Took a Trip WOW Gas Mileage!!!

[Glockafella]

Well my Family and I went to Omaha to check out the Zoo. Loaded up the Marauder with 3 kids, the wife, and I with a full trunk of gear...Got on the highway set the cruise @70MPH with the A/C on Auto.

After filling up and making round trip, I got home and figured up the gas mileage...

You guy won't belive it...23 MPG. I told my wife and I don't think she belives me. But its true folks. After 7 years and 78,000 miles this beast still get great gas mileage. BTW I have a :bows:Lidio 91 Octane 3.55 tune.

I love this car more and more.

I get my oil changed after I returned from the trip, The Ford Dealer told me it wasnt nessesary until 5K miles, but I had them do it anyways @ 3K.

Is this true?normal? for this car?

I get a standard long oil filter, I thought they shortened them up? or at least I thought I read that they did. Old oil and new oil both look translucent and clean BTW. LOVE IT!:beer:

[03calitejas]

Amen brutha...driving these beasts cross country is cheaper than flying. I just got back frome Fargo to Chicago roundtrip for the 4th and on the way back I actually made it through a whole tank of premium without stomping on it (a rare thing for me and especially rare when Dom is involved) mostly cruising at 70-79 with the air on...23.5MPG!

With 4.10's and a good tune I think the mileage is now better than stock. And it's a whole bunch of fun to lure unsuspecting ricers down to 38 MPH and then stomping the gas for a rolling 1st gear hole shot and then a couple seconds later getting rubber again in 2nd when the tach hits 6500.

life is goooooooooood :burnout:

[duhtroll]

This is mathematically impossible unless your computer had a problem that was fixed when you got a tune.

I remember all the talk years ago that 4.10s "won't hurt your gas mileage." That cannot possibly be true, all else equal. The numbers don't lie.

I got 24.5 MPG on a trip of over 1000 miles the first month I had the car. Then I got 4.10s and my mileage has never been better than 22 since.

Don't get me wrong, I would do it all over again as mileage is less important than acceleration in this car to me. But there is no argument, the gearing MUST affect gas mileage unless you're altering other variables.




With 4.10's and a good tune I think the mileage is now better than stock.

[O's Fan Rich]

Cruise control is your friend.... along with self-control!

[SC Cheesehead]

Cruise control is your friend.... along with self-control!

Agreed. On trips where I can use the cruise control, I've seen virtually no change in mileage between 3:55's and 4:10's up to 70 mph or so. Got around 21.5 to 22.5 mpg before, and I hold to that range now. If I bump the speed up to 75 or higher, mileage will drop to around 20 or so.

Now around town is a different story....:cool:

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

Yeah I see 20-22 if I drive a whole tank of 100% highway but I cruise around 75-80 (3.73 gear). I think I got 22.x the most recent tank and it was my best ever. My friekin new-to-me 2004 3.0 DOHC Taurus is far more aerodynamic, lighter, and smaller displacement, and it only does a few mpg better than the Marauder!!

[SC Cheesehead]

Agreed. The majority of rental cars I drive (typically intermediates and the occasional small SUV or crossover) are typcially in the mid-20 mpg range, and aren't nearly as fun to drive as a Marauder.

[Bluerauder]

Well my Family and I went to Omaha to check out the Zoo. Loaded up the Marauder with 3 kids, the wife, and I with a full trunk of gear...Got on the highway set the cruise @70MPH with the A/C on Auto.

After filling up and making round trip, I got home and figured up the gas mileage...

You guy won't belive it...23 MPG. I told my wife and I don't think she belives me. But its true folks. After 7 years and 78,000 miles this beast still get great gas mileage. BTW I have a :bows:Lidio 91 Octane 3.55 tune.
I figure that the kids are costing you about 1.5 MPG or about 1/2 MPG per kid. :D Next time leave 1 or 2 of the kids at home and check your mileage. ;)













:jk:

[03calitejas]

Mine must be just getting broken in then...she has 133k miles on it and still doesnt burn any oil or puff smoke on start ups...Mathematics or not, I ain't BS'ing about the mileage...kinda freaked me out. Is it possible that gearing it with the 4.10's actually puts the engine in a more efficient rpm for highway cruising? Most of the drive thru Wisconsin and Minnesota was with the cruise set at 79MPH...and btw-the trunk was full of road trip stuff (coolers and suitcases) with my lady and stepson as passengers....

