PowerBoost MPG - WTH??

[Kodiak]

Has anyone done any calculations as to whether premium fuel pays off? In my previous explorer ST, I was tuned and used premium gas all the time. I know with pretty much all Ford turbo engines, premium is recommended, but not required. I’m enjoying going back to regular gas for once but being that I only fill up once a month, I’m wondering if the benefits may be worth it for me.

I guess it ultimately depends on how much more it is. Premium gas here in Maryland is generally about $.70 more. I’m doubting it would pay off but also curious on the power benefits.

Everything that I have seen here with people reporting Regular vs Premium showed that the premium was not beneficial "cost wise". It seemed to help the mpg but not enough to overcome the additional cost.

For me though I started to notice my 2022 PB ran better with premium. Not enough to make it an obvious benefit for the premium but I noticed it ran smoother. I tried going back and forth for about a year to see if it was just "in my head" but it was not. The truck ran better IMO with premium.

Now I only fill up every 2 to 3 months so spending the extra for premium is a no brainer to me. I do notice the difference, if only slightly.

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[TheWrench]

This is the 1st vehicle that I've gotten more gas mileage then the EPA estimate.
I'm averging 24-25 per tank of gas.
I've been driving back and forth from my old house to my new house and this has been my avg for the drive. It's crazy and mind blowing what the PB can do.

 

[tsigwing]

Have you checked it by hand? Computer can be optimistic.

 

[Davexxxx]

Have you checked it by hand? Computer can be optimistic.

I saw someone post a detailed, long term log, showing computer read and hand calculated. They were pretty close and wavered back and forth, with neither, always showing higher, or lower.

I don't bother hand checking daily driving type tank results but on towing trips I do. They're close enough.

 

[dochawk]

Everything that I have seen here with people reporting Regular vs Premium showed that the premium was not beneficial "cost wise".

The only case of which I've heard in which premium actually paid for itself is with aggressive spark advance on the mammoth Cadillac V8 of the late 60s and early 70s--472 cubes (500 on the Eldorado!), which was prone to single digit mileage (OK< very high single digit, but still . . .).

And even then, the numbers, iirc, were something like 12% gain in mileage (as in from 8 to 9), for 10% extra cost in gas at that time--so still not much.

with modern iengines half that size, the gains are real, but not gebnerakk enough to cover the cost of the fuel . (that isn't to say that the extra performance capacity doesn't justify the premium just that you aren;t money ahead). And for that matter, from what I've read here, avoiding the higher boost that premium enables and using higher revs in a lower gear is more fuel efficient.

 

[FaaWrenchBndr]

I’m still getting >23
A few road trips netted 25+
Yes, and cross checked with pen & paper

 

[Brandon8]

My biggest takeaways after 4/5 months of owning my PB.
1. This thing drinks gas until it’s truly warmed up. If you do a lot very short trips that don’t allow getting to proper operating temp, you will get bad gas mileage. I know this is true about any car but go onto number two.
2. Adding on to one, I’ve found this even applicable to EV operation. I could take like a 5 mile trip and be more than 50% in EV mode yet my gas mileage is still terrible in the teens. This part, I really can’t understand. I’m guessing the battery has an ideal operating temperature as well and until you’re at that point, it’s not very efficient? You’ll notice it because after you’ve been driving for a while, in EV coach, you have much more capacity of EV range. And it’s not because you’ve been charging the battery up more, this battery is so small that even after a few coasting and braking attempts in a couple mile drive, that thing should have been filled by then.
3. I can’t comment much on highway driving, but real city driving, not much noticeable benefits. Which is generally a hybrids strongest point.You really can’t takeoff in EV mode with this truck. You will end up in EV mode with driving but it’s very difficult to maintain EV mode when driving from a start.
4. This truck loves driving between 30 and 50 mph. And those ranges you can easily get close to 30 miles per gallon.

Overall, I do love this truck. It is damn quick and can be efficient. But definitely not always. I think a lot of it just comes down to the fact that it’s heavy, tuned for power and not efficiency, and of course small electric motor and battery.

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