How to get better gas mileage from the 7.3?

No... I was just following and figured I'd share too. I really like the 7.3. I wonder if I made the wrong decision with the EPA crap. So I try and follow 7.3. Honestly, I'm thinking about building a race car and use it
Wait a little longer to buy your crate engine. Ford will soon be offering the Megazilla version as a crate engine through Ford performance. They applied for patents last week.

https://www.foxnews.com/auto/ford-megazilla-coming-soon.amp
 
Speaking about mileage (kind of), had the opportunity to run the fuel tank (7.3) to within 3 official miles of empty. Filled up with app. 31.5 gallons, topped off. So apparently in my truck I have 2.5 gallons of unregistered fuel still left in the tank when I’m “empty”. Incidentally, that trip ran a hand calculated average of 16.5 mpg across 523 miles of driving. Oddly, these best mpg runs for me are always the first tankful when leaving Wyoming. Maybe someone is trying to tell me something! 🤣
 
Howdy all. Been a moment since my last post. I just upgraded my 1 year old AMB KR to a brand new AMB KR Ultimate with adaptive cruise and steering, as well as the other remaining bells and whistles my lesser equipped older KR did not have. So, while waiting for my winch to be transferred to the new truck, I began pondering some mods I had not done, knowing a newer build was forthcoming.

I was getting about 12mpg (based on the dash calculation) and I do have the factory tonneau from older truck that I will reinstall once the LineX liner is sprayed back in.

How much difference does an upgraded CAI and exhaust bring to this discussion? I agree with most of the naysayers in this thread about not buying a beefed up off road Super Duty for mileage benefits, but with gas creeping back up, this discussion will become more relevant as many begin considering selling or modifying for the additional benefit.
 
Took a trip to Flagstaff yesterday. 111.9 round trip from 3,000 ft to 7,000 ft including about 50 miles of highway and the rest was a combination of state highway, city, and local roads and got 15.4 per the onboard computer. I didn’t start from a full tank so we will see how accurate the computer is vs actual after the next fill up. Assuming it’s close, I’m pretty happy about it. I was expecting to basically always just get 12mpg no matter what. If this very small data sample is indicative of how things will be long term I’ll be thrilled. The 450 miles DTE on the screen is after driving 18 miles post fill up. Interestingly, it registered 426 DTE after fill up and slowly increased the remaining 18 miles of the drive to the 450 shown.
 

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This was my post on another forums a couple of weeks ago...


Ok so I just did a mpg test on the new Tremor with 7.3L engine. Keep in mind these are on aggressive A/T tires. Mud terrains would yield worse results and road tires better. We drove two 50 mile stretches in Florida so no real hills and with minimal wind. First 50 miles cruise was set at 70mph. Second set of 50 miles was at 76mph. We stopped and filled up between and after each segment to get an accurate reading. This is an F350.

At 70mph we got 14.6mpg
At 76mph we got 13.5mpg

Hope this helps!

C
WHAT IS YOUR GEAR RATIO - IM NOT DOING THAT WELL AT ALL!
 
WHAT IS YOUR GEAR RATIO - IM NOT DOING THAT WELL AT ALL!
That quoted message is from Nov. ‘22, so a reply may be slow. BUT, if it’s a Tremor, it’s the 4.30 (unless modified after)
 
That quoted message is from Nov. ‘22, so a reply may be slow. BUT, if it’s a Tremor, it’s the 4.30 (unless modified after)
 
Yes, it is a TREMOR w/ the 4.30 and that is the worst on the mileage - but took a RT from NC to Erie, PA, and only ave 11 mpg. Towed a 4300 lb car one way and the open trailer back ...
 
Yes, it is a TREMOR w/ the 4.30 and that is the worst on the mileage - but took a RT from NC to Erie, PA, and only ave 11 mpg. Towed a 4300 lb car one way and the open trailer back ...
Still working on the BUILD ... so no pics yet ...
 
