Miles Per Gallon?????

[EasyRhino]

Just one question for the folks getting the 20+ mpg: How are you calculating gas mileage?

Not trying to be a wet blanket, but I know lots of folks doing overly optimistic (what we call RadCon math in my business) instead of keeping detailed records to really know their mileage (Aldive is an exception).

Heck, my father still does this - he'll say "I drove to xx, and filled up at xx, and that is about xx miles, and the tank holds xx, so I got xx mpg. Sorry, but not accurate. When he gets his gas bill at the end of the month, he is confused that he spent 400-500 bux on gas when he "only went xx miles". He has absolutely no idea what his true mileage is. Heck, I can get the Ex mpg computer to say 99.9 mpg each way to and from work down a very steep incline. I can also get it to say 3.0 mpg going up that same hill.

Call me a data geek (okay, you're a geek), but I have 93,000 miles of data on my Ex (and 47K on the Mustang, etc) that shows the actual mileage by tankful (can vary by as much as 10 mpg under different conditions and different fill up conditions, current quarter, last four quarters/year, and cumulative lifetime mpg. I do this to help me know when my cars may be in need of attention - e.g. if mileage drops suddenly.

That said, I think I will clean the MAF and run another diagnostic.

I wish I got 15 mpg here.

 

[corkey]

do the math right ,

i calculated mine on a road trip by filling the tank to the top , and than driving , i would than take the amount it took to fill it back up , and do the math,,

distance travelled,(and verified by my gps,) and divide by the quantity it took to refill the tank, , i know there can be a bit of variance in the amount that goes in the tank , so i just don't do the math on one fill up , i use the average i recently went on a long trip , 2165 km, and that is what i am basing my numbers on right now,,as my mileage has not changed much since than ,

 

[manaen]

Reset the ODO on every fill up, then when I fill up the next time I divide the miles driven by the gallons pumped. Oh and yes I verified my Speedo with my GPS just to make sure it was reading proper mileage. My built in trip computer usually is optimistic by 1 or 2 mpg but I never trust it so I always calculate the mileage manually. Although I just got a PCM update from Ford on last Friday, and I think the trip computer seems a little more accurate then before. I don't have enough miles on the PCM to get all the mappings complete so I will have to wait for a long trip. But It just so happens I am leaving for a Maine fishing trip today so it will be a great test of the new programming. I will be towing a trailer with 2 canoes and a ton of gear (probably literally) so I expect to see 16 to 18 mpg since the canoes are like a huge wind drag.

But I digress ....

 

[E.B. Cornburner]

My driver information center's MPG is almost always a little pessimistic...Generally it's reading about 1-2 MPG less than what I'm actually getting.

I know that I'm filling the exact same amount of fuel every time too, since I cram it all the way till it's full to the top of the filler neck! Yes, you all can lecture me all you want...I've never once had a problem with EVAP systems or anything. I've done this on just about every single vehicle I've owned. The neck on the Explorer holds almost a whole gallon of fuel by itself...I about ran mine out of fuel once recently, and dispensed 23.6 gallons into a tank that's claimed to hold 22.5 gallons!

 

[jasperboy]

I too record the miles driven by reseting the trip odometer (GPS checked and acurate to within .2/100 miles) every fill up. I divide those miles by the number of gallons used to fill the tank to give me the MPG's for that tank. I also make every effort to drive until the "check gauges" light comes on, as my 2003 xls does not have a "low fuel' lamp. I then record all this data in a spreadsheet that I've been keeping ever since I started driving this vehicle daily for work. I have over 6 months of data, and am currently averaging 20.4 mpg for the 6 month period. I can also verify the MPG by telling you that my average fill up is 23.25 gallons, and I am traveling just over 500 miles per tank full. 21.5+ mpg's by my calculations! I have the spreadsheet, and would be more than happy to share.

 

[drew03]

i noticed a difference when i started using castrol high mileage as well as a flowmaster 40 series gave me a noticeable difference, lost a little back pressure but gained quite a bit of top end.

