Another fuel mileage thread!

[Hotrodlincoln]

I figured out that if I could get 27mpg out of my truck on a regular basis I would only need to fill it up about once a month.

How would I do that? Well obviously with a 4 banger, but I need to decide which one to get.
So what kind of mileage do you guys get out of your 4 cyl rangers? It would be really helpful to know what year truck you have and auto or manual transmission too. Thanks

 

[zamos]

before putting larger rims and tires on my '89 ( 15 inch rims with 225/70r15's) I had no problem getting 27MPG ( with the original equip 14 inch rims & tires ) now as long as I dont run it much faster than 60MPH i get a little over 25 MPG- rolling resistance is very critical with a 4 cyl !

 

[phatcap]

i get 25-27 city, 30 highway pretty consistently. that's after new plugs, wires, fuel filter, oil change (full synthetic), cleaning the IAC and throttle body, and making sure the tires are inflated properly of course...oh yeah, it's a 5-speed manual btw.

 

[Mark_88]

Haven't driven mine for a while but I was getting between 20 and 30 mpg...bigger tires can affect the gas mileage for sure...and so can under inflation and a number of things...someone once described the Ranger as having the aerodynamics of a brick...and that's only part of the problem with getting better fuel economy...

When I kept mine under 100 Km/hr it was much better...over that seemed to cause much higher fuel consumption and I'd attribute that to the aerodynamics alone...

 

[Derek The Great]

I once made it to a 26.95 mpg average over the course of one fill up (20 gallon tank). So i assume somewhere in there it was getting above 30 mpg but i will never find out where. Mostly though, its around 22 or 23. Gear ratios, power output of the motor and where it makes it's power are critical really. Im startin to think id get better gas mileage on the freeway if i just left it in 4th... I gotta get my truck back on the road to prove that though..

 

[jobar]

I once made it to a 26.95 mpg average over the course of one fill up (20 gallon tank). So i assume somewhere in there it was getting above 30 mpg but i will never find out where. Mostly though, its around 22 or 23. Gear ratios, power output of the motor and where it makes it's power are critical really. Im startin to think id get better gas mileage on the freeway if i just left it in 4th... I gotta get my truck back on the road to prove that though..

Im getting 25-27 mpg on a regular basis 30 on the freeway. Oh, and I stay in 4th gear like you said, I think I get better gas mileage in 4th to.

 

[ejholmgren]

I've made 29 mpg before with my '93 reg cab, short box, 2.3L, manual, no ac truck

 

[Ranger44]

I've made 29 mpg before with my '93 reg cab, short box, 2.3L, manual, no ac truck

Haven't quite gotten those numbers yet. I still need manual hubs and an alignment. Maybe get the engine running a bit better?

Around town I get about 19-20mpg when I put my foot in it alot, about 22mpg when I drive a little more conservatively.

On the interstate in 5th driving at 70mph I get around 25-26mpg.

I wonder if driving in 4th will help?

1993 2.3 lima, 4x4, 4.10's, Auto hubs.

 

[Estraka]

My 98 auto, 2.5l gets 24.5 consistently during my normal city (1/3) highway (2/3) driving. I'm pretty gentle on the gas. I'm expecting better numbers during my next fillup, since I just realized my tires were down around 5 lbs and just changed my transmission fluid.

 

[ejholmgren]

Haven't quite gotten those numbers yet. I still need manual hubs and an alignment. Maybe get the engine running a bit better?

Around town I get about 19-20mpg when I put my foot in it alot, about 22mpg when I drive a little more conservatively.

On the interstate in 5th driving at 70mph I get around 25-26mpg.

I wonder if driving in 4th will help?

1993 2.3 lima, 4x4, 4.10's, Auto hubs.

I was getting that in my 2WD, 4x4 hurts a little I would assume.

 

[phatcap]

Im getting 25-27 mpg on a regular basis 30 on the freeway. Oh, and I stay in 4th gear like you said, I think I get better gas mileage in 4th to.

i don't see how running the engine at a higher rpm will get you better mpgs. aren't you just feeding it more fuel? idk though, your mileage is good at 25-30. can't get much better than that. i always thought being easy on the pedal and lower rpms will get you better mileage.

 

[ejholmgren]

i don't see how running the engine at a higher rpm will get you better mpgs. aren't you just feeding it more fuel? idk though, your mileage is good at 25-30. can't get much better than that. i always thought being easy on the pedal and lower rpms will get you better mileage.

It all boils down to where the engine's power band is at. If it's higher up in the rpm's like a 3.0 for example, you'd get much better mileage @ 2.5K+ rpm in 4th gear than you would if you were (essentially) lugging it in 5th at 1.5K rpm.

edit: these are imaginary numbers, but I know the 3.0 likes revs