8.1 ultrapower upgrade?

[biker-bob]

I have a national dolphin '04 with an 8.1l . Runs great, average speed [due to car type that we tow] is 65 mph. Is there an upgrade to help mileage? Any suggestions that have worked would be appreciated.thanks, bob

[MntDriver]

"007" reported here a couple years ago that his mileage went from "6 MPG to 9 MPG" with the Ultrapower upgrade. Increased mileage claims like this one were reported on this forum for awhile after the upgrade introduction several years ago, but it turned out that these type mileage increase claims turned out to be exagerated, and actual mileage stayed the same or decreased somewhat after the install.

If you are receiving 7.2 to 7.8, that is pretty much what you should expect, and any gimmick claiming increased mileage will be a dissapointment, and a big hit out of your bank account. Save your money for gas, and decrease your speed to 55 mph, and you could hit the upper end of actual mpg of 8.0 of the big block.

[DriVer]

The increased MPG benefits of running Ultrapower are modest to say the least. If it indeed were the case that the engine used less fuel while providing more power an argument could be made in regard to running the engine lean which I can guarantee you is not the case.

Ultrapower may increase your MPG values from .5 MPG to 1.5MPG and this value is a sliding scale depending on your coach type, weight etc.

Typically Ultrapower will provide you with more Horsepower and the all important Torque. When an engine makes more horsepower it typically will consume more fuel. The benefit is realized by fewer shifts on modest grades and good power off the line. I have been running UP for about 6 years.

UP has been extensively tested on a water brake dynamometer and is quantified by the many before and after printouts that the equipment provides. Concluding, UP does not change or compromise the safety limits that GM designed into the calibration. UP is not a gimick.

Brazel's RV Performance made available 1 UltraPower Tune retailing at $799.00 as a Grand Prize at the 2011 National Rally. To their credit as well, if you could not use the UP they also optioned a "Track bar" and Source Engineering's "Comfort Control Units" for air bag suspension on diesel powered motorhomes.

[melvonnar]

55 MPH is the sweet spot for an 8.1; start running there and save your money for gas. All these upgrades only make money for the sellers.

I have a ford V10, everyone complains about gas milage; I"m 34 feet long and pull a toad, get 8.1 MPG; keep it at 55 MPH or less.

["007"]

I still stand by what I said on return trip after getting the upgrade in Tenn. irv2 Rally.
Couldn't believe it myself even after recalculating and not of the dash board.
This was the same return route back home.
Do not tow a car.
Maybe it was all down hill or southerly winds.
I drive in a relax position whats the rush and in cruise most of the time and 8.1 & Allison just cruise along the best of Workhorse combination.
All I can say for sure I have got my return in money's since having it done with todays prices.

[WeatherTodd]

Originally Posted by melvonnar

55 MPH is the sweet spot for an 8.1; start running there and save your money for gas. All these upgrades only make money for the sellers.

I have a ford V10, everyone complains about gas milage; I"m 34 feet long and pull a toad, get 8.1 MPG; keep it at 55 MPH or less.

your ford v10 requires lots of RPM to generate teh same power an 8.1 engine does at less than 2,000 rpm. There is no comparison... besides the UP is a viable option for increased torque. Something the V10 lacks.

[Alan_Hepburn]

Originally Posted by biker-bob

I have a national dolphin '04 with an 8.1l . Runs great, average speed [due to car type that we tow] is 65 mph. Is there an upgrade to help mileage? Any suggestions that have worked would be appreciated.thanks, bob

The single biggest modification you can make to increase mileage is to keep the go pedal farther from the floor - cruising at 55 mph towing a smart car we get 10 mpg consistently. Increase that to 65 mph and we get 6 mpg - consistently.

[DriVer]

Originally Posted by melvonnar

55 MPH is the sweet spot for an 8.1; start running there and save your money for gas. All these upgrades only make money for the sellers..

I disagree. The sweet spot for the GM 8.1L Vortec is 2,000 RPM @ 62MPH.

[Ding-a-ling]

I had Ultrapower mod done in March 2006. Many, many miles later (odometer now about 86K miles) I can state that mpg may not be much improved, but I certainly have more power and torque now. Engine/transmission sweet spot now is 65mph at 2,500 rpm on flat to moderately rolling terrain. My coach weighs in at 23,500 lbs.

This summer we drove the PA turnpike east from New Stanton and went up that first grade at 50 mph in 4th gear (I only have five), passing semis all the way up.

FJF

[stryker17]

Had Brazels do the up grade on my 2007 , grayhawk 32 ft, with the 8.1 vortec, 5 speed allison trans. I got between 6.2 and 6.9 mpg before the upgrade and after the up grade and over 25,000 miles, I still get 6.3 to 6.9 mpg. This is at 2000 rpm and at about 61mph. I found out that if I slow down to 55mph, my mpg will drop to 6.0 or so. I think that is due to a heaver foot trying to get up the hills......... however I will say that the power and torque is much greater, after the work was done. I just have to remember that I am pushing 2 bricks thru the wind. love the motorhome, hate the gas stations, now I know why they put an 80 gal gas tank in.........

["007"]

I do have to admit to keep the good mileage I did do some modifications to my 8.1 by adding the CAI air intake and Taylor Extremes wires with socks and gap the sparks to .45.
With TUBA removed it solved any water from getting to MAF sensor.

[Ding-a-ling]

Originally Posted by greenskeeper

I found out that if I slow down to 55mph, my mpg will drop to 6.0 or so. I think that is due to a heaver foot trying to get up the hills......... however I will say that the power and torque is much greater, after the work was done.

Exactly!
Yeah, I find that if I drive 58 mph I can get great mileage too. The problem is that when you come to a grade you have no momentum and the trans. downshifts quicker, causing higher revs. Higher revs = lower mpg. When I drive in the lower to mid 60's and encounter a hill, I have more momentum, and by gently bleeding off speed, the 8.1's torque quite often will pull me over the top without a downshift and higher rpms.

FJF

[Duner]

I got my UP in 2006, the same time Ethanol was introduced across the country. Many RVer's were reporting 10-15% drop in fuel mileage. I was able to maintain the same mpg's and even eked a few percent higher.

My calculations were based on excel spreadsheet recordings for over several years of fulltiming while circling the country twice. Measuring one or two trips can result in surprisingly good or very depressing results depending on the landscape and wind conditions.

All said and done, I highly recommend UltraPower for the increased power. It allows you maintain your speed and flow with traffic on the grades and hilly country.

"Your results may vary".

Happy trails,
Bill

[DriVer]

Originally Posted by Ding-a-ling

When I drive in the lower to mid 60's and encounter a hill, I have more momentum, and by gently bleeding off speed, the 8.1's torque quite often will pull me over the top without a downshift and higher rpms.

Frank, I share you point of view on this. Maintaining an adequately high enough energy level (inertia) helps me negotiate routine highway conditions much better rather than traveling a 55 MPH all the time. My powertrain appears to work less strenuously if I maintain 2,000 RPM under most conditions. Getting on the AB early on when negotiating a climb does pull you up the grade much easier if the energy is up rather than having the gearing go down too much and the RPM on the engine bottom out.

Aditionally, your final drive ratio helps you pull those grades a little better as well.