Real world MPG Ford V10, what gear and cruising speed ?

[hertfordnc]

My question is actually about an Excursion but i figure there might be useful info here.

In my conversations with owners of V10 Class A's and Class C's people have claimed to get the same MPG my Excursion gets empty (about 10)

So i get 11 empty if i work at it and i get 6-7 MPG towing a 5,000 lb Hybrid.

I have 3.73 gears, mostly flat East Coast. Mostly at 70 with flow of traffic.

Truck will usually stay in overdrive but i usually drop it down.

I think 4.30 gears will allow me to stay in OD at about 2400 RPMs.

No, i will not go slower. I chose this truck and this camper so i don't have to. I travel with two boys and the difference between 60 and 70 is about an hour of campfire and setup time that we usually cannot afford to give up.

thanks

[dodge_guy]

hertfordnc wrote:

Lantley wrote:
dodge guy wrote:
"I agree. But even for the enjoyment of driving the full install amount is worth it."



If enjoyment is your goal I agree it's all worth it.
My point is for the most part be it tuners, gearing, snake oils, or a plethora of other mods. If the goal is to improve MPG's those mods are never/seldom beneficial.
Those mods can improve performance and make the drive more enjoyable.
However they won't produce enough of a MPG improvement to provide any negligible fuel/cash savings once the numbers are crunched.

i agree completely. MPG mods are generally stupid. I plan to do a gear upgrade because it will tow better but i think in this case it might also result in better towing MPG.

I think 3.73 is a great compromise for highway cruising without a heavy load and with the V10 it will still get the job done with 5 tons of trailer, I expect i'll get better towing mileage with the 4.3

You will get better mileage. When I did mine I went with 4.30 but looking back I could’ve went with 4.56 and still had good highway mileage and RPM. Even with the stock size tires.

[hertfordnc]

Lantley wrote:
dodge guy wrote:
"I agree. But even for the enjoyment of driving the full install amount is worth it."



If enjoyment is your goal I agree it's all worth it.
My point is for the most part be it tuners, gearing, snake oils, or a plethora of other mods. If the goal is to improve MPG's those mods are never/seldom beneficial.
Those mods can improve performance and make the drive more enjoyable.
However they won't produce enough of a MPG improvement to provide any negligible fuel/cash savings once the numbers are crunched.

i agree completely. MPG mods are generally stupid. I plan to do a gear upgrade because it will tow better but i think in this case it might also result in better towing MPG.

I think 3.73 is a great compromise for highway cruising without a heavy load and with the V10 it will still get the job done with 5 tons of trailer, I expect i'll get better towing mileage with the 4.3

[Lantley]

dodge guy wrote:
"I agree. But even for the enjoyment of driving the full install amount is worth it."



If enjoyment is your goal I agree it's all worth it.
My point is for the most part be it tuners, gearing, snake oils, or a plethora of other mods. If the goal is to improve MPG's those mods are never/seldom beneficial.
Those mods can improve performance and make the drive more enjoyable.
However they won't produce enough of a MPG improvement to provide any negligible fuel/cash savings once the numbers are crunched.

[dodge_guy]

Lantley wrote:

dodge guy wrote:

Lantley wrote:

dodge guy wrote:

hertfordnc wrote:

Lantley wrote:
That V-10 is going to suck gas no matter what! Going through modifications to get .3 or .5 better towing MPG's is futile especially if it decreases non towing MPG's.
Now if you want to get better performance the mods maybe worthwhile.
But the idea of doing mods to increase MPG's is futile and generally wont pay for themselves.
It's going to cost you some $$$ to tow a big box down the road. THere is no way around the physics and gas dollars $$$ required

1 MPG is 10%, that's about $400 in one camping season so an axle swap (if i do the work myself) will pay for itself in a couple seasons.

