| Author | Message | ||
     Etennuly |
 I love this stuff. Froggy you are my hero.  I am a mileage tracker and a semi-hypermiler. I always try to work on something to make the mileage better. I like to track mileage on all of my vehicles as it is one of the best indicators of something mechanical failing on a vehicle. But I do not get too anal about it like some do.  Right now my project truck is a 2007 GMC 5500 with an 8.1 L, 2wd, automatic, 26,000 GVW, long wheel base truck that weighs about 10,000 pounds. It was on propane and doing at best 5.6 mpg. I switched it to gasoline and have now got it up to 9.0 mpg. I can haul 20,000+ pounds on my trailer and it will still average at about 7.8mpg, thus far. With a switch Michelin tires, exhaust modifications, some good maintenance, and a tuner chip, I intend to see 12.0 mpg empty. My intent is to generally run this truck around as an awesome pick up truck, with the capability to haul my toys and use it to maintain my business and property. This kind of stuff is about equivalent to my wife buying things "On Sale". No matter how you spin it, you aren't SAVING shit.....it is still spending!  | ||
| Mnrider |
The mileage will get better when the temp is warmer. You'll have a ways to go to beat the 23mpg I get with my 300 HP V8 Explorer Sport Trac  | ||
| Xl1200r |
I have a decade-old Camaro making 345hp that will do 30mpg... and I bet I have more fun in that car than any of you! | ||
| Etennuly |
I have a decade-old Camaro making 345hp that will do 30mpg... and I bet I have more fun in that car than any of you! I have a two decades old+ camaro with a 270 hp 350/th 350 that is geared for an overdrive, that I will bet I have as much fun with! It won't do better than 15 mpg(not had time to mess with it yet), but it does donuts through my field like a crazy man's car!   | ||
| 86129squids |
I get great mileage... I now can skateboard to work.   | ||
| Badlionsfan |
Xl1200r Posted on Tuesday, February 12, 2013 - 04:22 pm: I have a decade-old Camaro making 345hp that will do 30mpg... and I bet I have more fun in that car than any of you! I've been missing my Hugger Orange '99 LS-1 powered Z-28 with the six speed lately, and you're not helping. | ||
| 6gears |
My trailer tugger weighs about 7700-7800 pounds ready for battle, makes about 500 RWHP and gets a running average of about 17.1. Will get 20-21 on the highway if you keep the speed decent. Could it do better?? Sure, but it just is not practical for me. | ||
| Crackhead |
Honestly from loading my Blast into a Dodge Dakota, I prefer to haul the bikes in a trailer because the weight shift from the bikes is noticeable and makes the truck more top heavy (raises center of gravity). Also, I would suspect the off road package has flexier springs, sway bars and tires. Thus making the truck lean more on turns, adding 500lbs 4ft off the ground will make the leaning worse. A small 4x8 trailer will fit behind the aero shadow of a mid sized truck. | ||
| Etennuly |
Trailers in some states can be a PITA. It may have to be licensed, insured and it will instill yet another separate parking space problem. Now alway conducive to NY state citizens living in or near a city. | ||
| Johnnylunchbox |
Froggy, you should've gotten a Ford F150 with the 3.7L V6. It's full size and I get a steady 23MPG on highway miles. With you behind the wheel it'd probably be like 36MPG. | ||
| Griffmeister |
Froggy, just going back to the original intent, how well do the bikes fit in a six foot bed? My last warranty repair on the Uly required me to get the bike there somehow. My S-10 has a six foot bed but the rear tire would be on the pivot axis of the tailgate requiring a ramp off the end of the gate to load/unload plus leaving the gate down with a portion of the weight on it for the trip. Ended up having a friend take me in his 1500 with an eight foot bed. Is your bed over six feet or are you not planning on taking the Uly for a ride? | ||
| Luftkoph |
froggy you do not need a fancy city truck to haul a bike around or 4 wheel drive,if its that bad out stay home for the day,I live in the U.P. and get by fine in two wheel drives,and 240 lbs of sand in the back,along with firestone winterforce tires  | ||
| Ducxl |
HOW do you do that???? My '10 4.0L Ranger gets ALMOST 21 MPG.I can't seem to ever get better mileage.How does this hypermiling work? And how could I get so much better mileage? | ||
| Johnnylunchbox |
DucXL, It's a combination of independent variable camshaft timing, drive by wire throttle, electric power steering (no pump to turn), composite valve covers and other weight saving tricks, on the newer generation of F150 powertrain options. It's a supercab XL with normal sized tires, and 4X4 with a 3.73 rear end. | ||
| Crackhead |
The ranger has not had any major changes in 20+ years. | ||
| Boogiman1981 |
anybody hypering the ecoboost f-150? | ||
| Froggy |
It's GMC, not something like a Ford that actually requires warranty work! 
