Better MPG: tailgate vs no tailgate?

[straycat]

I've got a 4.0 SOHC 4x4 with 4.10 gears so my fuel economy is already bad enough. I've read the physics behind both arguments and from what I've seen it tends to be on a case-by-case basis. So for an '04 extended cab stepside would I even see any difference with or without a tailgate?

I know the 4.10 gears are my killer, I'm not desperately searching for better mileage and this is just a passive curiosity. Why? Because I got off work last night and found my tailgate had been stolen! Very busy shopping center (strip mall so everyone is on sidewalks), there is a city police officer (not private security) permanently assigned to patrol only this parking lot, I was in the 3rd space from the front of the place I work, and it was in broad daylight! It was so ridiculous that I literally started laughing when I saw it missing, I mean how on earth did some guy pull that one off?!

As for the replacement, the Ford dealer said it was discontinued and none of the local junkyards have one. I have a feeling this is going to be a royal pain to find an '04 stepside tailgate. Consolation prize is my comprehensive deductible is only $100!

Thieves suck and should be executed on site....but....search Ebay, Craigslist, scrapyard for another tailgate.

But.....if you are that worried about gas mileage get a small gas sipper car...'Nuff Said'

 

[Enzo_Guy]

Thieves suck and should be executed on site....but....search Ebay, Craigslist, scrapyard for another tailgate.

But.....if you are that worried about gas mileage get a small gas sipper car...'Nuff Said'

Those 4.10 gears murder me regardless but after 4 years I'm used to it, more a curiosity than a burning desire to burn less fuel. I actually do literally no highway driving on my commute, I live out in the woods and just take some twisty backroads into town then 3 traffic lights later I'm at work. Those gears are the killer, once I'm on the interstate it's stuck roaring (forget straight pipe, it pretty much has no pipe) along at 2500rpm, sounds cool but horrible on the wallet. Then again, I used to have an '80 Camaro Z28 with a 350, Muncie M21 4-speed, and 4.10 gears as well; with no overdrive you could watch the gas gauge go down even at 65mph (over 3000rpm) hahaha!

Although, I will say I do like this sudden drastic improvement in rear visibility when backing up!

 

[4x4junkie]

Those gears are the killer, once I'm on the interstate it's stuck roaring (forget straight pipe, it pretty much has no pipe) along at 2500rpm, sounds cool but horrible on the wallet.

Am I reading this right? You have no cats or muffler at all on it??
If so, then that's the problem with your mileage, not your gears or the tailgate...

 

[triumphrider-1]

Am I reading this right? You have no cats or muffler at all on it??
If so, then that's the problem with your mileage, not your gears or the tailgate...

What he said.


LMC Truck has brand new tailgates you can get.
http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/fr/full.aspx?Page=27

 

[Enzo_Guy]

Am I reading this right? You have no cats or muffler at all on it??
If so, then that's the problem with your mileage, not your gears or the tailgate...

Still has the cat since we have emissions every 2 years in this state, obviously running a dump pipe on a naturally aspirated engine would no longer provide the necessary restriction and back pressure. It's a short setup and there may have been a small drop in flow restriction, but either way the truck drank gas like it needed rehab before the loud pipe and I never noticed any decrease that I couldn't attribute to ears peer pressuring my right foot.

Anyways, we're getting off-topic as I have a loud 4x4 truck with the big engine and high-winding gears. I get bad gas mileage, that's the laws of physics, and this truck has always been that way. I'm not trying to find some mysterious problem that instantly gets me double my mileage, in fact I'm positive it has far more to do with my driving and the fact that it's a gas guzzling truck than any modification or maintenance issue.

I was just curious to see, while I'm waiting for the police and insurance company to sort all the red tape out, if I should expect to spend a little more, a little less, or see no difference in my fuel economy.

 

[doorgunner]

I've thought about your situation.....since you need/want the 4.10 gears....and changing gears wouldn't be cost-effective....


the only solutions seems to be a pay increase or drop some un-necessary habits......you get to keep the "Lead foot" annnnnnnnnnnd the "badness" of the 4.10 gears....as for the tailgate--don't get one unless they go on sale!






I hope I was able to help