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Old 07-10-2012, 03:36 PM   #1
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REAL WORLD towing data..the real picture

I see people throw up towing numbers that often just seem either REALLY poor, or unrealistically high....I think we all can agree that there are SOO many parameters that can affect towing performance of any given rig combo on any given day that without a complete picture, the numbers are pretty meaningless...

so before my trip this last week i kept a little "log" of exactly what was going on and how it related to my mpg at the end of the trip....since i make this same trip a few times i will be able to see extactly what and how much is affected by different variables...

So many times i get people asking me "how that new ford pulls" with all the exhaust restrictions blah, blah, blah.....i AM running a tune on mine, but it STILL has ALL factory exhaust and egr components intact!! so here is my data....just for grins and something that shows the WHOLE picture...

Truck- 2012 f250 crew cab, 4x4, 2.5" icon lift, 3.55 e locking rear. (minimax tuner, with kem green tunes) 20" wheels/tires (75psi)

scale weight as loaded for trip (truck only) 8920lbs

Trailer- 2012 lacrosse 318bhs.

scale weight as loaded for trip ( trailer only) 9298lbs

so total rolling rig combo weight 18218lbs

TRIP THERE

Drove from lubbock tx(3256 elevation) to arlington tx (602 elevation) so net 2654ft downhill ....

winds were out of the sw at 30-35mph the whole way....which equates to from the front right to left rear of truck...

cruise was set at about 68 whole way and my avg mpg at camp site arrival was 9.6mpg...mind you this was bucking the 30-35mph wind almost the entire way....hand calculated it was 9.52mpg

ON WAY BACK

winds were light to none 0-5mph from west which equates to left to right

total elevation climb was 2654 uphill

avg mpg on arrival was 11.4mpg via dash.....11.26 hand calculated.

As you can see, the wind makes a huge difference. I made this trip with my father in law who was hauling a 29ft jayco with his 2011 f250 2wd, with 3.31 rear...he saw 9.9mpg going and 11.2mpg coming back...i believe his total rig weight was 15370lbs.

(note, i WAS using 4oz of ford cetane boost in every tank)

so for those of you wondeing real world towing numbers and variables....there ya go!
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Old 07-10-2012, 03:51 PM   #2
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Great report !!!

How well I know about the wind affect. Did a trip in February to SC with all sorts of high-wind warnings out. Steady 20 to 30 mph winds, gusts to 50 mph....maybe shouldn't even have been on the road. Sometimes a headwind, sometimes a cross wind, depending on which way the road was headed at the time. Averaging, it was hitting me at the right front, just like your situation. 9.1 mpg that section of the trip, while I got 11.2 coming back, but by a different road. I had a couple of other fill-ups, but some of the mileage was without the trailer hooked up, so can't count those.
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Old 07-10-2012, 04:16 PM   #3
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yes its a big factor...and as my truck is a lifted 4x4, the top of my HOOD sits about 5.2feet high!! kinda weird when you look across INTO 18 wheelers and are almost the same height! LOL..

the real beauty of the truck is not in the mpg but in the manner in which it does it....normally i would not associate words like "effortless" and " luxury" with a 3/4 ton tow pig...but it is what it is...

here are a couple of other data i kept

max tranny temp on a 8% climb with cruise on was 198 degrees....and rock steady at 195 everyother time i looked....(it was 102 degrees going into arlington!!)

max oil temp was 242 on same climb....

the egts never even remotely got to what i would consider hot nor set off an alarm on my minimax....

as far as sway, im just using a basic trunion bar with single friction. with the on board anti sway control of the truck i had really no "scary moments" even when the 40-50mph side gusts hit.....and on the way back without the wind i was cruizing at ~70 on cruise at 1700rpm and it felt like a cadillac...unreal quiet in the cab....
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2015 F350 Platinum Fx4 6.7 Diesel Dually. B&W turnover, B&W Companion, air bags and wireless controller.
2015 Heartland Road Warrior 420 Rt
2012 f250 Fx4 6.7 Diesel crew cab tinted n tuned
2012 lacrosse 318bhs touring- sold
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