Hey all you northerners, does anyone remove the front air dam from your truck for the winter? I am thinking that it would act like a shovel in deep snow if I left it on and reduce my forward momentum. Any experiences out there?

 

No experiences, but if you have to drive in deep snow, I think I'd remove it to prevent damage to it.

- Jack

 

I took that thing off anyway because it looks stupid

 

Has anyone ever figured out how much removing it hurts the MPG?

 

I suspect removing it will reduce the effectiveness of the radiator. The air dam helps create a low pressure area behind the radiator and improves cooling I think. Of course in the winter cooling is not a concern.

 

And, unless the roads are dry and clear, you're probably not moving at a speed where the air dam has much effect either.

I have a slightly different opinion about the air dam though. I think it's there to create a stagnation area under the truck to reduce turbulent friction drag there, due to all the unaerodynamic things hanging under the chassis. Who knows though, maybe it does both things?

- Jack

 

I was told the same thing by the dealer Jack. They said especially on the super duty that they put them on to try to get the air flow around the truck to reduce drag. Personally I think this one or two mpg stuff is getting a little ridiculous with trucks. Don't get me wrong, I am all about better fuel milage, but are we forgetting these are trucks, not a Prius? The way I look at it, I buy my trucks for function and need and if they get a little better milage thats a bonus, but why didn't people complain so much back in the day when 10 to 12 mpg was great? Just my food for thought, but I would never hesitate to buy a truck that did what I needed it to do just because I got a few less mpg's.

 

A lot of people remove them because they look silly.

I'd be interested to know what sort of impact the removal has on fuel economy.

 

The "looks" of things are, of course, completely subjective. I honestly don't even notice the air dam on my truck unless I actively look for it.

Regarding the impact on fuel economy, my take on it is that Ford engineering would not have added this unless testing had shown a positive result - one that justified the additional manufacturing expense. While it can't be TOO expensive, vehicle companies are not in the habit of increasing the cost of their products for no good reason.

- Jack

 

Some are easily removed, Ford made this short video for them.
If you have the removable type it looks easy enough to pop them off in a few minutes.

 

Just leave it on. It's more fun that way

 

my 2006 doesn't have an air dam. I guess the previous owner removed it.

 

I removed mine also, looks cleaner.

 

It's a 2009+ thing. Helps improve aero dynamics.

 

Well, that explains why my truck doesn't have one.