Have a 2003 Expy with the 5.4L 4x4. Has about 5000 miles now. I just purchased a 20 ft. enclosed cargo trailer (weighs 3400# empty). We will be towing it to Arizona and back in 2 weeks, about 3500 miles total. When I went to get the trailer on Saturday I monitored my MPG on the display and I averaged 15.9 for the 200 mile trip. Coming back I averaged 9 mpg towing the trailer! Wind conditions were very moderate both ways. I ran 65-70 both ways also.

I have the AirForce One already installed and will be installing a Gibson Catback in a few days. I am now considering whether I should consider a performance chip. I called Troyer Performance and the lady I talked to recommended the 1715. What advantages will this chip give me while I am towing? Any increase in mpg, even 1?

I'm not too interested in this mod for the extra horsepower, that's not a big deal to me. I want to know if it will help while I tow, less stress on the engine, etc. Also don't know how much help the 87 octane program might be versus the 91.

Thanks!

Doug

 

I tow a 3000Lb boat often 200-500 miles. the 1715 in 91 tow added about 1-2MPG. Cost of higher octane gas makes it non-existant. But the performance gains, driveablity of the truck and the easy of towing and passing at highway speed made it worthwhile. made a big difference with a trailer. mine is set to 91/tow and i love it. More power and MPG to boot. IMHO, money was well spent.

 

No doubt the transmission shifts under the heavy loads of the trailer that I pull will extend it's life with the chip installed. Also like what was said above the extra power and shift points made towing much more pleasurable. The extra 1.5 mpg will not pay for the chip, but the extra performance does.

t-man

 

Hello Doug,

I would not suggest using the 1715 to do that with - if it's best possible fuel mileage while towing on 87 octane you want (or any other octane), your best bet is having us do a custom tune in the custom version of the Micro Tuner - the 1715 Micro Tuner on it's 87 octane program doesn't have as much performance or as much potential for improving fuel mileage as our custom tuning (for any level of octane) has.

Some people really are looking for that "magical" performance chip/tune to allow them to still use 87 octane and to hopefully save a little bit of money on gas - well, as numerous people here can attest to, we can and have in fact many times accomplished exactly that. But we cannot *guarantee* that you are going to get say, 2.3 more mpg for example.

The program/tune that will help your fuel mileage the most while towing is always going to be the premium gas tuning, as it has more timing being used on part-throttle - this reduces load on the motor, it runs a bit more efficiently, and you use a bit less fuel - all else being equal. Now of course, the fuel mileage gain will not be enough to completely offset the additional cost of premium fuel over regular - for someone driving 15K-20K miles per year, using premium gas all the time with the Superchips tuning would cost them about $100-$200 a year more for fuel overall, between the higher cost per gallon and the small improvement in mpg offsetting some of that 20 cent per gallon inherent average cost delta between 87 & premium.

So if you're looking to actually reduce the total amount of money you spend on gas, I'd say the best bet would be to have us do this in the new custom-tune capable version of the Micro Tuner and do a couple of different tunes for you with towing capability, along with whatever other 3rd program you'd like. Having us do a towing-capable tune for 87 octane would get you some power & performance gain, while giving you your best potential for spending less money overall for gasoline.

Give us a shout if you'd like to go over this - I'm in and out personally, doing a lot of custom tuning, so our staff answers the phones - but if I'm out when you call, I can always return your call and spend some time going over the specifics with you, telling you what you can realistically expect, etc.

Best of luck whatever you decide,