I had the option of getting a bare Worktruck package vehicle, but I don't want to live like a barbarian. The WT package is so bare I'm surprised it even has windows. The radio is primitive and does not work with any form of music playback invented in the last hundred years. Mine has XM, aux input, mp3 disk support, Onstar, and some other things. I use the truck too much to conciser the tradeoff for a slightly lower price tag and unnoticeably better fuel economy. Although the cheap small tires do sound appealing...
Yea the cold really does kill it for multiple reasons, that is why I am looking into picking up a used stock airbox and modifying it to be a warm air intake.
That will be no problem. I looked at the sport trac, but I wanted something with a bed big enough to hold more than a beer cooler.
I agree, but the tradeoff for having a bike in the back is less than the penalties for towing a trailer, bike, and other equipment. A trailer is a significant pain in the ass to deal with, so when I do get one it will still not be the primary form of transport.
Yea that is an understatement. I don't have my own place yet, so storing a trailer alone would be a major pain. Dealing with tolls, registration, road restrictions, and other hidden costs will suck, so it would again be something that if I am going to have it attached, you bet your ass I'm going to make good use of the additional space.
Yea, I rather push a GM that ran out gas than drive a Ford! What annoys me is that I know of a good aerodynamic bed cap that only fits some F150s, and it gives a nice boost in fuel economy while still allowing you to easily use the bed. If I had the fiberglass skills I would totally make one for my truck.
They fit fine, I haven't seen any Buells other than the Blast in a Colorado/Canyon, but I've seen pictures where people fit three (3) sportbikes in the back of theirs. Cramped, but doable.
Yep, it is a shame that more people don't realize this and underestimate the capability of 2wd. The locking rear on this thing is freaking awesome too. The only thing 4WD lets you do is get stuck in deeper mud. Like you said, if it is really that bad out I'll stay home, but it is nice to have for the rare occasions it would come in handy.
Modern technology. The 4.0L in your Ranger ain't much different than when it was introduced back in the 60s. Unfortunately Ford never did any major modernizing on the Ranger in the last few decades, similar to how the Colorado/Canyon were for the most part neglected compared to F150/Silverado. The big trucks get things like 6 speed transmissions, cylinder deactivation, hybrid modes, and other modern tweaks to improve fuel economy, while the mid sizers are left with obsolete engines, transmissions, and frames. The only advantage the smaller trucks have for fuel economy is their size and weight, which depending on what you are comparing too can be an advantage or not.
