I drive the boost gage like in a gasser using a vacuum gage. Seeing in Arizona we have some long and high “hills” let the speed drop a little (never slower than 55 MPH) to keep the boost at lowest possible. Trading a little speed for mileage is not a bad one, at 60 MPH that is one mile per minute, to drive at 70 is only 10 miles further down the road per hour (with out stopping or slowing down) and only will add less than one and a half hour to the drive time on an 700 mile trip at 60.
Another trick like folding in the outside side mirrors, that cuts some frontal area and its wind drag at speed. Put the window down and stick you hand out on top of the mirror in the air (not past it’s farthest out from the door, just above it) and the mirror is about twice the size of a hand and there is two of them. Also try this at 60, 65, 70, 75 and feel the difference of how your hand is pushed back, this force at speed think of the total frontal area of the truck. One more thing to think about is the force required to move the truck, empty is 7,000 pounds or more, to bring it up to speed and when using the brakes to slow down that fuel used and changed in to heat by the rotors and pads.
Have almost 10,000 miles, almost broken in motor and got 22.35 MPG last highway trip last weekend. Kept the speed in 60 to 65 MPH, using the motor run time clock and the trip meter miles (figures in stop, idle and driving time verses miles driven) averaged 57 MPH, made 3 “pit stops”, plus the on and off road idle time (waiting for traffic and stop lights to change). One might even use this and log the what I call true average MPH when driving like a “mad man” and like a “old man” to see just what the difference works out to be, in the past on trips of over 1,000 miles the average is not that much slower (for me high 50’s to upper mid 60’s was the difference, about 5 to 6 MPH) but the fuel mileage was very much improved for myself.
A stone stock 2007
Last edited by DieselFord : 02-28-2008 at 11:48 PM.
Reason: add stock note