A progress report for my '08 F-350, with 6-spd manual and 3.73 rears.
First: it was exactly 5500.0 miles driveway-to-driveway from the East Coast back here. Truck had just under 2,000 miles on it before the start.
Second: I had only about 2,000 lbs. atop the 30' overdeck gooseneck when I started, but added another 12,000 lbs. in Salt Lake City, so that when your friendly Montana Compliance Officer stopped me and did a roadside weight check on me, the 29,900 lbs, is what I measured out at.....total weight all axles.
Third: fuel economy from East Coast to SLC was 11.2mpg. From SLC to Whitehorse, Yukon was 10.2mpg. From Whitehorse to home was 10.0. I don't know on this trip where the filling stations started using Diesel #1, but that wretched stuff sure makes for much poorer fuel economy.
Fourth: humping that weight over some of the Interstate passes (like north out of Butte, MT) ground me down into second gear; further, I took the "back" road out of Grande Prarie, Alberta to just north of Ft. St. John, BC (ie, through Sexsmith, etc.), and that interesting route made the Hudson Hope cutoff look pancake flat. It wasn't too bad going into and out of the Peace River valley, but west/north after that the smaller rivers had canyons that were so steep - and in one case, dirt - that the 6.4l was bucking when in first gear. Almost put her into 4WD just to get out of two or three canyons. JUST AT the absolute limit of what this engine, tranny and rear axles could perform.
Fifth: after unloading and making the 300-mile run from home into town (total elevation drop: 2,700 feet), I averaged 20.8mpg; then turning around, with some (perhaps 1,000 lbs) added groceries and rising that elevation again, total for the 600 mile round-trip was 20.4mpg. Note: I drive slowly!
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Sold: 1999 White Lariat CC SB F-250. Sold to next-door neighbor in 2001....received final payment 2007! Still going strong at 198Kmiles as of Dec'07
Sold: 2001 Bright Amber Lariat CC LB F-250 with 4 million candlepower of LightForce lights in the bow. Line-X bedliner. Dual alternator. Clearance lights. Glass-tite cap. 250-gallon auxiliary tank for trips to the Lesser 48. 70-gallon auxiliary for trips around Alaska. Rec'd Dec'07: '08 ForestGreen/Gold F-350 CC LB. Handshaker, as always, Rear stabilizer, rear static video, rear step, dual alternators. B&W turnover ball on its way; soon to be Line-X'd. LightForces on their way.
Wow. That's very good mileage, considering the weight! I usually get about 10 when I'm loaded at about 24Klbs CGVR. Your empty mileage is also very good. I'm happy to hear that the new 08's do reward slow driving with good mileage!
Was that the load, or was that truck trailer and load?
Either way nice haul. Figured I would compliment before the others ridicule.
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1996 F-250 extended cab long box five speed. Home made Tymar, 203 Stat, 60 gal in bed fuel cell, 315/75's, no muffler, ebpv welded open 3" to 3" DP, Babies. 290K, still chugging, and still smoking when cold.
UPDATED 8/1/08 Replace so far. 1 LUK flywheel+clutch, 2 thermostats, 2 set of brakes, 1 set of calipers, 5 CPS, 3 sets of tires, 2 Transfer pumps, 1 Injector modual, 1 Computer, 2 Alt, 2 sets of batteries, 1 Water pump, 6 Belts, 1 PS hose, 2 Sets ball joints, 2 set u-joints, 2 carrier bearing, 2 Speed sensors, 1 oil pres sender, 1 temp sender, 4 sets of e-break cables, 1 front fuel tank, 2 rear fuel tanks, 2 set of glow plugs, 6 Glow plug relays, Oil galley o-rings, Turbo pedistal o-rings, EBPV o-rings, 3 sets of Injector O-rings, 1 Vac-pump, 1 new carpet.Total $$$ in repairs v/s miles driven = 3.0 cents per mile. Add fuel to that it jumps to 14.8 cents per mile over the life of the truck.
