I blame it on you guys. If it weren't for the members of this forum I would've never discovered the Ford V10 in an SD. But thanks to you (all of you) I got on a plane Friday at 6:00 AM bound for Salt Lake city. On the first leg I sat to a nice lady who evidently loved two things: flying and talking about flying. I hoped to get a nap in, but instead had to act interested for 2 hrs. I changed planes in Los Angeles and while talking to another guy waiting to board, got to meet none other than Cheech Marin of Cheech and Chong. He was polite, very quiet, and shorter than I thought. His body guard was much larger.
I landed in SLC, rented a Hyuinda...Hundayi...Hunydoo...I rented a small black car and drove north to Logan, Utah which is about an hour and a half if you care about laws and the car you're driving. I made it in 70 minutes and arrived at the car lot about 3:00 and saw my new ride sitting in front of the office ready to go. I talked to Josh the sales guy that I had spoken with over the past week and found him to be a typical car salesman. He knew nothing about cars or trucks, thought he knew everything and dressed like a '70's porn star. For the past week I had dreaded going this far to buy a truck, I know everyone here says the V10 Super Duty is a great truck, but the owners on one of the truck evaluation sites are MUCH less flattering. They raked the V10 over the coals, from end to end. Not even one happy owner, how could that be if the truck were any good at all? Anyway, the moment of truth arrived and I took it for a short drive up the street. I noticed two things right off, the tank was nearly empty and the mileage computer thingie on the roof read "AVG MPG- 10.1" Seriously? What have I gotten into? I stopped in an empty lot and got on me knees looking for evidence of past damage, either from off-roading, crashes or modifications and found none. The only bug-a-boo was the fact that the tires rubbed on the brake lines at full lock, something I need to fix. But it looked great, drove well and was what I came for, so about 30 minutes later I was out the door, keys in hand and headed for the west coast.
The car lot had filled up the tank while I was signing stuff, and the salesman showed me how to reset the gas thingie but as I headed out of town, my eyes locked more on the meter than the windsheild, it held at 3.4mpg. Sweet. Later I learned that since nearly all of my time in that town was spent at stoplights, idling, or waiting to get across main street, the meter reads fuel comsumption but not miles traveled, which evidently is bad for mileage. But once out of town, it steadily climbed and so did my mood. Once it crossed 12mpg, I knew I could afford it on a daily basis, and when it crossed 14 mpg, I thought I would cry tears of joy. At 15 mpg I think I got a chubby, if you know what I mean.
I always thought being a long haul trucker might me kind of a cool job, open road, freedom nice view out the windsheild, meeting new people. I don't think that anymore. I brought a book on CD to pass the time, but it was failing since I couldn't keep my mind in the story and as such I was just getting pieces of the story. Later, I finally gave up on finding out who killed who and bought a CD of Kiss'-greatest hits at a Wal Mart and found the factory music system to be outstanding.
My one sleep stop came in Winnemucca, Nevada at 11:30 pm on Friday. I got a room and asked for a 4:30 AM wakeup call and went to sleep. I got up, showered and was back in the truck by 5:00 am. as I was trying to figure out the aftermarket GPS that I'd brought with me using the map lights when the local law stopped and stared at me. I not only couldn't get the GPS programmed, but I couldn't find the E-brake release or the dome lights, so I had to open the door to find anything. I could read the lawman's mind: "it's 5:00 am, this guy's wandering around in a truck he evidently knows nothing about with only the map light on, he's a crook". But once I started it and drove off, they lost interest.
It was still very dark and very cold when I discovered that the controls for the power sunroof were a bit too close to the map lights for my taste. At 70 mph on a 30-something degree morning, I reached for the map light button to find my cough drops (did I mention I had a bad head cold?) when to my surprise the sunroof opened. Not only did it shock me, but I couldn't get it to close right because if you push the button forward, it closes the sunroof, but props up the back to allow fresh air in on sunny June days. But this was a freezing October morning and I had quite a juggling act going trying to find that happy medium between open and shut. Finding a truck with a sunroof was my wife's idea. I hate sunroofs and now you know why.