Just drove mine across the country, 6100 miles from Philly to Santa Barbara and back, with a few stops along the way. 14.3 average, 55 to 85mph, 115 degrees in Vegas. I previously reset the mpg meter with five tankful's so it would be more accurate. I only use premium fuel and full synth oil. I really don’t care what the mileage is, just set the digital speedo and look once in a while. I drive it for fun and don’t baby it, but many miles are cruise control. Total mileage and average mpg for trip in the pic. Love this truck


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People keep mentioning the 4.30 gears as the reason for poor mileage. I disagree. It's the overall gearing that counts and the work being done. 35" tires and .63 transmission 10th gear ratio make up for the 4.30 gears and give an overall ratio that is perfect. The variable valve timing tries to optimize the engine efficiency over a wide RPM range. I'm averging 15 MPG tank over tank, with a light load in the rear, relatively easy driving and tires set to about 50 PSI. This thing does so much better than trucks from some years ago that I can hardly believe it. 4.30 gears are perfect and make a real difference when towing or for overall drivability. In my Ram Cummins, I changed the gears from 3.42 to 4.10. It seriously improved how the truck drove and I saw no decrease in mileage. If for some reason I ever had to get another Godzilla Super Duty, I would insist on getting 4.30 gears.
 
I'm averging 15 MPG tank over tank, This thing does so much better than trucks from some years ago that I can hardly believe it.
It makes me laugh to think back to older trucks. Years ago I had a chevy 1500 with 350 sbc. It was hard to start in winter. Rode like a tank. Regular cab (no storage), crank windows and got 9 mpg at best.
Tremor gets 15mpg on the highway, makes twice the power, 4 doors and power everything.
So I'm happy with my Tremor, even though it cost 140 times more.
 
People keep mentioning the 4.30 gears as the reason for poor mileage. I disagree. It's the overall gearing that counts and the work being done. 35" tires and .63 transmission 10th gear ratio make up for the 4.30 gears and give an overall ratio that is perfect. The variable valve timing tries to optimize the engine efficiency over a wide RPM range. I'm averging 15 MPG tank over tank, with a light load in the rear, relatively easy driving and tires set to about 50 PSI. This thing does so much better than trucks from some years ago that I can hardly believe it. 4.30 gears are perfect and make a real difference when towing or for overall drivability. In my Ram Cummins, I changed the gears from 3.42 to 4.10. It seriously improved how the truck drove and I saw no decrease in mileage. If for some reason I ever had to get another Godzilla Super Duty, I would insist on getting 4.30 gears.
The 10spd has made a big difference for sure. In the gas engine world N/V (engine speed over vehicle speed) is a huge metric for mapping economy within the OEMs. You're correct if you compare all differences like smaller tires with smaller (numerical) final drive things tend to balance out. All things being equal if you compare the exact same truck with a 4.30 and 3.73 final drive the latter will get better fuel economy, especially at unloaded steady state cruise. This is, of course, assuming the engine has sufficient torque, which is the case with the 7.3. You don't get a different set of gears in the trans Tremor vs. non-Tremor so that is common regardless. Dual-equal VCT in combination with an ETB will only be able to compensate so much. With a bit lower rpm, but equal work required, the strategy will have more ability to keep the throttle plate open to help minimize pumping work.

In the diesel world its a bit different comparison due to the torque availability at low rpm and I'm not surprised with your Cummins experience.

Overall I am in your camp though, I wouldn't give up the 4.30 due to the impact it has including at lower speed/gears. I think it is the right balance all around... It's a heavy truck even unloaded but feels relatively "nimble" with these gears...
 
Just returned from a 2,000ish mile round trip from Texas to Colorado towing about 11,000 pounds on a 25ft gooseneck and averaged 8.1 per the truck. That included climbing 3-4 mountain passes and lots of 75-80mph running across Texas. I was extremely happy with the trucks performance.
 
People keep mentioning the 4.30 gears as the reason for poor mileage. I disagree. It's the overall gearing that counts and the work being done. 35" tires and .63 transmission 10th gear ratio make up for the 4.30 gears and give an overall ratio that is perfect. The variable valve timing tries to optimize the engine efficiency over a wide RPM range. I'm averging 15 MPG tank over tank, with a light load in the rear, relatively easy driving and tires set to about 50 PSI. This thing does so much better than trucks from some years ago that I can hardly believe it. 4.30 gears are perfect and make a real difference when towing or for overall drivability. In my Ram Cummins, I changed the gears from 3.42 to 4.10. It seriously improved how the truck drove and I saw no decrease in mileage. If for some reason I ever had to get another Godzilla Super Duty, I would insist on getting 4.30 gears.
That's outstanding. I've not seen that in my truck, ever.
 
Just returned from a 2,000ish mile round trip from Texas to Colorado towing about 11,000 pounds on a 25ft gooseneck and averaged 8.1 per the truck. That included climbing 3-4 mountain passes and lots of 75-80mph running across Texas. I was extremely happy with the trucks performance.
Why haven't you mentioned what engine you have??????
 

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