4.10's to 3.73's

[racsan]

my '88 s/c with a 2.3 5spd man and 3.73's (2wd) could get almost 28 on the highway doing 55. the best my '93 has done is 19 hwy, its a 4wd s/c 5spd man with 3.73's average for it is 17.
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195 Inter

 

[linuxman2003]

21mpg is about right for that engine, pretty much what everyone is saying about the 3.73's is true. When I had my '01 ranger (2.5 SOHC lima engine) It came with 3.73's, and with 235/75r15 tires, I averaged about 19mpg no matter how I drove it. Then I bumped them down to 4.56 gears, and with the same tires I averaged around 22~23 mpg since I was running about 3500 rpms at 70mph. The truck had a VERY noticeable gain in power at highway speeds as well, no bogging down when I had to pass someone. I would suggest just sticking with the 4.10's, and be happy you have a truck getting over 20 mpg something most truck owners cant say!

 

[aggoodin]

My understanding of this engine is its a bored out Mazda 2.0 block, the same thats in my wifes 03 Protege. In her car this is a very efficient little motor. From 0-40k miles on hers it got like 26mpg and then somewhere in the last 10k miles it turned the corner and gets about 31mpg. I am hoping the same is true for the 2.3

 

[aggoodin]

Another thing I was thinking about is my Vulcan equipped 2003 Taurus makes this same run to work as the Ranger and it gets 24 mpg and turns 2600 RPM at 75 mph.

2 more cylinders and better mileage. Not to mention the Taurus has 183,000+ miles on it.

Its just another thing that irks me about the mileage on my truck.

 

[LearjetMinako]

Its a truck. What more can you expect from it than it does more than car, but at lower MPG.

First off, slow down. Even if it is 5mph. I just finished deer hunting and made a 330 mile trip doing 65mph all the way. MPG was at 26mpg and I could have easily made 500miles to the tank. I figure I lose 2mpg for every 5mph increase above 65mph and 1mpg loss above 55 to 65 mpg. I have in the past almost gotten 30mpg doing 55mph.

A little about my truck. 1996 Ranger, 2.3L, standard tranny, with oversized tires (org. 225/70R14, now 225/70R15), with a 3.73 axle. The oversized tires does make the 3.73 act more like a 3.55. And at 65mph, rpm's sit at 2,250.