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Hi.

Well I found this site by accident and figured I would hang out. I am not like many on here in that I do not have a high mileage car or hybrid. However the point should be made that that does not preclude me from being mileage and emissions aware. I have a Ford F350 CrewCab Long Bed 4X4 6-speed with the 7.3L diesel. It sits at home and is used really only for towing my toy hauler trailer. Its got a high flow/filtration intake, an upgraded turbo, upgraded intake tubes, higher flow CAC(soon), custome programming and stock gearing. My injectors are worn out, 239,000 miles, and I am looking at upgrading the injectors to the more effecient single shot injectors along with the necessary programming. I typically get 15mpg average and have seen 18mpg on the freeway empty. Towing my mileage drops to 8 :eek:. Gotta work on that towing mileage. The worn out injectors along with some exhaust leaks and small exhaust are big problems. I am hoping to get up over 10mpg towing. Not great but the truck weighs 8000lbs, and the trailer weighs 15,000 lbs as well as has a HUGE frontal area that does not do well with aerodynamics. Luckily most of the places we go camping are close so I don't drive it much.

I commute on a Suzuki DL1000 that is holding at about 47mpg. Last chain change they sold me the wrong size sprocket so my mileage has suffered. I am going to step up to a larger than stock gear ratio as well as a high flow intake. I am also looking at some programming options and some aero options. Hoping to get this bad boy up in the mid 50.

The wife drives a Jeep Grand Cherokee. Love that thing. Not the best mileage but she really only drives about 20 miles a week, if that. My stepson is home schooled so transportation is minimal. Currently it gets about 15 around town and 20 on the highway. Working on upgrades to the ignition and fuel system to improve mileage. Also looking at some programming and possible aero upgrades. Hope to get this one up into the mid 20s. If I could I would swap out the 4L six and put in a diesel and run it on bio. I know a buddy who has driven the diesel Grand Cherokees and the fleet he worked on average 25mpg. I want that.

I am a big believer in Bio and other oil options in diesels. The 7.3L powerstroke is a perfect diesel for running bio and WVO/SVO because of certain design features. Unfortunately there are no bio filling stations near me. There is one in San Diego and I am looking at getting a big tank to put in the bed so I can fill up less, not the best solution. I also have a lead on a supplier for new soy bean oil. Gets me about $1.80 a gallon. Unfortunately I have been reading more stories lately on the authorities cracking down on people running WVO/SVO. I looked into what it would take to be legal here in Cali and the process and cost is STUPID. I would think if the people promoting oil independence, cleaner environment were serious they would reward people who did things like run WVO/SVO and not punish them.

Anyway thats my story, not the usual candidate for this site I am sure, but I do want to do my part. Say what you want about big trucks like mine, but if you put in a little effort and tolerance these big diesels can get improvements too. Every little bit helps, better to effect change and improvement than to be a jerk and lose the opportunity.


Advice is always appreciated.
:D

Welcome to the site, TheTonka!!

We don't judge here based on your vehicle choice if you've made a reasonable choice -- even if we don't agree with your choice we are always willing to help you get the most out of your vehicles!!

I would strongly suggest that you start off by reading the articles on the home page here, particularly this one:

Beating the EPA - The Why’s and how to Hypermile. (http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1510)

It can be really tough to get much improvement out of a large truck, but the techniques do work! My wife drives a Ford Escape 4x4 v6 AT -- she normally gets about 19mpg out of it but I managed just a shade under 28 the last time I drove it, and I didn't even air up the tires at all. I'm not sure how much you can do with the CrewCab, but I'm betting you could improve the mileage from the Jeep if you wanted to push it.

Best of luck and keep posting!! We'll be glad to answer any questions you might have.

Thanks, I only posted because after reading a bit I noticed the attitude was friendly. I know the mileage can be increased on my truck. There is a guy on one of the diesel site I frequent that is getting 26 mpg out of his 2wd extra cab f250.

For the truck I am more interesting in Bio or WVO/SVO. Got ideas, just not much time or money. What I really want to do is to pull the suspension and convert the whole thing to a linked suspension with airbags. This would let me raise it up to tow or drive the dirt roads, and drop it down for freeway flying. I searched for a long time to find a truck like mine with the 6-speed for mileage and reliability. I am also looking at a flip chip with towing programs and mileage programs, this will be a necessity with the change over from split shot injectors to singles. The singles are known to add 1-2 mpg to a truck like mine. With mine running at 239K miles I should get even more of an improvement. They are only supposed to last 120K-150K.

Just started working on improving the mileage on the Jeep. That one is gonna be tough. We use it for longer family trips, but it spends most of its time in traffic around town. Any ideas on that would be GREAT. I already put in a new intake, had to the stocker was broken. I am interested in upgrades to the ignition, exhaust, trans and perhaps programming. Just not sure what I am going to do yet.

The motorcycle is the more important one. I spend about 1000 miles a week on it. Even small improvements can add up. Its a big bike so its never going to be a super high mileage runner. I have looked into a new windscreen, also cause the stock one buffest real bad, exhaust, intake, gearing, and programming.

Thanks for the welcome.