But i just want my question answered- what MPG, what gears, how much weight and what speed?

i believe if my current cruise RPM is 2350 in 3rd and i swap gears so it's 2400 in OD at the same speed, i think i might get better MPG.

Yes, towing rpm in OD with 4.30’s will be around 2400. I could never use OD with 3.73’s and in 3rd at 67 I was around 3000rpm.

Using your own figures you gained .3 by going to 4.30 gears and .5 from the five star tune that equals .8 more MPG's you went from 5.7 to 6.5
Based on 4000 towing miles and gas price at 3.42 per gallon you get a difference of $304.00
Now what' the cost to change gearing? 1500.00 per axle? How about a five star tune? $500.00
Honestly I don't know those cost but if it's $2000.00/304.00 per year in savings it will take 6 years to break even.
My point is chasing mpg's with mods is futile. The V-10 is going to suck gas. The mods will not provide signifaicant savings.
You can just buy the gas you need to tow that box or you can buy mods a slightly less gas and spend the same money to tow that box
However to do mods for for performance is more subjective.
If getting up the hill faster is what you want you can pay a price and achieve that goal. However if better MPG's is what you want you generally ewill get very little return on your investment once the numbers are crunched.
Diesel owners play this same game from day one.
Yes a diesel will always get better MPG's but once the numbers are crunched the MPG's alone do not financially justify the cost of going diesel.
Now if better performance is what you want the diesel will deliver but again the parameters are more subjective.
I learned a while back that the only winners in the MPG /tuner game are those selling the tuners and gizmos.
The end users are just spinning thier wheels if MPG improvement is the goal.

My gear change cost me $100 twice (2 $100 deductibles). So it never figured into the equation. While the mpg increase was nice, I was going for towing performance. And after having the X for 13 years, the tuner paid for itself more than once in the fuel savings. And the driving experience was changed for the better quite a bit! For the average person a gear change may not pay off $$$$$ wise, but it will pay off in performance gains.

Think of what .5 or 1 mpg savings over the course of 10 years and 70k miles can do? It may sound worthless up front, but on the backend it’s worth every penny all the way around!

I hear you but most RV'ers cannot get a gear change for $100.00.
When we can all find mechanics and shops willing to donate their parts and time, changing gears to improve MPG'S will be a more viable option

I agree. But even for the enjoyment of driving the full install amount is worth it.

[Lantley]

dodge guy wrote:

Lantley wrote:

dodge guy wrote:

hertfordnc wrote:

Lantley wrote:
That V-10 is going to suck gas no matter what! Going through modifications to get .3 or .5 better towing MPG's is futile especially if it decreases non towing MPG's.
Now if you want to get better performance the mods maybe worthwhile.
But the idea of doing mods to increase MPG's is futile and generally wont pay for themselves.
It's going to cost you some $$$ to tow a big box down the road. THere is no way around the physics and gas dollars $$$ required

1 MPG is 10%, that's about $400 in one camping season so an axle swap (if i do the work myself) will pay for itself in a couple seasons.

But i just want my question answered- what MPG, what gears, how much weight and what speed?

i believe if my current cruise RPM is 2350 in 3rd and i swap gears so it's 2400 in OD at the same speed, i think i might get better MPG.

Yes, towing rpm in OD with 4.30’s will be around 2400. I could never use OD with 3.73’s and in 3rd at 67 I was around 3000rpm.