 

[LMedina]

I drive a 2000 with the 4.0 OHC. State of Hawaii thought it would be a good idea to save the planet by switching to E10 (NOT E85) and boost our island economy by encouraging sugar cane farming to make all that ethanol... whatever. Ethanol is less efficient than regular gasoline and the newspapers even warned us about it. I drive 14 miles round-trip to work, half of that going uphill (and of course, foot off the pedal on the way home), at an average speed of 35mph.

I average 15-16mpg, even with all the gas-saving/efficiency-increasing add-ons (synthetic fluids, better plugs, intake, exhaust, highly-inflated tires, carry nothing heavy in the trunk, etc).

BUT I USED TO AVERAGE 17-19MPH, before Hawaii switched to E10 !

In my humble opinion, stick to regular gasoline, pass up on the E10 and E85 stuff if you can. And everything the lawmakers and refiners told us that switching Hawaii to E10 would save us money at the pump by reducing the amount of petroleum-based fuel...? Well, the local Chevron is now charging me $4 a gallon - which is pretty much in line with other states that DON'T use ethanol. So what advantage is this poor dumb native being afforded by ethanol fuel?

I'm in a survivalist mode, friends. Don't care about saving the planet or local economy right now. All I want is my regular fuel back, my old mileage back, and a ban on ethanol. It certainly doesn't work for this guy here in Hawaii.

 

[E.B. Cornburner]

There shouldn't be much if any difference in the MPG between E10 and straight gasoline.

 

[manaen]

There shouldn't be much if any difference in the MPG between E10 and straight gasoline.

I see the same results that lmedina talked about. The second e10 goes into my tank my mileage goes way down. I think if you had a chip and could take advantage of the higher octane the difference may not be as drastic, but I easily loose about 2mpg with E10

 

[helmsa]

I just purchased my 2004 4.0L a month ago, but I do have 1173.3 miles of data on it right now. I have averaged 17.141 on my three fill ups. On my commuting to and from work/school, I have averaged 16.661 and when I got out on the freeway for the first time (little bit of commuting style driving on this tank too) I averaged 18.170, but I was in the throttle more then I should have. My X is bone stock as of now, and I intend to get some SOLID baseline data before I do anything on it. With the discussions about regular vs E10 vs E85, this is all running E10.

Edit: Forgot to mention that I have a Microsoft Excel file that I developed to track my MPG. It enters my beginning Odometer reading for the tank based off the previous ending, I enter the ending, miles, price per gallon and it calculates MPG, tank cost and cost/miles. This allows me to keep notes that I can compare tanks with. It takes some tweaking when I don't do a complete fill up because I have to tack all of that information on the next complete fill up.

 

[Thelt]

I use the trip computer but I do not pay attention to it until I get a couple hundred miles to smooth out any "downhill" variations. I get a little less than 17 in city driving around 16.8 and over twenty on the highway. The best I have gotten was 23 on a highway trip all interstate and by myself. With passengers and luggage it is more like 20 to 21.

 

[Opera House]

I just made an 800 mile trip from SW Ohio to upatate NY in my 02 XLT with 106K. That covers a lot of hilly area and the vehicle was fully loaded. In fact it had a carrier on the back with a 5 cubic foot home chest freezer and other stuff. 23.9 mpg averaging about 62 mph.

My 97 with the OHV engine got about 22.5 mpg on this trip that I take about 4 times a year. I usually average the total gas consumption on the 2,500 mile trip. This figure for the 800 mile segment should be accurate to a half mile on the mpg.

 

[Razzierb]

My 2005 is a FFV and the best I've done in combined city / highway (mostly city) is 14.4 over a 3 month period of time. To get that, I really had to concentrate on keeping my foot out of it.

Razz

 

[E.B. Cornburner]

That's my biggest problem too...Keeping my foot out of it! There's lots of places to just stomp on it near me and I usually do. The way I see it, why pay to feed 210 horses when you're only using about a third of them?

