The myth of MPG

[Lefty]

I'm going to go with Bobby this. Overall powertrain wear and the fuel we have access too. I have noticed a dip in mpg for both of my trucks, more than winter blend fuel and things I have done to them that will reduce mpg.

I had experienced something of a dip when I first bought my truck six years ago, but I was lucky. It had low milage and ran tight. I did all the tweaks the members recommended. I went a little further and installed a dual exhaust.

I had expected to see better acceleration, but the difference was neglible. I did notice however, that mileage improved a little. A LITTLE, hardly worth it.

It seems to me that the Vulcan doesn't really take to improvements and changes, that it is governed by a mild cam and mild valve lift. It just does what it wants to do which is to last a very long time.

My Fiat never delivered on the promise of forty five MPG, but on a good day, on an open road, it scores in the thirties. The difference between that open road and the city is about ten.

The Ranger with the Vulcan offers a much narrower range. The difference is maybe five or six.

 

[ekrampitzjr]

Winter-blend fuel noticeably cuts mileage in my Ranger.

Someone mentioned E15. There have been overblown fears that gas stations would simply substitute E15 for E10 without telling anyone and without changing the markings on the pump. State and federal laws prohibit that. A recent rule change was to allow E15 to be sold year-round instead of only during the winter months, but that's it. There's no conspiracy to change all the E10 to E15 while leaving the pumps marked as 10% ethanol as some in other forums have claimed.

 

[Lefty]

Winter-blend fuel noticeably cuts mileage in my Ranger.

Someone mentioned E15. There have been overblown fears that gas stations would simply substitute E15 for E10 without telling anyone and without changing the markings on the pump. State and federal laws prohibit that. A recent rule change was to allow E15 to be sold year-round instead of only during the winter months, but that's it. There's no conspiracy to change all the E10 to E15 while leaving the pumps marked as 10% ethanol as some in other forums have claimed.

Interesting. I do not burn the cheapest stuff. I moved up to the next octane rating and I'm pretty sure I'm burning all gasoline. Is higher octane worth it? Chances are it helps mileage, but, like most other things with the Vulcan, not so much.

 

[Jtrussell1890]

Having owned and driven a Fiat 500L a few years ago (and being a larger guy) I feel the need to contribute my own experiences. The Fiat was excellent on mileage and I'm a heavy foot. At 95 mph I would consistently get about 35mpg on the highway and average about 30mpg in town. The turbo sure made that little motor sing. Space wise it's was way more room than it looked, but it's the roomiest version of the Fiat 500 series. Compared to my current '96 XLT Supercab Ranger is night and day. The little 2.3l Lima engine is gutless and most of the time won't get out of it ts own way lol. Currently I'm averaging about 17 - 19 mpg, but I'm also religious as "F" about painting tire press, oil levels, filter changes and such. It's a night and day between the two vehicles for sure, but as far as the advertised mpg, that figure is a trick for sales and for the EPA regulations manufacturers have to meet. Unless you're going down hill with the wind at your back and following another larger vehicle to break the wind resistance, you will almost never get the "advertised" mileage.

 

[Lefty]

Having owned and driven a Fiat 500L a few years ago (and being a larger guy) I feel the need to contribute my own experiences. The Fiat was excellent on mileage and I'm a heavy foot. At 95 mph I would consistently get about 35mpg on the highway and average about 30mpg in town. The turbo sure made that little motor sing. Space wise it's was way more room than it looked, but it's the roomiest version of the Fiat 500 series. Compared to my current '96 XLT Supercab Ranger is night and day. The little 2.3l Lima engine is gutless and most of the time won't get out of it ts own way lol. Currently I'm averaging about 17 - 19 mpg, but I'm also religious as "F" about painting tire press, oil levels, filter changes and such. It's a night and day between the two vehicles for sure, but as far as the advertised mpg, that figure is a trick for sales and for the EPA regulations manufacturers have to meet. Unless you're going down hill with the wind at your back and following another larger vehicle to break the wind resistance, you will almost never get the "advertised" mileage.

