Fuel economy

trents · Aug 31, 2008

Just took a trip to the Washington coast on Friday, a round trip of about 120 miles. Mixture of two lane state roads and freeway, i.e. 55-60 mph except for a couple of small traffic jams. Before I left I filled up and top off and when I returned I filled up and topped off at the same gas pump. Got 23.7 mpg. I was pretty pleased with that. This is an '83 Ranger 4x4 4 spd. with 3.73 rear gears, Duraspark conversion, stage 1 RV cam, new remanufactured 2150 Motorcraft 350 cfm. carb, heads and block zero decked and stock exhaust. Timing is set at 12 degrees BTDC. Last Spriing I put on a Accel super coil and 8mm plug wires and think this was the biggest factor in improving my mileage. I had read a lot Ranger user posts who upgraded to high output ignition coils. Most were disapointed they didn't really see a power increase but many of them mentioned their fuel economy improved. I would agree with that. I think the better coil and wires may have given me about 2 mpg improvement.

skippy · Aug 31, 2008

Thanks for the tip on mpg.Do you remember what plug gap you currently running?

trents · Aug 31, 2008

.044" I think. That's what the oem plug gap is for the '83 2.8 Ranger. The carb is 350 cfm which is what was used on the Ford V8's in the 70's. I had hoped to get the 285 cfm version from the rebuilder which was the oem spec on the 2150A's put on the '83 Ranger and also the 2150's put on '76 2.8 Pintos (the vehicle I use for reference when ordering carbs and ignition parts for my Ranger). I was afraid the 350 cfm version would give me poorer throttle response and fuel ecomomy but really, I can't see where it has hurt either.

One thing I would like to point out to the forum users about carbs is that if you get one with combination electric and heat tube choke opening mechanisms you may need to block off a port underneath the carb that draws in the hot air through the choke heat tube. It can create a vacuum leak if, like me you aren't using the heat tube assist for the choke which was not a feature found on the 2.8 Rangers. Just to cap off the heat tube fitting at the choke housing is ineffective because it will sitll leak through the plastic choke housing cap where the electrical fitting is. The port underneath the carb connects through the carb body and one of the three mounts the choke housing attaches to. Stuff it with a small bit of fuel line hose and plolyethylen-based sealant (regular silocone RTV is not fuel resistant). The reason I mention this is because I am reading of a lot of guys with problems controlling high idle speeds and they have checked for vacuum leaks in all the usual places to no avail. Since the 285 cfm 2150's are hard to find, a lot of guys have had to go with the much more common 350 cfm version that often came with the heat tube choke opener.

85general · Aug 31, 2008

wow 23 mpg? i hope i get somewhere close now that my rigs runnin right, i got the 2.8 w/ 4-speed and 3.73 gears aswell.

trents · Aug 31, 2008

Yeah, I was rather pleased with the fuel economy I am getting. Most guys get around 16 with these rangers and not a few around 12.

skippy · Aug 31, 2008

I have 3.45 gears and my mileage doesn't compare with yours.I run .44 on autolite plugs,with #63 jets.But,i have yet to have a ricer beat me off the
line.

I am considering the hotter coil and wires.This is not my dd,just the home depot bitch.

trents · Aug 31, 2008

Yeah, I just use my Ranger occasionally now since the price of gas went up. Even though I get decent mileage for a truck with it it still doesn't compare to the Hyundai Accent I got recently to be my dd.

By the way, I got the Accel Super Coil, (the old, big yellow boxy one) for under five dollars on ebay. The 8mm wires were a universal, put on your own ends V8 set I got a Schucks. I got the V8 set because it had some longer wires which were needed in this case because of where I had to mount the coil. The only good place I could find was on the driver side fender.

Eric Kropp · Sep 5, 2008

On my Ranger, and it is totally stock, I was getting some real sucky mileage, between 10-14. I put a rebuilt carb on from National Carburetor Rebuilders and new fancy Bosch four prong plugs and I get 18-19 with comuting and 23 to 29 on the straight, flat, with a tail wind at 65mph and maybe a semi giving me a little draft.