Using your own figures you gained .3 by going to 4.30 gears and .5 from the five star tune that equals .8 more MPG's you went from 5.7 to 6.5
Based on 4000 towing miles and gas price at 3.42 per gallon you get a difference of $304.00
Now what' the cost to change gearing? 1500.00 per axle? How about a five star tune? $500.00
Honestly I don't know those cost but if it's $2000.00/304.00 per year in savings it will take 6 years to break even.
My point is chasing mpg's with mods is futile. The V-10 is going to suck gas. The mods will not provide signifaicant savings.
You can just buy the gas you need to tow that box or you can buy mods a slightly less gas and spend the same money to tow that box
However to do mods for for performance is more subjective.
If getting up the hill faster is what you want you can pay a price and achieve that goal. However if better MPG's is what you want you generally ewill get very little return on your investment once the numbers are crunched.
Diesel owners play this same game from day one.
Yes a diesel will always get better MPG's but once the numbers are crunched the MPG's alone do not financially justify the cost of going diesel.
Now if better performance is what you want the diesel will deliver but again the parameters are more subjective.
I learned a while back that the only winners in the MPG /tuner game are those selling the tuners and gizmos.
The end users are just spinning thier wheels if MPG improvement is the goal.

My gear change cost me $100 twice (2 $100 deductibles). So it never figured into the equation. While the mpg increase was nice, I was going for towing performance. And after having the X for 13 years, the tuner paid for itself more than once in the fuel savings. And the driving experience was changed for the better quite a bit! For the average person a gear change may not pay off $$$$$ wise, but it will pay off in performance gains.

Think of what .5 or 1 mpg savings over the course of 10 years and 70k miles can do? It may sound worthless up front, but on the backend it’s worth every penny all the way around!

I hear you but most RV'ers cannot get a gear change for $100.00.
When we can all find mechanics and shops willing to donate their parts and time, changing gears to improve MPG'S will be a more viable option

[ReneeG]

Well, we used to have an F250 6.8L V10 that we used to tow the FW in my signature. Fully loaded it was just under 13k and we got 7mpg. We had the 3.73 RAR, but upgraded it to a 4.3.

[hertfordnc]

jjj wrote:
I tow a 37' fiver at 13500lb. I get 7-8 towing and being conservative on the pedal. I get 10.5 at best empty with 4:30 rear gears on a 2002 f-350 4d dually using 87 octane.

Thanks. Kinda' what i was looking for. I think she'll be a lot happier at 4.3

[hertfordnc]

Blaster Man wrote:


If you are running ST tires, check the speed rating, many are 65.

THanks for that- i just looked it up. Speed Rating M- good for 81 mph

[Blaster_Man]

hertfordnc wrote:
...I have 3.73 gears, mostly flat East Coast. Mostly at 70 with flow of traffic...

If you are running ST tires, check the speed rating, many are 65.

[jjj]

I tow a 37' fiver at 13500lb. I get 7-8 towing and being conservative on the pedal. I get 10.5 at best empty with 4:30 rear gears on a 2002 f-350 4d dually using 87 octane.

[PastorCharlie]

I think MPD (miles per dollar) is a more realistic analyst than MPG (miles per gallon). Who cares what the MPG are if the price of a gallon is $0.159. What is of concern is if the price of a gallon is $6.00. Which is likely if they shut down Line #5.

[dodge_guy]

Lantley wrote:

dodge guy wrote:

hertfordnc wrote:

Lantley wrote:
That V-10 is going to suck gas no matter what! Going through modifications to get .3 or .5 better towing MPG's is futile especially if it decreases non towing MPG's.
Now if you want to get better performance the mods maybe worthwhile.
But the idea of doing mods to increase MPG's is futile and generally wont pay for themselves.
It's going to cost you some $$$ to tow a big box down the road. THere is no way around the physics and gas dollars $$$ required

1 MPG is 10%, that's about $400 in one camping season so an axle swap (if i do the work myself) will pay for itself in a couple seasons.

But i just want my question answered- what MPG, what gears, how much weight and what speed?

i believe if my current cruise RPM is 2350 in 3rd and i swap gears so it's 2400 in OD at the same speed, i think i might get better MPG.

Yes, towing rpm in OD with 4.30’s will be around 2400. I could never use OD with 3.73’s and in 3rd at 67 I was around 3000rpm.