[duhtroll]

If you drive the same speed under the same conditions with the same weight in the car, the 4.10s require more engine RPMs to maintain that speed.

It is pretty simple math. The MPG drop - there is no way around it. If you are seeing no mileage difference from the gear swap, something else also changed in your driving habits or driving conditions.

But hey, what do the laws of physics matter, anyway? Convince yourselves otherwise. :D

[Spectragod]

I'm happy with 12-14mpg, I don't know what you guys are doing....

[justbob]

I honestly picked up exactly one more MPG since the Trilogy. 70 MPH /with cruise on stock 20.5, Trilogy 70 once again, 21.5. More efficient? However under load perhaps 10 MPG?

[sconut1]

Glockafella.... I've been really lucky with mine. 29.5 miles per Imperial gallon (24.6 miles per US gallon) if I'm really driving careful, just me in the car, cruise set at 60mph, zero mods to my car. The minute I start putting my foot in it, the mileage drops. At 70 mph, I fall to about 27.5 miles per imperial gallon (22.9 miles per US gallon), which is pretty much what you were getting for mileage and at the same speed. I'm just amazed at the mileage our cars can get.

For those who are getting crap mileage, and your cars are stock, I'll share a little story for you. If you've got around 100,000 miles on your car (as my 1993 Mercury Sable does), I noticed my mileage slowly dropping off. It was a struggle for me to get 248 miles on a tank (400km); when my dad owned it, he used to boast about it's mileage. So tune-up, plugs, wires, cap, rotor, check iginition timing.... and it was better, but not much: 260 miles on a tank (430 km). My sable has a 3.8 V6, so had it checked for an HG leak, but the HGs were just fine. These numbers were very consitant. And the car ran like a clock.... as smooth if not a smoother idle than my Marauder. My mechanic buddy told me that O2 sensors become lazy over time and that they often won't throw a code. I threw a new set of 02 sensors in. Wow... now 341 miles on a tank (550 km) and that's combined city and freeway driving! So... if your car is running great, but the gas mileage is bad, and there's no other reason for the bad mileage that you can think of (mods, driving habits), O2 sensors are something a guy might want to consider.

[252life]

When my car was completely stock I could get around 25mpg.

Now with my TS at 70 mph I get 19 mpg with cruse control & AC on, I measured it with a Scanguage (and I have stock gears and airbox)

And at 75 mph I get 18.4 mpg, at 85mph 16mpg

Only at 55 Mph is it possible the get 20 mpg.

My best average on a tank is 18mpg and the worst is 12mpg, usually I get 14-16mpg average.

But gas mileage only play a small part in the total "cost-per-mile" there is allso insurance, mods, repairs, value depreciation, loan interest, etc...

[Motorhead350]

I get 18.5 on the highway.

John you stomped on it!

[CoreyM75]

I just filled up yesterday nad checked the mileage. I got 23.84 milesper gallon and it was a mix of highway and city driving. About 75% highway and I drive like a 77 year old lady.

[03calitejas]

The tank of gas that got the great mileage was NOT the same tank of fuel I had in it when I took you for a lil spin Dom ;)

[JimmyXR7]

When my car was completely stock I could get around 25mpg. Now with my TS at 70 mph I get 19 mpg with cruse control & AC on, I measured it with a Scanguage (and I have stock gears and airbox) And at 75 mph I get 18.4 mpg, at 85mph 16mpg Only at 55 Mph is it possible the get 20 mpg. My best average on a tank is 18mpg and the worst is 12mpg, usually I get 14-16mpg average. But gas mileage only play a small part in the total "cost-per-mile" there is allso insurance, mods, repairs, value depreciation, loan interest, etc...

I thought California gas was bad but in Sweden you must have your gas cut (with alcohol or ?) for gas mileage that poor.

