. Hope this helps someone.

 

Thanks for the report. I am roughly in the same boat(truck) as you. I also have the 4.30 RE. I absolutely love the truck for towing, comfort, handling and reliability.

I tow about 17,000lbs with her on a regular basis and I get about 9.4mpg's at 70 mpg. The mileage doesn't improve much unless I go to 60mph(this puts the turbo PSI under 200). I have a hard time doing that so I guess I will have to live with the crappy mpg's.

 

Cool post. I can't imagine driving any other truck than mine either. I think the 250 through the 450 are all pretty consistent and everybody agrees that they tow trailers better than expected.

The fuel mileage thing is fun to talk about and try to analyze to see if there are any opportunities for improvement. In the end, I agree with you 100%. She just gets real thirsty and there is no way around it. The guys running tuners get slightly better numbers but I don't see anything very significant, especially on the tow tunes.

My Visa card runs hot when I'm on the road, I'm set to log 1,000 miles next week, towing an 18' work trailer.

 

great report! I got 9.48 on my recent trip running 70 is that is right in there.

 

Just got back from a trip to Mason City IA. Total miles 3777 pulling a 9600lb 5ver. My truck is a 08 250, 3:73. Met with some friends pulling a 5ver from Florida weighing 16,500. His was a 08 350 DW 4:10. We shared info about the trip and discovered we pretty much had the same fuel mileage both driving about the same speed, 70 to 75 mph, 9.7 by the LOM. It seems that the weight is not a big factor, it's the speed that will determined the MPG.

 

I have noticed the same thing. When I pull my 10,000lb trailer I only get about 1 to 1.5 mpg better than my 17,000lb load at the same speeds.

 

Just be glad you don't have the 4.88's like me! Man I love that low end torque but unloaded I am getting around 8-9mpg. Ouch.

 

I just got back from a 7k mile trip...vegas to maine and back....

love the power and the truck....but towing a 38' 5ver at highway speeds bout 13k....avg 5-7 mpg...

ouch...

 

Ouch indeed, man its such a great motor, I wish it got better mileage.

 

Must be the big tires, huh? That's lower MPG than any others I've heard from. Mines a Job 1 also so unless your idea of "highway speed" is 75MPH there shouldn't be that much difference. I tow on the interstate at 60 and get 9.5. That's been pretty consistant. When I get into mountains and secondary roads it goes down considerbly.

 

Some 5ver don't have very aerodynamic caps on the front.

 

Just got back from a 4000 mile trip from PA to WY and back. First time pulling a new 40' toyhauler weighing ~16,000-17,000 lbs with my 08 F450 CC PSD with 4.88 rear. The ride out got between 6-7 mpg and a little better coming back at 8 mpg. I guess not too bad considering the rear and the weight, but had to stop every 200-250 miles to refill. The truck was unstoppable pulling the 5ver over a 12,000 ft pass in Colorado and the tow/haul was a lifesaver and brake saver coming back down the other side.

 

I agree with everybody on the lack of fuel efficiency and share your pain. When I read a post like PabloPicasso's, I remember - Lots of power/torque = low mileage.

These things tow so great, I guess the payoff is that they burn lots of fuel. I know it's the emissions stuff but the power also comes from good ol' drinking fuel.

 

Yeah, when I get home I'm ordering a 64 gallon tank from Aero Tank. I had a 55 on my last truck and it makes a big difference. I only refuled with the trailer off and could shop price a little. Right now, when I get on the interstate I can see as far as I can go without refueling. LOL Aero tank has a 55 and I think a 64 that bolt on in place of the OE. Hooks up with the stock sender and the guages still work.

 

Just a tip here for those that are keeping up with this tread. I have a GPS and I input all the truck stops so that it notifies me as we are traveling. I have found that is about the only places that consistantly have ULSD fuel.