If I had known then what I know now, I'd have bought a 4.9 or at 5.8...

I have a '91 truck with AOD and the 5.0 liter engine. I pull a horse trailer weighing about 3500 pounds.

I would like to be able to put this truck in overdrive on flat roads to try to save fuel. My gas mileage last summer on a trip from New Mexico to Georgia, with my trailer, was 9 miles per gallon at 70 miles per hour. Want to do better than that.

How much difference in performance AND gas mileage can I expect from the addition of a K&N filtercharger injector performance kit? (Not just the filter, but the kit.)

What other mods will improve towing performance and/or gas mileage?

Was thinking about a new diesel. Don't want that kind of debt right now, and would rather just upgrade this truck and keep it a few more years.

Thanks kindly,
-Mike

 

Mike,
I have a 1991 f-250 w/ a 302.i put the K&N filter charger kit on and it offered some good power gains.I think K&N claims 8hp with the kit.
As far as gas mileage,i can't help you.but i'm sure someone here will.
Best of luck.
Jerry D.

 

there are a few aftermarket exhaust companies that make exhaust systems for towing purposes. you should check those out. they claim to increase torque and mpg. ohh by the way, i feel your pain about the gas mileage, ever since i put my 33" tires on i only get 11 mpg, and thats on a stick shift. good luck!

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1989 F-150 XLT Lariat: 2WD 302 5spd[*]Performance Accessories 3" Body Lift[*]33x12.50.15 BFG on 15x10 AR Rims[*]Rancho Steering Stabilizer[*]Rancho RS 5000 Shocks[*]K&N Air Filter[*]Straight Pipes For Now...

Muffler? I don't need no stinkin' muffler!

 

Mike,

I have a '95 4x4 SC 302. I have done the ignition (Jacobs), intake, pulleys, and exhaust. All have helped with loads and towing. Individually I think the ignition was the best upgrade. It helped the low to mid range a great deal, and also gave good mileage increases. In my case I calculated it would pay for itself in 24,000 miles.... but I did that when gas was $1.20 a gallon also!

Pulleys were from Ford Racing and were $100. Helped mileage very little but enough to notice.

On the intake I drilled the airbox heavily, left the cold air supply in place and put a K&N in it. Cost for filter... approx $30. Helped power, not mileage.

I used a Gibson single side swept for my exhaust. The stainless is about $400 the aluminized is about $275. The biggest gain seemed to be in the mid range torque. I haven't tracked any potential mileage changes as I just put this on in Dec. and my mileage usually is worse through the winter.

All will help. For pulling power I think the ignition, followed by the exhaust would be the best. The intake helped more at higher RPM. The pulleys seemed to help more at higher RPM also.

Just for ref, with a 3.31 ratio I average 15 or so in town, and can break 20 on the highway if I stay close to the speed limit.

 

Thank you for all replies.

I have read about the ignition helping things, but am very reluctant to invest the money in this, as gains aren't necessarily going to happen. My impression, after researching ignition changes pretty heavily, was that I would see at best a minimal improvement. Maybe I'm wrong...

Certainly can say that I am not happy with my Accel wires. Got 17,000 miles out of them.

I was close to converting to a Mallory or Accel ignition system last year, and decided not to at the last minute. What particular model of Jacobs ignition did you use?

What are your Gibson part numbers?

Thanks kindly,
-Mike

 

Mike,

The Jacobs I got was a Mileage Master Ultra Team. It has the box, coil, and wires. On mine I got the one with the "coil over" which puts the coil on top of the box for decreased mounting space.

I tracked my mileage closely as I was just as skeptical. It improved over 14% on average. With the tall ratios in my truck, it wanted to downshift from OD on any hill on the road. This stopped, and the difference in torque off the line and when loaded was quite noticeable.

As a note on ignitions in general.... I have seen posts of many people not satisfied, and have had friends think the same. Many of the times, they got a box but no coi, used old crappy wires, didn't open the gaps, etc. It's still only as good as the weakest link.

As for the Gibson, I don't have the part number handy, but may be able to dig it up. It is the single exit side swept unit. It went on easy, getting the old stuff off is much harder. On a standard bed truck, you have to cut the head pipe before the install. They show the measurements in the instructions for this.

