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My 2000 F350 7.3 with 373 gears, gets 14.5-16 on the road. Round town, about 11.5 to 12. Slightly larger than standard Hankook tires. Unknown injectors. Has oil crossover 164K on clock. New to me Garrett 38R. Looking forward to checking the EBP sensor & tube to see what that might do.
It seems to be partially luck of the draw. You can get your truck to as close to 100% as possible but each 7.3L is going to have different results. I've read of some guys that never get more than 12mpg overall out of their truck. I've also read the other side where guys are pushing 18mpg overall. I bought my truck and it was getting about 16mpg overall with 150K on the odometer. Over the years I got (a little) bigger tires and sprung plenty of leaks. At my worst I was getting about 12mpg overall. Now that I've invested the price of a small car into parts over the last year it's as close to 100% as it's been in 5 years or so. I've got 298K on the odometer and get 14.5-15mpg overall. I'd love more but I'm happy with where it's at. I didn't buy a 8000lb brick for good fuel economy so I can't complain.
IMHO I believe that the small variations in the manufacturing process are what contributes to the engine's efficiency...and personality. I think it's a true YMMV situation.
I might average around 15 mpg in the summer with summer fuel in a mix of city and highway driving. If it is mostly city it will drop a mile or two. On the highway keeping it in the 60-65 mph range and no load I might get 20 mpg in the summer. In the winter it is closer to 15-17 on the highway. That is with no load. Towing our 5th wheel camper I average between 9 and 12 mpg depending on speed, hills, wind etc.
This thread started the first part of the month, so I'm assuming you are now running a winter blend of fuel. That will usually drop my mpg a couple miles. Speed, big tires and towing will all drop mileage a bunch.
My 2001 F250 truck is pretty much stock. No oil leaks...boot leaks...etc. I change oil at 3000 miles. Original injectors, although I did replace o-rings and did shim the selenoids to spec.
Only thing I can point to is I started using ArchOil Fuel Treatment back when diesel was over $4.00 gallon. That's when it jumped from 15 up to over 17 normally. Drove to Florida last week and back, and it got 17.5 for that trip of 425 miles. Oh... I rarely push it over 2000rpms, as some say you get better mileage that way.
I appreciate all your input. As a note, I always use Hot Shots Secrets EDT on every tank to increase cetane, and lubrictiy.
going to ck out how to cleanup EBP sensor and associated tube.
Ok so I had Diesel Kleen in my amazon cart ready to buy, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001JT5MGI...I21HZGWGFAU073 when I saw your post and decided to look into it a little more. Now I'm in Michigan, where right now the average is about 10 degrees. and 0-5 degrees when I start it in the morning. (always starts on 1 glow plug cycle, have never plugged it in yet.) What should I do here? I saw Archoil on amazon too, but it's a lot more expensive. https://www.amazon.com/Ar6200-Modifi.../dp/B005WWO7YQ Is it worth it for the extra cost?
Again, I'm new to diesels as of 18 months ago. So glad I got on this forum! Can't believe how much I've learned.
Ok so I had Diesel Kleen in my amazon cart ready to buy, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001JT5MGI...I21HZGWGFAU073 when I saw your post and decided to look into it a little more. Now I'm in Michigan, where right now the average is about 10 degrees. and 0-5 degrees when I start it in the morning. (always starts on 1 glow plug cycle, have never plugged it in yet.) What should I do here? I saw Archoil on amazon too, but it's a lot more expensive. https://www.amazon.com/Ar6200-Modifi.../dp/B005WWO7YQ Is it worth it for the extra cost?
Again, I'm new to diesels as of 18 months ago. So glad I got on this forum! Can't believe how much I've learned.
Owning a diesel for the first time plunges you head-long into a sharp learning curve. Ford sells a nice winter mix fuel additive, as does Power Service with the white bottle (look for the phrase "anti-gel"). You'll need that for winters in the big Mish. I add the appropriate additive for winter/summer because our trucks were engineered at a time when the fuel formula was different. Removing the sulfur from diesel requires a chemical process that coincidentally removes much of the lubricity from our fuel. Our HEUI injectors actually enjoy the lube bath, so adding lubricity to the fuel extend the life of our rather expensive injectors.
If there is something you could intentionally do in an effort to kill economy - you're doing it. The only missing item sounds to be aggressive driving.
Baby it's cold outside. Cold winter temps means the Exhaust Back Pressure Valve is likely engaged, trying to accelorate the warming of the engine. It's like shoving a potato in the tailpipe, and it will do this until the Engine Oil Temperature reaches 140 degrees F... which usually takes about 10 minutes on the freeway with winter temps.
Oversized tires diminish economy actually and virtually: The odometer is now off - slightly messing with your calculations.
In-town driving means you likely spend more time at lower speed with the torque converter unlocked - big loss of power to the wheels and to your economy. Cold temps driving means the torque converter stays unlocked - even on the freeway. The torque converter will not lock until the temps in the transmission reach a certain criteria, which I have not sussed out yet.
Diesels detest short jaunts - they make terrible grocery getters because they shine only when everything is fully warmed up (after about 20 minutes of driving under load during winter months). I will share what happens when you have stock tires and just drive trips with much longer legs:
With my 285/75-16 tires my speedometer is pretty much dead on.
Bear in mind, it's not the speedo you're looking at - it's the odo. Oddly enough, when I lock in the speedo, the odo is off by a little - so I set my tire size to nail the odo.
Now... saying that... your tires won't knock the odo out enough to make a huge difference - less than a mile per gallon.
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