tips to improve gas mileage?

[tsanderson7]

i drive a 1989 ranger xlt with a 2.9 and an auto trans (unfortunately). I have a 3 inch body lift and run 32 inch mud terrains. The engine is freshly rebuilt and i also have an electric fan and even tried out those e3 plugs that are supposed to help a bunch. and i know there is no possible way for me to get amazing gas mileage but i also think that i should be getting better than 12-13 miles per gallon? any tips at all? i used to run an msd ignition but it shorted out when my alternator fried and took out the whole elctrical system! it seemed to work but it might have been all in my head. and i know the mud terrains arent helping all that much either so im saving up to get some bfg all terrains. but in the meantime i could use some advice on getting some better gas mileage!
and no im not all that heavy on the throttle, just enough to keep up with the flow of traffic, i try and always stay below 3000 rpms whenever i can
thanks!

 

[Gotta_gofast]

You won't like to hear it but remove the body lift and run smaller tires. The extra tire is really hard to turn (especially for a small underpowered engine like a 2.9L) and the extra height is really going to affect wind resistance. If the engine is fresh, has good compression, and everything supporting the engine has been tuned up then there's not much else you can do with the engine to increase efficiency. Synthetic fluids in the engine, diffs, transfer case, and auto trans will help it some.

 

[John Smith]

mine gets ..

26+..as seen in the pic..agree about the smaller tires..and also using cruise at about 2krpm..of course for me that's about 52 mph which I'm happy with..and yes i DO have a white beard..and I manually shift into the next gear as soon as possible..

Unless ur rig is sick for some reason i would suggest driving habits have about as much to do with the mileage as configuration.....did u ever read about the procedure for getting the high mileage record at Bonneville?..in a model "T"...well they basically ran it 0-60 accelerating as slow as possible..then shutting it down and coasting till almost a stop then all over again till they ran out of gas...amazing numbers.. conclusion don't drive the brick over 55 and accelerate slowly..

(you haven't "upgraded" to that larger throttle body have u?)

 

[tsanderson7]

Yeah those tires aren't going anywhere. Haha. Im willing to sacrifice some mpgs for the looks. But I do try and be as easy on the the throttle as I can and I have synthetic all the way around. I feel like a manual tranny would help because this auto is really temperamental and won't shift at the right points usually. And if I had a manual not only could I accelerate faster but I could also keep my rpms lower as well? Does that make sense to you guys? And does anyone know if a chip or something else to that effect would help anything?

 

[John Smith]

another thought...

Yeah those tires aren't going anywhere. Haha. Im willing to sacrifice some mpgs for the looks. But I do try and be as easy on the the throttle as I can and I have synthetic all the way around. I feel like a manual tranny would help because this auto is really temperamental and won't shift at the right points usually. And if I had a manual not only could I accelerate faster but I could also keep my rpms lower as well? Does that make sense to you guys? And does anyone know if a chip or something else to that effect would help anything?

have u checked the HEGO sensor lately?...If it hasn't been change for a while..just sayin...

 

[tsanderson7]

yeah me and grandpa replaced the o2 sensor recently if i remember right

 

[chrwilkins30]

26+..as seen in the pic.

They never got that when new.

With a fresh rebuild you should be getting better than 12-13mpg. Im getting 15-16 with 114,xxx. Something is not right you getting that bad. Also check the ratio in the axles that will have a big effect on you mileage.

Manual trans did seem to help a little but not enough to swap if yours is still in good shape. Mine took a crap that's the only reason I did it. but seriously you shouldn't Expect great mileage on a old vehicle.

 

[Hahnsb2]

4.56 gears...

 

[4.0B2]

yeah... uh...



buy a prius!

 

[hondaxr650]

I have to ask. Is your speedo corrected for the 32s? Going bigger on the tires without correcting the speedo will make your mileage figures completely inaccurate. I'm running 33s with 3.73 gears and a 4.0 automatic and get 15mpg even if I drive it like I stole it. It should be running like crap if it's really only getting 12mpg.

 

[tsanderson7]

thats what i keep thinking too, that there has to be something wrong for it to be getting that bad of gas mileage. and yeah the speedo is still off but ive done all the math and gotten the ratio to find out the speed of what im actually going as well as how many miles i travel. my grandpa has been a mechanic for 30+ years and he thinks thats about as good as its gunna get which i can deal with i guess but i still feel like i should be geting more. i really feel like the manual tranny would help, because my biggest problem is that it shifts at the worst possible times and will randomly downshift and just try and stay wide open when im accelerating (as opposed to remaining in that gear) and just slowly accelerating, i basically have to play games (accelerating then letting off so that it will shift into overdrive) with my transmission to even get the mileage i do now. haha. i just dont know what i can do to help out. and 4.56 gears would be nice but theyre outta my price range. but the truck does run phenomenal and has no mecahnical issues whatsoever, it just has zero power (understandable) and then crappy gas mileage on top of that

 

[tsanderson7]

and i know im not gunna be getting amazing gas mileage and im totally okay with that. i just feel like i should be getting better than i am now.

 

[4.0B2]

Gears..
They would pay for themselves eventually and not to mention it'll make it more fun to drive.

Honestly I don't even like driving my truck right now bc of the 33's mixed with 3.73's. It just feels gutless and I don't care to drive it. Which says a lot coming from me. I'm sure I love my truck than most people love their own truck or wife even..

And the problem with "doing the math and getting the ratio it's off" on your mileage..... Ever think that the ratio is off by different amounts at different rates of speed? Lower speeds the margin of error is different ain't it? Maybe I'm wrong idk..

I just know I don't even have my 4.56's in yet and I already am glad I bought them!

 

[4.0B2]

Maybe it's just time for a 4.0 swap..
I got 18ish in town with 3.73's and 30's with my 4.0.
Even got 21 on the interstate pulling a trailer with cruise on 75; and we all know b2's are as aerodynamic as a freakin barn.

I JUST REREAD YOUR POST.... trash those E3's and get an OEM plug.

 

[tsanderson7]

yeah eventually i wanna go to 4.56 gears with another 4 inches of suspension and 35s but thats not going to be happening anytime soon. and i think i may do that and get rid of the e3s they havent helped a damn thing and i wouldnt be surprised if they were actually hurting it. and we were going to do a 4.0 swap, we were all set up and ready to go but my grandpa (my mechanic) didnt wanna do all the extra work so we decided to rebuild (he was paying so i didnt have much say haha). and the engine is really solid now and we just spent the money to rebuild it so i think i will probably stick with it, cuz its not a bad engine, its just not paired with the right gears or tires. if i do decide to get some new plugs what would you reccomend the most for an old 2.9?? haha

and yeah i know its off at different speeds, theres a ratio i found of like tire sizes and all that that i multiply by the speed my speedo says to get my actual speed, i checked it against a gps as well, and then i multiply this same ratio by the trip meter to get how many miles i traveled.

ive been using the ratio of around 1.18 to multiply by both because that is the ratio of the tire sizes and all that junk, that would make sense for this right? (i went from i think a 27 to a 32)