I drive on Interstate 80 to Reno a couple of time a year and get 24 MPH straight thru (4 hours of driving without stops) every time. I drive in the morning so maybe the conditions are good for mileage. The air is still cool so I do not run the A/C until near noon time. However, my speed is between 65 and 80 MPH as traffic allows and with the cruise control on when possible. My Marauder has 60,000 miles on it. Jim

[252life]

I thought California gas was bad but in Sweden you must have your gas cut (with alcohol or ?) for gas mileage that poor.



I use Shell V-Power 99 octane (RON) (no ethanol)
If I can't get that then I use 98 octane (RON) (no ethanol).
We also have 95 octane (RON) it has 5% ethanol, but I never use it.

(I have a TS = (Trilogy) Twin Screw, that's why the mileage is not so good.)

[Marylandrauder]

We have two 04's that are stock and both get 21-22 mpg around northern D.C. burbs, and 28 -29 mpg going up 95 to N.Y. @ posted speed limits on 91 octane gas.

[Aren Jay]

.................

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

Yeah I bet if I drove the speed limit the gas mileage would be great but then I would have bought something else because I wouldn't need 300 horsepower. I will never know what kind of gas mileage this car gets at 55 or 65 mph. Probably good but that's un-useably slow cruise speed territory. Ford didn't put the 4V engine in this car to cruise at the speed limit on your way down to Florida. That's what Grand Marqs were made for.

[Motorhead350]

Ford didn't put the 4V engine in this car to cruise at the speed limit on your way down to Florida. That's what Grand Marqs were made for.

HAHAHA!

Yes!!!

[rayjay]

Agreed. On trips where I can use the cruise control, I've seen virtually no change in mileage between 3:55's and 4:10's up to 70 mph or so. Got around 21.5 to 22.5 mpg before, and I hold to that range now. If I bump the speed up to 75 or higher, mileage will drop to around 20 or so.

Now around town is a different story....:cool:

+1, exactly what I got last week on the SC trip.

[03calitejas]

Who mentioned driving the posted speeds? (Dom.....Dom???) I set the cruise at 9 over when going cross country and go a bit slower or faster if the situation calls for it.

And BTW the physics of engine efficiency and gear ratios is nowhere near as "simple" as some people think. Having 4:10 gears and getting the engine up to optimal operating RPM's for highway speeds and at the same time acheiving better MPG is entirely possible. If it were as cut and dried as that, everyone would get enormous MPG increases by using ridiculously long gears.

[BLACKMARAUDER04]

I just drove roundtrip from LA to Portland. Got my first ever 400 mile tank on the way back. Averaged 23-25 MPH going between 65-75 mph with the air conditioning on all the time. It cost about $125 in gas each way.

[Stranger in the Black Sedan]

how do you "average" 23-25mpg on one trip? is this from a scan tool?

[duhtroll]

Yeah, you'll notice that's why I said "all else being equal."

You drive the same way in the same conditions with 4.10s that you did with 3.55s, your mileage goes down.

The reason the Marauder was released with 3.55s vs. 4.10s was specifically to avoid the gas guzzler tax. Thanks for bringing that up.

Look, you guys can try and justify things all you want. You buy gears for acceleration, not mileage. If you put in 4.10s thinking they are going to not affect mileage, you're using pharmaceutical help to reach that conclusion.





And BTW the physics of engine efficiency and gear ratios is nowhere near as "simple" as some people think. Having 4:10 gears and getting the engine up to optimal operating RPM's for highway speeds and at the same time acheiving better MPG is entirely possible. If it were as cut and dried as that, everyone would get enormous MPG increases by using ridiculously long gears.

[Leadfoot281]

I've never once gone below 19mpg with my car since the day I bought it. Both Kentucky trips got me just over 27 mpg.

In fact, after the last Kentucky trip, I went from just north of Seymour Indiana to Minnesota on one tank. I got 460 miles on that tank. The so called 'low fuel' light came on 93 miles from home and I never stopped.

The 'low fuel' light is just an urban legend. :beer:

[Marauder_Santa]

From day one my MM has had better gas mileage than my 6 cylinder PU that I traded in for the MM. I'm in the middle of my 3rd Atlanta - NY trip (2600 miles round trip).

Both previous trips I averaged 26.4 miles to the gallon. I'm very conservative on the pedal and use the cruise as much as possible.

I love this car. Maybe this is why the cops call it a "Cruiser".