Is that computed mileage or computer mileage? This is by far the best mileages I have yet read about when talking about the 6.4. I was thinking that people were doing great to get 15 on the open road and less around town. Most everyone around here are getting such poor mileage that several I know have switched to gassers, which breaks my heart.
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GOD BLESS OUR TROOPS!! - GOD BLESS AMERICA!!
Was that the load, or was that truck trailer and load?
Either way nice haul. Figured I would compliment before the others ridicule.
Total under the four axles.
I drive either conservatively or very conservatively. Since a trip into town is an all-day (usually 2 days) affair anyway, I long ago decided to enjoy those trips and save a few gallons of fuel. Best I ever got was 24.Xmpg to get to Fairbanks in my '99PSD; in the '01 I got 22.X on a few occasions. That involves a reasonable amount of mountain driving, but nothing like going up Loveland or Donner Pass or Parleys Canyon.
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Sold: 1999 White Lariat CC SB F-250. Sold to next-door neighbor in 2001....received final payment 2007! Still going strong at 198Kmiles as of Dec'07
Sold: 2001 Bright Amber Lariat CC LB F-250 with 4 million candlepower of LightForce lights in the bow. Line-X bedliner. Dual alternator. Clearance lights. Glass-tite cap. 250-gallon auxiliary tank for trips to the Lesser 48. 70-gallon auxiliary for trips around Alaska. Rec'd Dec'07: '08 ForestGreen/Gold F-350 CC LB. Handshaker, as always, Rear stabilizer, rear static video, rear step, dual alternators. B&W turnover ball on its way; soon to be Line-X'd. LightForces on their way.
So what did the MCO have to say about your weight? And why did he stop you?
Did you have any problems in Canada? The antique tractor guys were saying they were getting hard nose even on RV's.
Did you have any problems with slipping your clutch when adding fuel? That's what I noticed when I pulled my ag-tractors home as if I added too much fuel to fast, my clutch would chatter. That was at 31kGCW. I just took it easy and that stopped my clutch problems.
What kind of RPM was you running while pulling the grades?
Good thing you got home before fuel prices raised
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T_Bone
02 F350, 4X6, Crew, DRW, LWB, PSD, 6spd, 3:73, Island Blue, Stock, AEB2, Phoenix Az
Buy UNION work UNION. It pays off in the long run Define Union: A labor Union is nothing more than united workers with a common goal for better working conditions.
We all are in some sort of labor Union, some are just larger than others with better working conditions!
About the weight: he said it was not an issue....unless I were to get in an accident, in which case something nasty would hit the fan if it were determined brake failure, eg, were to have been a factor....
About why he stopped me: he was interested to see a Caterpillar 305CR Excavator being pulled by a vehicle without a DOT number, or logo on the door. It was hard to convince him that was Personal Effects! (more specifically, "Household Goods". Boy, youse guyz in the lesser-48 have it tough - something like that doesn't raise an eyebrow here).
Absolutely no problem whatsoever in Canada. Border Patrol didn't bat an eye, nor even ask for papers showing that the Cat was mine. And I passed through every weigh station, and never had to stop and talk to anyone.
My tranny is a manual; no such issues as you describe, although I just read in the General forum on 6.4s that a similar chatter/shudder has pervaded other owners' happinesses........ RPMs: perhaps 1900-2200????? Can't recall well.
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Sold: 1999 White Lariat CC SB F-250. Sold to next-door neighbor in 2001....received final payment 2007! Still going strong at 198Kmiles as of Dec'07
Sold: 2001 Bright Amber Lariat CC LB F-250 with 4 million candlepower of LightForce lights in the bow. Line-X bedliner. Dual alternator. Clearance lights. Glass-tite cap. 250-gallon auxiliary tank for trips to the Lesser 48. 70-gallon auxiliary for trips around Alaska. Rec'd Dec'07: '08 ForestGreen/Gold F-350 CC LB. Handshaker, as always, Rear stabilizer, rear static video, rear step, dual alternators. B&W turnover ball on its way; soon to be Line-X'd. LightForces on their way.