I wish I had those things, in addition to an electric cooling fan. I was shocked to see that the stock fan is directly attached to the motor, I thought that handicap died off with the muscle cars. | ||
| Mnrider |
I've had to haul my KLR a couple times with my Sport Trac,no problem the back tire sits on the tail gate. If you haul a bike with the tire on the tailgate you may want to put down a piece of plywood or the tailgate may bend,it is a GM. | ||
| 6gears |
"Yep, it is a shame that more people don't realize this and underestimate the capability of 2wd. The locking rear on this thing is freaking awesome too. The only thing 4WD lets you do is get stuck in deeper mud. Like you said, if it is really that bad out I'll stay home, but it is nice to have for the rare occasions it would come in handy." LOL...spoken like a true city person who has never "USED" a truck!! 2WD is pretty much worthless when you use a truck for work on the farm. My truck has a locking diff and weighs a bunch and I was "stuck" in 2WD more times than I can count this winter on flat frozen ground while moving equipment and trailers around. I have never had this truck stuck in 4x4. | ||
| No_rice |
No, I bought one right in the middle, with a rating of 24 MPG highway, getting the 4 cylinder model and the stick would of gained me a little more, but I wanted the extra oomph as they are a little underpowered as is, and I plan on using it to haul. If I step up to the V8, fuel economy goes down the tube even further. if you change that thing from the 3.73 to the 3.42 it will be a dog, and be a BIG dog if you ever do try to pull/haul anything with it. i have had both options in the same year and model of truck(97 1/2 4x4 extended cab chevy) the 3.42 doesnt really get a noticeable difference in fuel mileage, and it really lugs when you try to put a load on it which kills the mileage because it has to struggle so much harder. here is my big hauler... 08 2500hd duramax, can get low 20's(if i ever tune it that can go up some more) and drag my house off its foundation. it doesnt care if it has 3 bikes in the back and a trailer.  but then there is my small hauler(although since this pic i have upgraded to a couple year newer version with alot less miles), 33-35mpg running 70-85mph all the way from my house in central IA to Bumpus hd in TN.  its even hauled that trailer loaded like this and managed 30mpg.  in other words, most of the time my diesel sits in the garage unless what im hauling is to big for the trailer. hauled this home the other day...  although i couldnt pull this home with the saturn...  | ||
| Skinstains |
Nice wheels Frogman, congrat's. You still runnin' with the same chippy ? | ||
| Ratbuell |
For those who are into hypermiling their trucks...Dodge announced recently a 3.0 V6 turbodiesel Ram 1500 (yes - HALF-ton diesel) for '14. It, and the '14 Grand Cherokee with the same 3.0 diesel, are projected to net 21mpg city and 30 highway. I'm eyeing that Grand... | ||
| Froggy |
I can't see how you don't need to use 4wd to drive down a clear interstate if you are getting stuck on frozen solid ground!
I still need to play around with calculators to confirm, but I disagree. If I put the smaller wheels on it first, that would effectively shorten my overall gear ratios, so dropping in a taller gear set would counter that, and while I haven't crunched the numbers it should put me in the same ballpark as stock, while reducing rotating mass and rolling resistance it should still overall accelerate and pull better. If I had the funds I would be like you and have a truck, and a car, and so on, but that currently is not an option so I opted for the utility of the truck.
I had to look that word up, but indeed I am.
Those sound awesome, and if GM never brings the just refreshed Ute over, I might end up going that route.  | ||
| Cowboy |
Dam George Bush for spoiling us with that Buck Eighty per Gass. | ||
| Ratbuell |
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| 6gears |
I don't think you get it Froggy....enjoy your cute little truck. | ||
| Crackhead |
6gears, there are different ways to "USE" a truck. Some trucks are dedicated long hall haulers. Some are farm trucks. Some of us use trucks for multi purpose autos. For those of us that use them 99% on the street 2wd with a proper Torsen Diff and good tires will make up for the current "4wd" crap they are putting in trucks. My Subaru has a better system then the POS they are putting in trucks with open diffs. 4WD to me means all 4 tires should be getting power, not just 1 front tire and 1 rear tires. Thanks to open diffs it is the tires with the least traction getting power. From reading your description of getting stuck on flat solid frozen ground, it sounds like you are using hard crappy tires. FYI: in the winder time my Subaru is used as a recovery wagon. During the last snow storm I pulled out 2 Gms 1 Ford and 1 taco "4WD" trucks. Most of them also had crappy tires and I made sure I told them that they are endangering other peoples lives with those tires.. | ||
| 6gears |
Negative...I am getting stuck in 2wd on hard frozen ground moving 8-12000 pound trailers and equipment around with very little tongue weight. I have BFG A/Ts on my duramax and a LOCKING rear diff, not some crappy "torsen" diff. Come down to the farm with your subaru and lets hook my 24,000 pound gooseneck and backhoe to it, LOL | ||
| Luftkoph |
I understand perfectly what 6gear is saying,I have the same problem with my truck pulling 132,000 lbs up a snow covered 7% grade and all the product sloshes to the back leaving precious little traction,but we are talking bike hauling here,what the frog man needed and he did not consult the brain trust of badweb before his purchase is a 69 El Camino and start growing a mullett to really rock it proper | ||
| Chadhargis |
Or a Subaru Brat. |
