Bounder: MPG Ford 6.8 30Valve 362hp w/TOAD

[CLIFFTALL]

Originally Posted by MegaRoadie

The 6 to 7 mpg experiences with the Ford V-10 were my #1 reason for going with the GM 8.1 Vortec with Allison. I was consistently averaging 8.3 to 9.3, but then I drove at 2000 rpm and 58 - 60 mph. Rather slow a bit, get there unfrazzled and pocket the savings on fuel and wear and tear.

Be safe... enjoy your travels

That's interesting. All my friends with that package wish they got 7.

[The General]

This comes from the Workhorse Forum by a poster named Chechee:

On July 24th we arrived back in Charleston after completing an 8033 mile round trip to and up the west coast. At the end we had 29681 miles on our '03 Winnie. Since joining this forum I have read and taken part in a number of threads dealing with gas mileage for the WCC 8.1 MH's. Being an anal engineer, I was not willing to take what I considered as exaggerated claims of mileage without
documentation. As a counterpoint I have been collecting data on the fuel consumption of my rig since the odometer was reading 5149 miles. The data collected represents a sample of 24532 miles driven over highways in all but five of the lower 48 states, 198 hours of generator usage and towing a '04 Honda CR-V LX for each of those miles. During this period we drove over all types of roadways with greatly varying elevations and environmental conditions. Utilized numerous brands of regular unleaded gasoline with octane ratings from 85 – 87 (including ethanol mixtures) which we purchased in each of the 43 sates and 4 Canadian provinces as we traveled. Speeds driven ranged from city stop and go to Interstate travel which for limited time periods reached 75 MPH. Over the long haul I would estimate my average highway speed to be around 62 MPH at 2100 RPM. While this is not intended to be presented as a scientific paper, I do hope that it will rise above the level of documentation present in previous threads to justify sustained MPG of 8 MPG or higher. The results are as follows:

Average for the 24532 miles driven 7.20902 MPG

Average for the last 8033 miles driven 7.45772 MPG

Based on this limited sample of one coach, I still think claims of 8.5 or higher are to be taken with a grain of salt. The greatest factor limiting the MPG potential for a motor home is not weight, but is the drag coefficient (Cw) of the frontal area of a coach. For current coaches it is pretty close to 1:1. This with most new cars being nearer to .5 or less. Add to this the engine displacement, operating RPM, GCWR with environmental factors and I challenge anyone to prove sustained MPG in excess of 8 MPG under normal driving conditions. I am an engineer so I take no responsibility for grammatical and/or spelling errors in this posting.
__________________
2003 34D Brave Workhorse 8.1L w/Allison 5-speed

2004 CR-V EX


Do I need a foxhole????
Steve

[CLIFFTALL]

Originally Posted by clifftall

That's interesting. All my friends with that package wish they got 7.

Here is a post from the Bounder forum on Yahoo that I belong to. I've removed the posters name. He was at the Workhorse rally when he posted it. Most of the members on the forum experience similar results.

"RE: Bounder Info MPG

I would kiss the ground if I could get 7 mpg.



At The Workhorse rally at Hatteras, NC"

[The General]

Originally Posted by MegaRoadie

The 6 to 7 mpg experiences with the Ford V-10 were my #1 reason for going with the GM 8.1 Vortec with Allison. I was consistently averaging 8.3 to 9.3, but then I drove at 2000 rpm and 58 - 60 mph. Rather slow a bit, get there unfrazzled and pocket the savings on fuel and wear and tear.

Be safe... enjoy your travels

MegaRoaddie,

I see that you glow in the night from the Plutonium additive you put
in your fuel tank while going down the gator infested swamps in Florida.
We are going to swear you in on a stack of bibles soon!

I think I'll try helium balloons attached to my Bounder to lighten the load
and let you know what happens

Steve

[Doug Sage]

I don't know why you are concerned about mileage when you have only driven 5,000 miles in nearly 4 years. If you have owned it for 40 months then your average miles driven per month is 125. This calculates to just over 20 gallons of fuel per month which then means you are talking $20 per month additional expense for each $1 increase in gas cost. To put it another way, if you could get 8 mpg rather than 6 mpg, you are going to save 5 gallons of gas per month which amounts to $20+ again.

Another point is driving speed. We are essentially pushing three full sheets of plywood down the road. Drag is huge. I have averaged 6.75 mpg on my Workhorse over 35,000 miles and I always tow a Suzuki Grand Vitara which weighs 3,500 pounds. I typically drive 62 to 65 mph. One time I drove 400 miles of the Natchez Trace which has a speed limit of 50 mph. I got the best mileage ever at 8.37 mpg. Obviously, you cannot drive most highways at 50 mph but the slower you drive the better when it comes to mpg.