Eric

skippy · Sep 13, 2008

I wonder if we can recommend this carb to duraspark converts in the future?
Anybody with experience or knowledge please chime in.

http://www.partsamerica.com/productdetail.aspx?MfrCode=HO2&MfrPartNumber=645242

trents · Sep 14, 2008

skippy said:
I wonder if we can recommend this carb to duraspark converts in the future?
Anybody with experience or knowledge please chime in.

http://www.partsamerica.com/productdetail.aspx?MfrCode=HO2&MfrPartNumber=645242

The Holley carb you reference would seem to be appropriate and the price is reasonable.

If you can find one, however, I think the Motorcraft 2150 is a better choice. Here is a quote from Eagel Research, a company that makes fuel saving devices. I haven't used any of their devices but they explain what makes the Motrocraft 2150 so efficient:

Q. I'm changing my carburetor, what do you recommend? A. We usually recommend people with to go to the Ford Motorcraft 2 barrel (with manifold adapter) model 2150, which is (in our opinion) the best all around carb. we've ever seen. You don't lose much power or performance and you get a major leap in mileage. You can tell a 2150 from it's 2100 cousin by the little rods that rise and fall in the ventures as you work the throttle. These small tapered rods make the air bleeds variable as the vehicle uses more or less fuel. This simple function makes the 2150 one of the most efficient carburetors ever manufactured. The Carburetor Enhancer actually enhances the operation of the air bleeds and because the 2150 has one of the best air bleed systems, we've doubled the mileage of these carburetors more than any other; just with the Carburetor Enhancer. (http://www.eagle-research.com/FAQ/FS/cefaq.html)

Original_Ranger84 · Sep 16, 2008

Damn, and here I am with everything I need for a duraspark for 400$ and it came with an engine and a transmission, the guy was swapping in a 302 and sold me his engine and tranny with the duraspark stuff on it. I should put it on, although I get like 19 with 31's and 3.73s.

OilPatch197 · Oct 31, 2008

Interesting information! Better gas mileage than my 21mpg ECC-IV system.

Unfortunately I cannot justify spending $$$ until something major breaks. BTW how would a hotter coil increase mpg, and how many mpg would I save if I were to get a "fuel saver" camshaft?

Since my truck has never been rebuilt, I'm sure I got some cam wear, great information and hopefully I can experiment with your info.

skippy · Nov 1, 2008

trents said:
The Holley carb you reference would seem to be appropriate and the price is reasonable.

If you can find one, however, I think the Motorcraft 2150 is a better choice. Here is a quote from Eagel Research, a company that makes fuel saving devices. I haven't used any of their devices but they explain what makes the Motrocraft 2150 so efficient:

Q. I'm changing my carburetor, what do you recommend? A. We usually recommend people with to go to the Ford Motorcraft 2 barrel (with manifold adapter) model 2150, which is (in our opinion) the best all around carb. we've ever seen. You don't lose much power or performance and you get a major leap in mileage. You can tell a 2150 from it's 2100 cousin by the little rods that rise and fall in the ventures as you work the throttle. These small tapered rods make the air bleeds variable as the vehicle uses more or less fuel. This simple function makes the 2150 one of the most efficient carburetors ever manufactured. The Carburetor Enhancer actually enhances the operation of the air bleeds and because the 2150 has one of the best air bleed systems, we've doubled the mileage of these carburetors more than any other; just with the Carburetor Enhancer. (http://www.eagle-research.com/FAQ/FS/cefaq.html)

Autozone has a 2150 listed as part #6-384 that looks like what you are talking about.

RobbieD · Nov 1, 2008

Good thread; I'm following it closely.

I have all of the ignition parts for the Duraspark conversion on the way for my '84 2WD stock truck; which means I'm looking hard at which carb to use. I was already leaning strongly towards using a Motocraft 2150.

I'm considering two options:
a) Converting the truck's original carb (computer-controlled 2150, recently rebuilt) by using the fabricated metering block modification which is found in a post here in the forums; or
b) Purchasing a remanufactured older '70s application Motorcraft 2150.

I'm not in a hurry on making the Duraspark conversion, and money is tight these days. So my question is, does anyone here have any first-hand experience with the original carb conversion?

Here's the thread on the stock carb conversion:
http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=981

Fuel economy

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