I have a 2005 F350 CC 6.0L and would like to get better fuel mileage than 15 MPG. I tow a travel trailer in the summer months about 6 times and the rest is regular driving. The power is fine for pulling but the fuel mileage is not what my friends are getting with their older fords with chips. I plan to add a 4" exhaust, 4.5" lift and 35" tires in the near future.

My concern is with the 2005 they have a Tow/Haul button on the shifter and that is different than the old OD/Off button. Are they making the Chips to work with this Tow/Haul button.

I want a chip that is not going to overheat my turbo or void my Ford warranty.
What is recommended for my '05 6.0L that will give me better MPG, allow me to tell the Computer of my new tire size or do I have to do something different for that Modification.

Thanks,
TED

 

How many miles are on your truck? Mpg seems to increase with more miles-

 

10K. Miles

I have a friend that has a 2003 and his MPG has not increased with age.

TED

 

neither has my 04 6.0 but if you are seeking better mpgs why are you going with bigger tires,my experience is either or although my 7.3 had big tires and did much better then the 6.0. I think it was because the 7.3 has more low end grunt then the 6.0. In my opinion you are asking for trouble if you chip a 6.0 thats when most people start having trouble.

 

My 2005 6.0 Owner's manual has some warranty verbage in it which explicitly states that addition of a performance chip will void the engine warranty.

 

at 130,000 miles ....17 empty / 9-11 hauling

 

resqeman, I asked your mileage to get an idea of whether you were still in the break-in period. Ideally, if you want better mpg there are several do's and don'ts- Granted, one shoe doesn't fit all. A lot of folks that get poor mpg drive frequent short trips (under 10 miles) and their truck hardly ever reaches operating temp. Moving to the country to get better mpg isn't really in the cards.

Several things kill mpg: Big and/or agressive tires, lifts, short trips and a heavy right foot. Not that any of those are bad- I run studded mud terrains and race (unofficially) up to the ski resorts. Given that you are at 10k (for starters) now is the ideal time IMO to switch to a 5w40 diesel rated synthetic- Rotella and Mobil1 are the most popular. Also, keep your tires well inflated (60 front/70 rear) and use a fuel condtioner.

I know quite a few 6.0 owners and virtually all have seen an increase in mpg with age- My average mpg has steadily increased from 15 when new to currently 17 mpg at 70,000 miles with 18-20 highway mpg. Not bad for a 8,000 lb vehicle slightly more aerodynamic than a brick-

 

I've got 12,200 and something miles and I had a fairly long road trip today, over 400 miles. I did something I rarely ever do - drove the speed limit. I set the cruise at 65 on a country highway with some hills and redlights and ended up with my best mileage yet - 17.56.

 

7,000 on my truck. I just drove 2,000+ mi round trip to New Orleans. I drove about 75 mph to N.O. on I-state and 65 to 72 comeing back thru Arkansas. Lots of little towns. My overall average for city, town, back roads and interstate was 17.3 mpg. I only use cruse on flat highways. (If I set cruse for 70 and go up a long grade of 5 to 6 percent I'll be doing 72-74 at the top of the grade.)

One other thing to help with mpg is to keep the boost down.

I keep a complete fuel record on my trucks and my '06 is getting as good or a little better mpg as my '96 did (and 115 more hp and about 150 more ft-lb torque).

 

I have added a mrbp 4" turbo back exhaust, diablo programmer set at #2 setting and k&n filter kit, also running banks propane kit on lowest setting and am getting around 20-21 mpg running at 70-75 mph. around 19 if I keep it around 80. 04 f250 sd 6.0l diesel,

 

I haven't experienced mpgs getting better w/ age (17 city @ 25k, 14.5 city @ 75k now), however I did notice a 1-2 mpg change when I started using the diesel cleen gray and now the white that you can buy at wal mart. Also changing fuel filters made a big difference even though they only had 15k on them. My predator picked them up too, but I am currently on the fence about it(see other posts). I haven't usedd the synthetic yet only because I don't see them at wal mart, advance or autozone and I'm not crazy about online sellers bc of shipping on 5 gallons of synthetic!!

Lift and big tires will absolutely crush your mpgs regardless of programmer.

 

I am still waiting for my 05 F350 SB CC Dually to get past the break-in period so I can get better than 13mpg. It does not seem to matter if I drive short trips or highway because I get the same mileage either way. The short trips are in a very hilly area and the highways around here have a suggested 65mph limit but the traffic flows closer to 80. I am sure the 4.10:1 gear does not help but I have not seen a change since new. Towing 12k pounds will drop the milage to about 10.5 and I have about 23,000 miles towing.

I currently have just under 40,000 miles and about 860 hours.

 

In theory and practicallity too, 35" wide tires will hurt mpg more than help it. Anything you do that costs $$'s will never be recouped in many, many thousands of miles.

The skinniest tire/wheel combination run at 60 to 70 psi will do the best because of rolling resistance. Duallys are naturally worse because of 6 tires. 4WD is also a minor enemy to mpg too.

My 04 2WD CC with 3.73's get 15.5 in town (16K miles) and unloaded at 70mph I get a bit over 20. I get 12/13 mpg towing an 8K enclosed 20" trailer towing at a conservative 65 mph. I have installed a Gibson Extreme Duals and the zoo-dad holes but that's it. I will keep 85 series tires on it when they wear out because they are the best for mileage.

We all buy these trucks for many reasons but fuel mileage was not the highest on the list. These trucks as all trucks are aerodynamic bricks; the only way to get the most for your money is to be conservative in our driving habits but when a hemi Dodge pickup comes up beside me at a light it's real tough to conserve. Add up the costs of tires wheels and a hop up box and see it you can ever recoup it in 1 to 2 mpg even at $3.00 a gallon. Good Luck...

 

I agree. I bought mine because I knew it would get the job done. I had an 01 350 EXT CAB LB 2wd Dually previously and would not get the mileage I do now. When I replaced the last truck I kept the wheel base basically the same but went with the 4x4. Extra mileage would be nice but piece of mind knowing I have the right equipment for the job is enough.