I think I'm going back to dodge......I love my king ranch but am getting sick of the mileage

I bought a job 1 back in 6/2007. had the usual radiators (3rd one) and new DPF, I have no problems with the teething issue....just that when the motor was new I was getting at least 12 mpg out of it.

problem is at 46k miles I'm down to 10 mpg. Last tank was 9.6 all hand calculated. that is 99% highway at 70-75 mph.

towing i can get 8 IF i baby it. sometimes as low as 6 mpg

I have been faithful with oil x at 5k and fuel filters at 10k since new. I even slowed down with no help. and the dealers tell me nothings wrong.

I have no CEL or drivability issues so therein lies the problem.

After spending 55k on a truck and having to argue with them over the dpf (black tips) and driving 75 miles 1 way to the dealer till they finally changed the dpf I pissed at ford.

My neighbors dodge 4X4 DUALLY with dpf (6sp auto) is getting a solid 15 at the same highway speeds

so with the body/interior changes, a true crew cab, and 1.9% financing I might jump ship.

my lifted 02 f-350 with big tires would get 14-16 and I am a true ford fan but I've had it.

gotta see what id get in trade, if its close them I'm gone


I was just going to spartanise it but I'm afraid that what ever the issue is it will come out as soon as I tune it.

I am open to suggestions

 

I agree you should do better than 10mpg but you are running 35" tires and 4.10 gearing, that's not going to help your situation at all. Change both of those and I'd think you'd be up around the 14-15mpg range which is where most stock trucks are running. IMO

 

Tune and delete it. Simple.

 

ARRRRGH!!!!!

 

in the first 4k miles I never saw over 13 mpg and that was with break in at 55 mph for the first 500 miles


yes...and I've been running 4.10 and 35" tires since the truck 4k miles on it. the odometer AND the speedo are dead on since the gears. at 70 mph the truck reads 71 (gps verified).


this is not my first truck..nor is it my first rodeo with a lifted truck.

and the STOCK 20" tires are 34" tall

and for a while I would get 12........then 11......then 10.5.....etc

soooooo ??......


I owned a tuned 7.3 (lifted 35" with 4.10).....then tuned 04.5 dodge (level kit with 35's)....now this 08 that is otherwise stock.

we even spent a week in yellowstone where we didnt get over 50 mph for the week. I saw 11.4 mpg

P.S. my 1998 dodge quad cab 12V with 245k miles on it is currently getting 17.8 mpg.

 

I was just going to spartanise it but I'm afraid that what ever the issue is it will come out as soon as I tune it.

 

Unless you are going back to a 5.9 then getting a new dodge won't help either. The 6.7 in the dodge are getting the same mpg as the 6.4 with the DPF. But I have a 2010 and I'm getting about 18 mpg on the hwy and 13-14 in the city but I mostly do hwy driving bone stock truck. But hopefully tomorrow I will get my spartan tuner in and I will install that, 5 inch exhaust downpipe back w/ DPF delete and AFE stage 2 CAI and I will get 20 plus mpg on the hwy.

 

You may want to make sure that your truck has the latest flash. Just a thought.

 

If you already decided to unload the 6.4 and buy new, you may do yourself a favor and check out the 6.7 psd. So far the fuel economy with these 6.7 psd's seem to be pretty good.

 

the dodges came out with the DO tranny with the dpf which helps the mileage.(dont know why gm or ford did'nt)

I've been in my neighbors 6.7...still turns 15 unloaded and his is 4x4 and a dually

Im not gonna buy another job 1 truck again. (again 2nd radiator went on me on a trip, pulling my 5ver in the middle of nowhere on vacation)
and with the 6.7 being a all new design9 and 6sp tranny) we will have to see if there is any growing pains.

and if im not mistaken the ford is going to need DEF fluid where the dodge still passed the 10 emissions with their 08 engine ?.

I've owned 3 f-150, 3 bronco's, 2 superduty's, numerous ford cars. I was a loyal ford person ....but the last 3 years of fighting the dealerships just to get warranty work done has left a bad taste in my mouth, along with the "the mpg is normal...all trucks are different, sorry...."

 

Eh...I would go to a different dealership and get another opinion. That or if you really like that truck go by a 2010 cause they got some great prices out there. And everyone I have talked to who have a 2010 6.4L they've been getting better mpg then earlier 6.4's. I don't know if it's because they are brand new trucks or if they updated the computer but everyone I have talked to have been getting 17 plus mpg on the hwy. Oh and I have a f-350 CC longbed SRW 4x4 so I don't have a small super duty and I'm still getting 18 on the hwy.

 

I have rarely seen guys on here that claimed their mileage got much better after break in, that was an idea dealerships cooked up to keep people quiet when they first started going in with MPG complaints, so I don't find it strange that your truck never got any better. I think it's safe to assume that the only thing you changed on your truck was the tires and the mpg got worse, 1" ride height is going to make a difference on these trucks, the front ends are a giant sail. It might not make a huge difference but you will notice it. You have a fair argument but it sounds like you've already made up your mind. Aside from you tuning it (which you already stated you don't want to) there is nothing that anyone can say that is going to make you want to keep the truck. So why not dump it and try out the Dodge? It's been my experience that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence and mileage might not be as good as your neighbor leads you to believe but you might get lucky. Good Luck

 

I just did the Spartan CAT/DPF delete this weekend so I hope to see a nice jump in MPG soon. The power alone is worth it though. I recently got 17-18MPG on a trip to Phoenix from San Diego doing between 70-75 all the way there. Right now I am getting around 14-15MPG around town. Not too bad for a stock truck. Maybe the 2010's do have different programming.

 

Thanks

the bold print is due to a quote error on my part

 

I don't think you would really like the lesser towing and hauling capacity of the Dodge, but I certainly understand.

I think they real issue is the tire size and the 4.10's though.