The exhaust power gains that you notice are higher than my very low cruise RPM, so it helps some but not a lot at low revs. If I need to downshift, the gains are much easier to notice. I didn't lose any low RPM torque that I can notice, which was a big concern for me.

 

Thinking about going with the Bassani exhaust system. Headers, cat, muffler, etc. Claims 60 ft-lbs gain over stock, but keeps things emissions legal.

Still considering the Gibson, so thanks for the update, Signmaster.

Thoughts, or experiences?

-Mike

 

Mike,

From all the info I've seen Bassani makes good quality stuff. 60 lb ft is pushing it. A full header, cat, muffler system on a Lightning got approx 20HP and 28 lb ft if I remember correctly.

From what I understand, many Bassani components are made to mate up exactly to stock items, so you can replace one at a time if you want. I think they are also on the upper side of exhaust pricing.

 

Weel it's not a truck, but a 89 Grand Marq with a 5.0 (non HO) and the AOD, 3.08 gears . It came w/o the towing package, but all teh cooling was added by us. After the (single)exhaust rusted away it was replaced with a h-pipe and duals out the back. The car responded to that great. It felt like the original exhaust had a plug in it compared to the dual setup. We usually pulled about 3000 lbs in drive and got around 10 mpg. The main shaft in the tranny snapped at 110k miles

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2000 F150 XLT 4x4 Short Bed. Amazon Green, 5.4L, SuperCab, ORP, Tow Package, Sliding Rear Window, Electronic Shift, Keyless Entry, LT265-70-17 Tires, Clarion Pro Audio, Herculiner Bedliner, Air Silencer Removed.

1994 SVT Mustang Cobra. #1032 of 6009. Black coupe with black leather int., 3.73 rear, Bassani Exhaust, Aluminum D/S, Bridgestone RE-71 255-45-ZR17

My Home Page

 

Thanks, all. Lots of good information here. Will make some mods this summer and post my results here. :-)

Lots of good info!

Best regards,
-Mike

 

Hey Mike
We pull a lot with Fords over the years, wanted to give you my two cents worth


First of all we dont ever pull in OD, it just makes too much internal heat in the trannys and driveline and makes the motors lug as well. Running 2700 with light throttle is much easier on the truck than running 1900 with 50% throttle. Plus the need to downshift and all the stresses of that are eliminated.

The way to figure proper rpm for towing is in the range of peak torque and peak horsepower, its called the power band. The 302's torque peak is 2400 and the peak hp is 4400, that means the power band is about the mid point between the two, say 3000-3200. You wont hurt the motor in that range.


The 302's torque peak is 2400, so you need to run anywhere from 2400 and up pulling to keep it operating most efficiently and keep heat down. Running in OD will not gain you any mileage increases since you will use more throttle to keep the same speed. The EEC IV in yours reads point of enrichment at 4 inches of vacuum, staying above 4 inches of vacuum can result in about 20% better fuel mileage. So buy yourself a vacuum gauge and learn how to read it and set the motor for max torque and fuel economy.


Aftermarket exhaust will help some, espcially in the mid range. But as for other mods, there just are not many mods that makes sense on a 10 year old truck because you cant get your money back out of it. Replacing the motor with an upgraded 351 or something for 3-4 grand makes a lot more sense than a supercharger, chips, ignition systems and all. If you plan to keep the truck that is.


What I tell everyone is towing there are only two ways to help mileage, stay out of the throttle and slow down! 70 vs 55 is 25% more in fuel right there, plus a lot more wind drag as well. Keeping that motor around 2600 at 60 versus 3200-3300 at 70 that you are running is about as good as you can do with it, with your load, 9-10 is not a bad goal to shoot for. Also how many miles is on the 302 will also affect fuel economy, older motor just dont make the power at 150k, the made at 35k!


Good luck keep us posted!

 

mastercraft,

I'm interested in this vaccuum guage you speak of. Where could I hook a vaccuum guage up to (I have a '98 4.6L)? Is there a specific hose I need to tap into? How do I "read" the guage? I'm very interested to find out how to use the vaccuum guage.

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1998 F-150 XLT 4x4 SC/SB 4.6L, Auto., 3.55LS, TTP, blah, blah, blah
All the info is at http://www.fordf150.net