Using your own figures you gained .3 by going to 4.30 gears and .5 from the five star tune that equals .8 more MPG's you went from 5.7 to 6.5
Based on 4000 towing miles and gas price at 3.42 per gallon you get a difference of $304.00
Now what' the cost to change gearing? 1500.00 per axle? How about a five star tune? $500.00
Honestly I don't know those cost but if it's $2000.00/304.00 per year in savings it will take 6 years to break even.
My point is chasing mpg's with mods is futile. The V-10 is going to suck gas. The mods will not provide signifaicant savings.
You can just buy the gas you need to tow that box or you can buy mods a slightly less gas and spend the same money to tow that box
However to do mods for for performance is more subjective.
If getting up the hill faster is what you want you can pay a price and achieve that goal. However if better MPG's is what you want you generally ewill get very little return on your investment once the numbers are crunched.
Diesel owners play this same game from day one.
Yes a diesel will always get better MPG's but once the numbers are crunched the MPG's alone do not financially justify the cost of going diesel.
Now if better performance is what you want the diesel will deliver but again the parameters are more subjective.
I learned a while back that the only winners in the MPG /tuner game are those selling the tuners and gizmos.
The end users are just spinning thier wheels if MPG improvement is the goal.

My gear change cost me $100 twice (2 $100 deductibles). So it never figured into the equation. While the mpg increase was nice, I was going for towing performance. And after having the X for 13 years, the tuner paid for itself more than once in the fuel savings. And the driving experience was changed for the better quite a bit! For the average person a gear change may not pay off $$$$$ wise, but it will pay off in performance gains.

Think of what .5 or 1 mpg savings over the course of 10 years and 70k miles can do? It may sound worthless up front, but on the backend it’s worth every penny all the way around!

[hertfordnc]

making progress. I'll look into hte five star tune

[Lantley]

dodge guy wrote:

hertfordnc wrote:

Lantley wrote:
That V-10 is going to suck gas no matter what! Going through modifications to get .3 or .5 better towing MPG's is futile especially if it decreases non towing MPG's.
Now if you want to get better performance the mods maybe worthwhile.
But the idea of doing mods to increase MPG's is futile and generally wont pay for themselves.
It's going to cost you some $$$ to tow a big box down the road. THere is no way around the physics and gas dollars $$$ required

1 MPG is 10%, that's about $400 in one camping season so an axle swap (if i do the work myself) will pay for itself in a couple seasons.

But i just want my question answered- what MPG, what gears, how much weight and what speed?

i believe if my current cruise RPM is 2350 in 3rd and i swap gears so it's 2400 in OD at the same speed, i think i might get better MPG.

Yes, towing rpm in OD with 4.30’s will be around 2400. I could never use OD with 3.73’s and in 3rd at 67 I was around 3000rpm.

Using your own figures you gained .3 by going to 4.30 gears and .5 from the five star tune that equals .8 more MPG's you went from 5.7 to 6.5
Based on 4000 towing miles and gas price at 3.42 per gallon you get a difference of $304.00
Now what' the cost to change gearing? 1500.00 per axle? How about a five star tune? $500.00
Honestly I don't know those cost but if it's $2000.00/304.00 per year in savings it will take 6 years to break even.
My point is chasing mpg's with mods is futile. The V-10 is going to suck gas. The mods will not provide signifaicant savings.
You can just buy the gas you need to tow that box or you can buy mods a slightly less gas and spend the same money to tow that box
However to do mods for for performance is more subjective.
If getting up the hill faster is what you want you can pay a price and achieve that goal. However if better MPG's is what you want you generally ewill get very little return on your investment once the numbers are crunched.
Diesel owners play this same game from day one.
Yes a diesel will always get better MPG's but once the numbers are crunched the MPG's alone do not financially justify the cost of going diesel.
Now if better performance is what you want the diesel will deliver but again the parameters are more subjective.
I learned a while back that the only winners in the MPG /tuner game are those selling the tuners and gizmos.
The end users are just spinning thier wheels if MPG improvement is the goal.