As the sun came up, it was clear and beautiful and I rolled past Reno, but stopped in Boomtown to buy a lovely breakfast of Mountain Dew and beef jerky. I also filled up the truck with gas and headed across the lot to Cabela's to buy some of those floor mats that have the raised edges since the trucks interior looks brand-new and I'd like to keep it that way. It was some big sale day at Cabela's and I got a free t-shirt and hat since I was one of the first 100 through the door that day. Since it was 8:15 in the morning, I think I was one of the first two, but I thanked them, got my mats and left. Since it was a beautiful morning and they have a neat statue out front, I parked my truck near it and snapped a picture. The SD's paint just glowed in the rising sun.
Heading up Donner Pass I was very happy with the V10's power. The engine doesn't labor like the 350 in my Suburban. It's not a torque-monster like my Dad's Dodge with the 6.7 Cummins but once past 2500, it rips out the power. Contrary to urban legends, it also gets stunning mileage for a big truck with a gas motor. In fact on the run between Boomtown and Yuba City, Ca it got 16.7 mpg. I was so thrilled I got out my camera and took a picture. I fully plan on showing it off to my buddy with the Duramax who told me the V10 was a crappy motor and I'd be lucky to get 10mpg. I went from Boomtown, Nevada to Willits, California, which is all the way across the state on 14 gallons of gas, which worked out to be a 15.4 avg. Not too shabby at all.
Once I got on Hwy 101 and headed for home, I let the V10 run a little and discovered that if you are rough with the throttle, it will indeed go through gas faster than a crack ***** goes through money. But it was fun while it lasted. I settled back down and went the rest of the way home, where I promised my 9 year old son I'd make it back in time to take him trick-or-treating in the truck. He and my wife were thrilled with the truck, but they announced that the bed cap I hate so much had to stay. I kinda like it now anyway, and it'll make the license fees less, so fo now it stays.
All in all, I could not be happier with the truck. Thanks to everyone here who answered my questions and posted information I finally have exactly what I wanted, for better or worse. Thanks guys and sorry for the long post, but it was a long drive...
I know you are happy with the MPG you seem to get, but if you actually check that with hand calculation, you might be surprised. It is a nice truck all in all though, someone I know has one.
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Brian
1999 Ford Expy 5.4L
Pioneer 4-way speakers, Ignition Ding turned off, Rubberized undercoating in process
HOLY CRAP YOU"RE RIGHT!!! I just calculated it using a calculator, and I traveled 242.2 miles from my fill-up in Boomtown (as per my trip meter reading) and divided it by the 14.88 gallons I bought (according to my reciept from the Willits station and I actually got 16.27 mpg instead of the 15.4mpg the computer said!!! It just keeps getting better by the minute...
Very nice looking rig- I really like the cap too- keep it. Needs the tow mirrors though. Great writeup, sounds like a fun trip overall, just a bit tiring by yourself.
Glad to hear your really impressed with your truck. The V10 in a CC Superduty really is a great package. If I were to buy a newer truck it would be another V10. The cap doesn't look to bad at all on there.
Thanks a bunch guys, if not for other V10 owners I would never have bought it. Like everyone else, my initial thought was "I'll bet it's a gas hog like the 460". As for particulars, it's an '04 Lariat. It has some neat stuff like the sunroof as well as some toys that are a bit less essential, but lots of fun like the adjustable pedals and heated seats. As for the cap, it looks like it's a keeper. I won't have to tie stuff down to keep it from blowing out, our dogs won't have to be tied in, I can still haul hay for the wife's horse and it (supposedly) helps mileage, so aside from me liking the look without better, there really isn't a drawback.
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01 F-250 XLT CC LB V-10 4x4