[The General]

Originally Posted by Doug Sage

I don't know why you are concerned about mileage when you have only driven 5,000 miles in nearly 4 years. If you have owned it for 40 months then your average miles driven per month is 125. This calculates to just over 20 gallons of fuel per month which then means you are talking $20 per month additional expense for each $1 increase in gas cost. To put it another way, if you could get 8 mpg rather than 6 mpg, you are going to save 5 gallons of gas per month which amounts to $20+ again.

Another point is driving speed. We are essentially pushing three full sheets of plywood down the road. Drag is huge. I have averaged 6.75 mpg on my Workhorse over 35,000 miles and I always tow a Suzuki Grand Vitara which weighs 3,500 pounds. I typically drive 62 to 65 mph. One time I drove 400 miles of the Natchez Trace which has a speed limit of 50 mph. I got the best mileage ever at 8.37 mpg. Obviously, you cannot drive most highways at 50 mph but the slower you drive the better when it comes to mpg.

Doug,

My simple reason is to find out what the norm is for my particular rig/engine combination. If there was an abnormality in the Ford, I would expect it to be shown in this question.
I am a mega zillionaire and don't need to save any money on fuel and I also throw out all old currency in my pocket. If I was serious in attaining higher fuel mileage, I'd pull the Bounder with my Saturn Vue
You are a great straight man and I love you for that.

On the factual side now:
RV: 2008 Bounder 35E
Chassis: 2007 Ford F-Series Super Duty Class A Motorhome
Engine: 6.8ltr triton 30valva V-10 362 hp
Transmission: TorqShift 5 speed automatic overdrive
Average Speed: 55-60 mph
Mode: Tow/Haul
Toad: 2007 Saturn Vue Redline V6
Toad Brake System: US Gear Unified TowBrake


Steve

[trainsktg]

Regarding milage, I suppose length and the presence or absence of slides are of importance here too...i.e. the overall weight of the rig/tow. So far, at approximately 5,500 miles into our cross-country-and-back trip, pulling the Corolla on a dolly, we've seen a daily average of between 8.5 to 9.0 as measured by a Scanguage. Our low was about 7.0 on the first day traveling from Oregon to Idaho, mostly uphill, and with a strong headwind. Our best was 11.5 from Albuquerque to Carlsbad with a pleasant tailwind. To back this up, adding up my filling station receipts and dividing by total miles travelled, we've seen 8.65mpg so far. (I try to keep my speed between 55 and 60 as well.)

Adding the extra HP of the 3v engine over the 275HP V10, and more weight than our meager total of about 19,000#, and I can certainly see 7.0 to 7.5, or even less, being normal.

Keith

[codgerbill]

I have to spend the money on gas otherwise the wife will spend it on other non essentials

[The General]

Originally Posted by codgerbill

I have to spend the money on gas otherwise the wife will spend it on other non essentials

codgerbill,

When you charge that fuel, add a couple of six packs for adult libation.
Wonder how we divide that into MPG calculations???


Steve

[Elkhartjim]

We just returned from a jaunt around Texas. I averaged close to 10mph on the MH and 30 on the toad. I guess that means I averaged 20mph on my trip.

[CLIFFTALL]

Originally Posted by Elkhartjim

We just returned from a jaunt around Texas. I averaged close to 10mph on the MH and 30 on the toad. I guess that means I averaged 20mph on my trip.

JIM, JIM, JIM, did you misplace your glasses again? This thread is miles per gallon, not miles per hour( MPH ). Oh Magoo you've done it again

Sorry Steve , I'll call the home and have him checked out.

[The General]

Originally Posted by clifftall

JIM, JIM, JIM, did you misplace your glasses again? This thread is miles per gallon, not miles per hour( MPH ). Oh Magoo you've done it again

Sorry Steve , I'll call the home and have him checked out.

Hey Jim,

Cliff "Got You"
Hope you can get a combined 20mph pushing both back to the senior care center!

Steve

[CLIFFTALL]

Hey Steve. Drove 200 miles today without the tow haul and got 7.58 mpg. Highway ( 95 ) towing a car with an average speed of 62 and generator on fo 3 1/2 hours. Not too shabby.

[Elkhartjim]

Originally Posted by clifftall

Hey Steve. Drove 200 miles today without the tow haul and got 7.58 mpg. Highway ( 95 ) towing a car with an average speed of 62 and generator on fo 3 1/2 hours. Not too shabby.

I know you honored your earlier statement and kissed the ground.