Guys, Is there anything I can do to my 2003 F-150 XLT SuperCrew, 4.6L to get some better gas mileage.........i'll take 1 mpg, anything just get something better. The only thing I have aftermarket on the truck is a K&N filter. Is there anything else that I can get to improve it? The best gas mileage I've ever got is 15 mpg on a straight highway trip to Austin and that was with the tailgate down. The truck only has about 8,500 miles on it.

 

Bastard. I get 12 mpg with my 4.6 scab. Get over it. here's what I'd do if I had the cash to blow.

E-fans and underdrive pulleys. Might get you 2 mpg. But in my opinion the mpg benefit outways the cost of the mods. it would take me like 2 years to pay them off with the current cost of gas. (Around $2.20 here)

 

Get a chip or tuner. Talk with Mike Troyer on the Chip page. He's a busy man so leave a message. A 1715 or 9100 will inprove your milage.

 

I had the same shock when I starting driving my 2003 Super Crew. Your wallet really feels the cost of driving it. I don't drive my truck to work anymore since it was really sucking back the fuel.

I have no problems paying the extra money in fuel costs to have the saftey, comfort, payload (luggage and people) and road pressence that's why I still take it on all my family outings.

From my experience it's my driving habits which make the most different in mileage slow starts and cruise control can make a big difference.

"My opinion on the chip mod" (I don't have one so go ahead and flame me if you must!) All the chip mods I have read that claim better fuel mileage come from using a mod chip and high octane fuel. I think by just using the high octane fuel you would see the improvements without changing the chip. Also I believe if Ford sees a mod chip in your truck they will not do any warrantee work on it.

They look cool and maybe once my warrantee is over I would consider getting one.

 

The SuperChip 9100 has three custom tunes. One of the tunes I chose is 87 octane economy tune. It still runs better and shifts better, yet (openclasspro) is getting over 2 mpg better on his work van. It costs almost $400 bucks so it would take awhile to make that up.

I don't understand why some of you guys get 6000 lb trucks and expect it to get gas mileage like a Honda Civic. I bought my truck to off-road and pull stuff..It serves it's purpose. I bought my wife a Civic and it gets 44 mpg...If you want to get good gas mileage, trade in your truck and get a tin-box ricer.

I don't mean to offend anybody here, it just doesn't make any sense to me.

 

I don't think it's a matter of complaining about not getting great numbers when talking about gas mileage. I think most are concerned when they see someone getting 14-17 MPG and they are getting 10 - 13 MPG.
We all knew moderate to low gas mileage was a given with these trucks. I have gotten lows of 10 and highs of 20+. I can also drive like a 70 year old man on his way to church and get 14-16 around town. This is not my usual driving style, I pay the price for that style. I think we would all like to optimize our mileage whether it's a Toyota Prius or an F-150.
I agree with the comments made regarding the benefits of a Chip. I had a chip in my 97, I don't have a chip in my 02. I don't miss it, and I don't see any difference in the yearly gas totals from one truck to the other. The slight gain in acceleration can be more than made up by leaving 5 seconds earlier for the 3 mile trip to the store to buy beer.

I didn't buy this vehicle for it's acceleration, it's a truck, it accomplishes that better than any other truck I have ever owned.

 

I bought a Retrax bed cover and it helped a little, same effect as putting your tail gate down. It cost like $900 but I didn't buy it specifically for the mileage, I bought it to secure items in my truck as well. If you like the idea of extra lockable storage that will also help the mileage a little, I would suggest a bed cover. And if you are looking for a retractable one definitely go with Retrax. It is by far the best on the market.

 

Yep the mileage is B.S. and the posted sticker on my 2001 supercrew (4.6L) was 15 city and 19 highway. I have never seen above 18!! I usaully average about 14.5mpg no mater what kind of driving. I got 17.5mpg when I drove across Nevada at 85mph with no stopping. I went back to the Ford dealer and told them that this false advertising. They offered to check it out. After I got it back they said they checked it out and told me I was getting 20mpg and theres no problem.

Here's what they did:
They hooked up a computer to the truck and idled it around the parking lot. I know this becuase when I got it back they only added 1 mile to the odometer!

