BigBrother-84 Posted April 26, 2023 Share Posted April 26, 2023 As for MPG, yesterday on the Skiatook/Amarillo leg we got 12.7 running 70 - 72 MPH. Today on the Amarillo/Santa Fe leg we got 11.6 MPG running 70 MPH. But today we were bucking some pretty severe head winds and climbing at the same time [...] A wise man named Gary said one day: These trucks make a barn look aerodynamic.» However, yesterday's run was with pure gasoline and today we had 10% ethanol in the mix as straight gas wasn't an option. How it must be heartbreaking to have no choice but put some ethanol in Big Blue's tank! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 27, 2023 Author Share Posted April 27, 2023 As for MPG, yesterday on the Skiatook/Amarillo leg we got 12.7 running 70 - 72 MPH. Today on the Amarillo/Santa Fe leg we got 11.6 MPG running 70 MPH. But today we were bucking some pretty severe head winds and climbing at the same time [...] A wise man named Gary said one day: These trucks make a barn look aerodynamic.» However, yesterday's run was with pure gasoline and today we had 10% ethanol in the mix as straight gas wasn't an option. How it must be heartbreaking to have no choice but put some ethanol in Big Blue's tank! Yes, they aren't aerodynamic, but Ford spent a lot of money trying to make them so. Didn't work at all. And I suspect that 65 MPH would make a difference in the MPG that could be noticed. But it would also have way too many people blowing past me like I was standing still, so I chose to pay a bit more and be a bit less of a nuisance. As for the ethanol, it does hurt. But I'll run it out so when I get home he'll be burning pure gas again. Sure don't want ethanol to sit long in the tanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mat in tn Posted April 27, 2023 Share Posted April 27, 2023 Yes, they aren't aerodynamic, but Ford spent a lot of money trying to make them so. Didn't work at all. And I suspect that 65 MPH would make a difference in the MPG that could be noticed. But it would also have way too many people blowing past me like I was standing still, so I chose to pay a bit more and be a bit less of a nuisance. As for the ethanol, it does hurt. But I'll run it out so when I get home he'll be burning pure gas again. Sure don't want ethanol to sit long in the tanks. on a good note. gas never sits long in these tanks, .unless parked. we had a strange one this week. we had an 86 efi twin tank model that just quit. checked the selector valve filter and it looked to be full of potters clay. about to drop both tanks again to check the new pumps and socks. 500 miles since new pumps. I asked if he had made someone angry. any one ever see clay like mud clog one up from anything else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBrother-84 Posted April 27, 2023 Share Posted April 27, 2023 on a good note. gas never sits long in these tanks, unless parked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 27, 2023 Author Share Posted April 27, 2023 on a good note. gas never sits long in these tanks, unless parked. Yup, BB likes to be fed, so on these roads with serious hills the MPG is going down. But, oddly enough, the AFR isn't. The AEM wideband decided to work for the run to/from ABQ last night and I noticed on the steep hills that the AFR didn't drop like it is programmed to do. I think that is just a function of "load", which is % throttle in EEC-V if I remember correctly. So I'm wondering what the issue might be there. Gonna ping Bill 'cause we both used the same software to do that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted May 4, 2023 Author Share Posted May 4, 2023 Yup, BB likes to be fed, so on these roads with serious hills the MPG is going down. But, oddly enough, the AFR isn't. The AEM wideband decided to work for the run to/from ABQ last night and I noticed on the steep hills that the AFR didn't drop like it is programmed to do. I think that is just a function of "load", which is % throttle in EEC-V if I remember correctly. So I'm wondering what the issue might be there. Gonna ping Bill 'cause we both used the same software to do that. Ok, sports fans, we are home! And we had a great trip. Here are some of the highlights: Bret and I camped out two nights in a tent in Bandelier's Juniper campground, and while we had fun it was cold. In fact, the first morning it snowed, rained, and sleeted on us so we stayed in the tent and watched it. But about 10 it quit, the sun came out, and we took off to explore. One of the places we explored was Los Alamos, and that was fascinating. Another was the trail to the Jemez Slot Canyon, but the river was up and crossing it to follow the trail looked risky, so we didn't go the whole way. Then we hiked the Jemez Falls trail, but again ran into the river. However this time Bret decided he would go anyway so he donned sandals, rolled up his pants, and waded across - 7 times in all to get to/from the falls. All in all we hiked ~5 miles each day, with much of it going up or down. As for the truck, it performed very well. We drove 1676 miles and got 12.1 MPG average, which I think is very good considering the wind we encountered as well as the putt-putting around we did. Most of the time we were driving 70 MPH, and almost all of it was on cruise. Plus we encountered a LOT of wind, which certainly hurt the MPG. In fact, at one point there was so much wind and, therefore, wind noise that the dummy driving forgot to shift into 5th. Turns out that the lighting in the bed is very helpful