 

[Lefty]

Another Fiat driver? Maybe we should start our own forum.

 

[ekrampitzjr]

Interesting. I do not burn the cheapest stuff. I moved up to the next octane rating and I'm pretty sure I'm burning all gasoline. Is higher octane worth it? Chances are it helps mileage, but, like most other things with the Vulcan, not so much.

The SOHC was designed for premium by Ford of Germany. Ford put a knock sensor on it and told American owners that using regular was just fine. Many SOHC owners have said their engine runs better on premium and gets better fuel economy because the knock sensor isn't constantly retarding the timing.

For your Vulcan, running premium might not be necessary.

Around here all grades of gasoline have ethanol at most stations. A few stations also carry non-ethanol 89– or 91–octane, but those are exceptions. The non–ethanol costs more than premium 93 with ethanol.

 

[Jtrussell1890]

Another Fiat driver? Maybe we should start our own forum.

I honestly loved that car until the transmission began to act up and cost more to fix than what the car was worth so we totalled it and got rid of it. I wouldn't say no to another if the right opportunity presented itself, but I would be a bit cautious of miles and wear before I pulled the trigger on another. To be fair to the car it didn't help that my ex used it as a door dash car and in 12 months put almost 100k miles on it lol.

 

[Lefty]

The SOHC was designed for premium by Ford of Germany. Ford put a knock sensor on it and told American owners that using regular was just fine. Many SOHC owners have said their engine runs better on premium and gets better fuel economy because the knock sensor isn't constantly retarding the timing.

For your Vulcan, running premium might not be necessary.

Around here all grades of gasoline have ethanol at most stations. A few stations also carry non-ethanol 89– or 91–octane, but those are exceptions. The non–ethanol costs more than premium 93 with ethanol.

Thanks for clarifying that.

 

[pentode]

35MPG@95MPH ? 23MPH average speed in the _city_? You guys are confirming all the Italian car stereotypes. You know that red line on the tach is an upper limit, not a recommendation, right?

 

[Curious Hound]

I bought the whole tachometer. I'm going to use the whole tachometer.

 

[sgtsandman]

Interesting. I do not burn the cheapest stuff. I moved up to the next octane rating and I'm pretty sure I'm burning all gasoline. Is higher octane worth it? Chances are it helps mileage, but, like most other things with the Vulcan, not so much.

I can't speak for the 3.0.

I did play the octane game with the 2019 and found there was a mpg gain using higher octane fuel. It wasn't a huge gain though. Not enough to justify the extra cost in my mind. Now if I'm towing or hauling heavy, I'll run with the recommended octane for that. I believe it is 91.

I don't remember if I played the octane game with the 2011. I did try non-ethanol fuel and was not impressed. Granted, the only thing local is a quasi name brand with a reputation for poor fuel quality. JohnnyO said there is something available over his way, but that is out of the way for me and not worth the extra $1 a gallon to chase it.

 

[Jtrussell1890]

35MPG@95MPH ? 23MPH average speed in the _city_? You guys are confirming all the Italian car stereotypes. You know that red line on the tach is an upper limit, not a recommendation, right?

I never maxed out the tach in that car. It stayed around 2900 rpm at 95 and just cruised. Your would be surprised at how well that little turbo 4 cyl works in a car that weighs nothing.

 

[Lefty]

That little turbo package is very hot

I never maxed out the tach in that car. It stayed around 2900 rpm at 95 and just cruised. Your would be surprised at how well that little turbo 4 cyl works in a car that weighs nothing.

 

[pentode]

I never maxed out the tach in that car. It stayed around 2900 rpm at 95 and just cruised. Your would be surprised at how well that little turbo 4 cyl works in a car that weighs nothing.

Oh, I'm a huge fan of small European cars, especially the cheap ones. They have so many interesting options that we don't get... I think a lot more people would be tempted to buy smaller cars if there were fun affordable options. They get this:

We get the Chevy Sonic.