Ya the DOT is real spotty on what they check. I passed several electronic scales where I was weiged and photographed as I passed by but not one of them gave my rig a second look. I had a TX-DOT guy follow me for a 1/2hr then stopped a east bound semi so he was just hiding behind my trailer.
Since your interested in fuel mileage, you might want to look into pulling by RPM. I save alot of fuel using this method. Pulling my RV at 16kGCW, I can yield 14.2mpg from AZ to Co to AZ, and 16.5mpg in the AZ mountains as there not as long nor steep as the Co grades.
Here I pull by maximum torque RPM or 1600rpm on the 7.3 on the flats. On grades, I pull at 1750rpm as then I use a little turbo power and it makes pulling easier but doesn't use alot of extra fuel. That's at 43mph on 7% grades in 5th gear or about 10min slower than 55mph on the same grade length, about 10miles.
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T_Bone
02 F350, 4X6, Crew, DRW, LWB, PSD, 6spd, 3:73, Island Blue, Stock, AEB2, Phoenix Az
Buy UNION work UNION. It pays off in the long run Define Union: A labor Union is nothing more than united workers with a common goal for better working conditions.
We all are in some sort of labor Union, some are just larger than others with better working conditions!
__________________
Sold: 1999 White Lariat CC SB F-250. Sold to next-door neighbor in 2001....received final payment 2007! Still going strong at 198Kmiles as of Dec'07
Sold: 2001 Bright Amber Lariat CC LB F-250 with 4 million candlepower of LightForce lights in the bow. Line-X bedliner. Dual alternator. Clearance lights. Glass-tite cap. 250-gallon auxiliary tank for trips to the Lesser 48. 70-gallon auxiliary for trips around Alaska. Rec'd Dec'07: '08 ForestGreen/Gold F-350 CC LB. Handshaker, as always, Rear stabilizer, rear static video, rear step, dual alternators. B&W turnover ball on its way; soon to be Line-X'd. LightForces on their way.
Glad to hear the 08s are pullin some serious weight out there. I pulled 35,200lbs with my 99 and it actually did great getting up to speed and holding speed on the grades, but that was on the flatlands of I-95 from the Carolinas up to NY. The fuel mileage isnt too bad either for a brand new motor.
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99 F350 XLT 4x4, Crew Cab, 6spd, DRW 255k and still going strong. DR Edge 2" leveling kit. 5" exhaust. Prodigy TBC. Hideaway Gooseneck Hitch. Rickson LTS 19.5 aluminum rims with 245 70R19.5 Michelin XDE M/S. Cummins 12V powered, with a few mods, SBC DD clutch
2005 F250 XLT, Supercab, V10, 6spd, 4wd, SWB, 4.10 LS
I don't envy you the descent northbound into the Peace River... that's a nasty bit of road and a really steep descent. I hit it with my rig around 18,000K on my 3/4 '01 PSD and I was not happy about it. They were welding the deck of the bridge (open grating... I guess so snow will fall through..) and had my lane closed when I got to the bottom, so I had to come to complete halt while still on the down grade.
I sure hope you mean 30K# gross...can't imagine a load like that.
Florida Ed
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2001 7.3 F-350 Dually Lariat CC LWB 4X2 Dark Green 4.10 4R100 5'ver Hauler (32' Montana 2 slides 10,500# - 2,000# tongue weight), 106 gal aux tank, 112K miles, nephews arguing over who will inherit it 'cause I'm gonna' drive it 'til I die. Bone stock.
2001 5.4 Gasser F-250 XLT Crewcab SWB 4X2 3.73 4R100 67K miles headed to 150K (wife's vehicle on the "junk-iron" theory of vehicle safety....most junk iron wins in a crash) stock as the day it was made
Before these: '00 F-250 CC PSD, '97 F-250 CC PSD, '94 Ford F-150, '91 Ford E-250, '81 Ford E-150, '66 Ford F-100 (cars not included)
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