Mileage is really the only complaint I have about the truck. I beat the hell out of it wheel'n and it keep going

 

tailgate down will actually lower your mileage, modern trucks are designed to run most efficiently with them up. plus, it is safer, and i some states, illegal to have them down.

i have a 4.6 2wd, with a tailwind on a road trip, i could pull in the 17s no problem, buck a headwind, back down to 15.

for daily driving, driving habit makes a big difference, all that stuff they taught ya back in the day, take off slow, anticipate your stops so that you are off the gas early.

a light-weight top on the bed can gain you some mileage. on my old truck i had a frame made out of 1/2 x2 wood with a black trap stretched over it. $12 investment worked well. but buying a $900 topper, would take several lifetimes to gain your money back in gas, so don't get one just for that reason.

tires are another big factor, if your tires are properly inflated you can gain a mpg or so there. you can also put skinnier tires on it, but again, the cost of new tires vs what you will save in gas. i stuck my 33"s on right before the price of gas jumped up. i figured it was costing me about an extra $1 - $1.50 per fill up for those tires. thought about picking up some used 17" wheels about $100 if ya look around - but still, takes a long time to make up that $100. and i like the look of the bigger tires.

so it's all what you are comfortable with, and what you are willing to do/change to get the best mileage out of the truck. and to echo what has been said above, it is a truck....

http://www.awtrucks.com/tailgateup.htm

 

Just got back from a road trip. Long Island to Indy, about 800 miles each way. I have an 02 KR Supercrew, 5.4l, 4x4. each tank was 17 to 17.5 mpg. Traveling at 75 to 80 mph average. I was real happy with that mileage. No real mods but I do have an A.R.E. hard lid. That was with 2 people and the bed full with all our gear.

 

Really!??? I'd love to see documentation on this subject....

I'll say that I am never happy to see someone riding around with the tailgate just flopped open, especially when they're sportin' some gear in the bed, or parked in a parking lot with the stupid thing sticking out into the lane.
(If you want to go this route get a net and remove your tailgate altogether. The weight reduction will probably be your net gain).

However, I have a hard time with lower mileage when down. I'd believe no difference, as the wind over the cab probably deflects over the tailgate as well, but lower mileage???? How can that be?? Please tell me where you came across this piece of info (No offense, it's just hard to believe).

 

I've been tracking milage since June so I'll post the result here for your viewing. I run about 27 miles oneway, no traffic I'll run 70, in traffic anywhere from a dead stop to 55. Hope this helps someone.

Date Mileage Trip Distance Fuel Price ($/Gallon) Gallons Fuel Cost MPG Notes (filled with, last driving was mostly city/hwy)
June 6, 2004 51,192 157.1 $1.939 9.370 $18.17 16.8 Regular gas 87 oct.
June 11, 2004 51,510 318.1 $1.879 18.628 $35.00 17.1 Regular gas 87 oct. City driving
June 15, 2004 51,797 287.0 $1.859 17.749 $33.00 16.2 Regular gas 87 oct. City driving, added K&N Filter
June 20, 2004 52,113 316.0 $1.899 20.537 $39.00 15.4 Super, towing boat and city driving.
June 25, 2004 52,428 315.5 $1.899 20.228 $38.00 15.6 WAWA Super 93 oct, city driving.
June 26, 2004 52,702 274.4 $1.899 15.272 $29.00 18.0 WAWA Super 93 oct, Dinwiddie Race Track
July 2, 2004 53,031 329.0 $1.899 19.956 $37.50 16.5 WAWA Super, city driving.
July 9, 2004 53,305 274.0 $1.959 16.845 $33.00 16.3 Exxon Super, city driving.
July 15, 2004 53,628 323.5 $1.999 20.510 $41.00 15.8 Exxon Super, city driving.
July 22, 2004 53,887 258.4 $1.999 17.757 $35.50 14.6 Crown Super, city driving.
July 29, 2004 54,212 325.2 $1.999 20.508 $41.00 15.9 1715 perf. tune, ran it hard, drove it like I stole it.
August 2, 2004 54,502 289.8 $1.999 18.257 $36.50 15.9 2nd tank on chip and ran it hard.
August 7, 2004 54,813 310.9 $1.999 18.509 $37.00 16.8 3rd tank on chip, city driving easy on the throttle.

 

click on the link i inluded at the end of the post - http://www.awtrucks.com/tailgateup.htm

the gist of it is this - at highway speed, a bubble of air is created in the bed of the truck. air flowing over the cab will hit this bubble and keep right on moving, as if it was a hard surface. when you drop the tailgate - the bubble never forms, and you have turbulent air trashing around in the back of your truck.

 

Thanks Dallas, that is one to win a bar bet on! Who would have thought?

 

yep, tailgate down is one of those things that would seem logical. i even ran mine down on my old truck and was thinking about getting one of those bed nets, or whatever they were. started looking around and found out that other people had the same concerns and it was tested.

i alway meant to test it some day, lay in the back of the truck while someone else drove at highway speeds, never got around to it. but i know in my old truck, at 65 mph, if you have an empty can in the bed of the truck, and you open the slider rear window it gets sucked right in and hit the windshield. scared the **** outta me the first time it happened.