I personally don't think the FFVs get as good of MPG on gasoline as the dedicated gasoline-burners. They're kind of a "jack of all trades, master of none". They're not really optomized to either fuel, but will burn either one or a mixture of the two with no detectable difference in driveability. They probably programmed the PCMs to err a bit on the rich side of perfect just to make sure nothing went wrong that could possibly damage any internal engine components. On gasoline I can get a bit better than your average, but it's right about spot-on with my findings if I drive the way I usually do, which is a lot of wide-open throttle sprints off the stoplights, and freeway on-ramps, etc.
On E85, I typically get about 2 MPG less than I would on gasoline, but at its current price spread of $1.05/gallon less than regular unleaded, it still comes out being more economical to run, and cheap enough still to blow a little out the tailpipe in the interest of fun.

 

[shadowless127]

That's my biggest problem too...Keeping my foot out of it! There's lots of places to just stomp on it near me and I usually do. The way I see it, why pay to feed 210 horses when you're only using about a third of them?

I personally don't think the FFVs get as good of MPG on gasoline as the dedicated gasoline-burners. They're kind of a "jack of all trades, master of none". They're not really optomized to either fuel, but will burn either one or a mixture of the two with no detectable difference in driveability. They probably programmed the PCMs to err a bit on the rich side of perfect just to make sure nothing went wrong that could possibly damage any internal engine components. On gasoline I can get a bit better than your average, but it's right about spot-on with my findings if I drive the way I usually do, which is a lot of wide-open throttle sprints off the stoplights, and freeway on-ramps, etc.
On E85, I typically get about 2 MPG less than I would on gasoline, but at its current price spread of $1.05/gallon less than regular unleaded, it still comes out being more economical to run, and cheap enough still to blow a little out the tailpipe in the interest of fun.

Keeping your foot out of it is extremely hard, especially since i have the V8. I have the same problem with WOT stoplight starts and on ramps; I love hearing the pure sound and muscle of my v8 in the higher rpm band. I have a feeling that combined with the constant stop and go of my city driving, my heavy foot doesnt help my 13.5mpg rating.

 

[tdb420]

Just wanted to let everybody know about my recent feat, 25 mpg in a gen I doing straight freeway with cruise control set at 70 but i recently replaced my fuel pump and my a/c doesnt work btw you can get better mileage by driving windows up because it makes the vehicle more aerodynamic.

 

[Curtis]

btw you can get better mileage by driving windows up because it makes the vehicle more aerodynamic.

Partly true.
Mythbusters did alot of testing on this on multiple shows.
If I remember correctly I think it was under 45 mph... better to have windows down and AC off.
Over 45, windows up and AC on

 

[memhorn]

25 at 70 mph with a 4x4 is darn good. I can get 25 with a gen 2 4x4 with SOHC engine only if I air up the tires to 35 and drive about 57-60 mph on the highway.

I have read and believe that you can slightly increase the mpg by rolling the windows up, turning off the AC, .... AND .... running the heater. Running the heater pulls a bit of heat from the engine temperature and allows it to operate at an optimal temp. In Texas, this also reduces the weight you are hauling around because nobody will ride with you!!

 

[helmsa]

I just purchased my 2004 4.0L a month ago, but I do have 1173.3 miles of data on it right now. I have averaged 17.141 on my three fill ups. On my commuting to and from work/school, I have averaged 16.661 and when I got out on the freeway for the first time (little bit of commuting style driving on this tank too) I averaged 18.170, but I was in the throttle more then I should have. My X is bone stock as of now, and I intend to get some SOLID baseline data before I do anything on it. With the discussions about regular vs E10 vs E85, this is all running E10.

Just an update on my MPG...I now have 2916.0 miles on my X. I have managed to get a couple more road trips (50+ miles one way) in and some more mixed/city type driving. I am keeping a consistent 18.1xx MPG out on the freeway and in the high 16's for my mixed/city driving. My 2916 mile average is 16.646 MPG.

I had one really low tank, but my X was idling way too much on that tank on 85% city driving. So that tank dropped my average a bit, but I am still impressed with my MPG compared to my Dodge Ram (stupid Magnum engines). When I start getting some positive cashflow, I will be starting a quest for better (unknown number) MPG.

 

[troj84]

Avg 14.7 combined driving on regular fuel(mostly city)
Avg 11.0 combined on E85(mostly city)
e85 is/was .66 cents per gallon cheaper.
Do the math, stick with regular.