for camping. Ditto the "backup" lights under the bumper as we used them to light the camp. And the charging ports in the back of the bed came in really handy as we liked to charge our phones and watches of an evening and have them with us in the tent at night. But there were a few minor problems. As said previously the AEM wideband only worked part of the time, so I need to figure out why. And there was the issue of the ECU not enrichening the mix down to 13:1 at altitude, but I noticed yesterday that when we got below about 4000' it was working, so I need to figure that out. And last, one of the plastic keepers broke on the tailgate linkage so the linkage had to be put back a couple of times. But all in all, SUCCESS! As for pics, I've not processed them yet, but will post some later - today or tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBrother-84 Posted May 4, 2023 Share Posted May 4, 2023 Ok, sports fans, we are home! And we had a great trip. Here are some of the highlights: Bret and I camped out two nights in a tent in Bandelier's Juniper campground, and while we had fun it was cold. In fact, the first morning it snowed, rained, and sleeted on us so we stayed in the tent and watched it. But about 10 it quit, the sun came out, and we took off to explore. One of the places we explored was Los Alamos, and that was fascinating. Another was the trail to the Jemez Slot Canyon, but the river was up and crossing it to follow the trail looked risky, so we didn't go the whole way. Then we hiked the Jemez Falls trail, but again ran into the river. However this time Bret decided he would go anyway so he donned sandals, rolled up his pants, and waded across - 7 times in all to get to/from the falls. All in all we hiked ~5 miles each day, with much of it going up or down. As for the truck, it performed very well. We drove 1676 miles and got 12.1 MPG average, which I think is very good considering the wind we encountered as well as the putt-putting around we did. Most of the time we were driving 70 MPH, and almost all of it was on cruise. Plus we encountered a LOT of wind, which certainly hurt the MPG. In fact, at one point there was so much wind and, therefore, wind noise that the dummy driving forgot to shift into 5th. Turns out that the lighting in the bed is very helpful for camping. Ditto the "backup" lights under the bumper as we used them to light the camp. And the charging ports in the back of the bed came in really handy as we liked to charge our phones and watches of an evening and have them with us in the tent at night. But there were a few minor problems. As said previously the AEM wideband only worked part of the time, so I need to figure out why. And there was the issue of the ECU not enrichening the mix down to 13:1 at altitude, but I noticed yesterday that when we got below about 4000' it was working, so I need to figure that out. And last, one of the plastic keepers broke on the tailgate linkage so the linkage had to be put back a couple of times. But all in all, SUCCESS! As for pics, I've not processed them yet, but will post some later - today or tomorrow. Pic-tures-pic-tures-pic-tures! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBrother-84 Posted May 4, 2023 Share Posted May 4, 2023 In fact, at one point there was so much wind and, therefore, wind noise that the dummy driving forgot to shift into 5th. I don't understand how it is possible in BB's cockpit... Any warning gauge or alarm about RPM/shifting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted May 4, 2023 Author Share Posted May 4, 2023 In fact, at one point there was so much wind and, therefore, wind noise that the dummy driving forgot to shift into 5th. I don't understand how it is possible in BB's cockpit... Any warning gauge or alarm about RPM/shifting? LOL! You would think there'd be an alarm, but I used the SHIFT window for the EWISSIONS label. However, what finally told me to shift was the tach sitting at 2500 instead of 2000. Does it make a difference? We got 14.9 MPG on the front tank on that run and 10.2 on the rear tank where I ran in 4th. BUT, there were major differences. The rear tank was from Raton at 6680' down to Guymon, OK at 3124'. And it was in the morning with no wind at all. But some time after changing tanks, and leveling out, the wind came up very strongly. Plus, I don't base any MPG claims on one tank as I may fill one tank differently than another. Still.... As for pics, here are some I have on my phone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigBrother-84 Posted May 4, 2023 Share Posted May 4, 2023 LOL! You would think there'd be an alarm, but I used the SHIFT window for the EWISSIONS label. However, what finally told me to shift was the tach sitting at 2500 instead of 2000. Does it make a difference? We got 14.9 MPG on the front tank on that run and 10.2 on the rear tank where I ran in 4th. BUT, there were major differences. The rear tank was from Raton at 6680' down to Guymon, OK at 3124'. And it was in the morning with no wind at all. But some time after changing tanks, and leveling out, the wind came up very strongly. Plus, I don't base any MPG claims on one tank as I may fill one tank differently than another. Still.... As for pics, here are some I have on my phone. Boy! I understand why the spring is so cold here! Today we got a poor 46ºF, and it was almost freezing last night... If you have snow down there, we're not going to see warm weather soon up here! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts