Towing with the Powerboost—very poor mpg

[hpwjr]

I just finished reading Turbopilot’s report on pulling the new Lightstream Rv over on the Overlanding and camping forum. Very interesting, but what caught my eye was his mpg towing his Airstream at 62 mph. I have a 2465 Lance, not as slick as an Airstream but at 7200 lbs loaded and better aerodynamics than a lot of trailers I get dismal mpg even at 62 mph. In fact, I get dismal mileage period and am a very conservative driver. I typically exceed others in mpg when I’m driving. If I get 8 mpg towing I’m doing good. And when not towing I rarely get better than 18 on the highway. I know speed kills mpg, but Why does everyone get good mileage and I don’t? I’m wondering if something is wrong with the truck. When I first got the truck at 11,000 miles, I would seemingly get significantly better mileage solo. 20-22 mpg. Now it’s not unusual for it to drop to 16-17. Towing has never been good. I was hoping for 10+. No go. I downsized from a F350 and 16,000 lbs fifth wheel and got better mileage (I know it’s a diesel) with a setup over twice as heavy and sticking up 13 feet in the air! Big disappointment. I know the hybrid is of no value towing, but still I’m shocked at how bad my mpg is. I realize there’s so many variables that a diagnosis is near impossible on a forum like this, but this report caused me to again worry that my truck simply isn’t working as efficiently as it should. So I decided to rant.

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[Gros Ventre]

If you're on the turbos, mileage will drop. The issue of prevention of cylinder detonation means that the mixture is richened up. So MPG will drop.

 

[Meterman]

When I had my 2021 power boost I only got about 18 miles per gallon on the freeway until about 20,000 miles and then magically I was getting 25 miles to the gallon going 70 miles an hour on cruise control.

Now towing that's a different thing I have a 8 1/2 by 20 enclosed trailer that's about 3600 lbs and when I have my car in it it's about 7600 lbs and I get anywhere from 6 to 9 miles per gallon.

I had a 2018 F-150 with a 3.5 liter twin turbo and when I did towing with that I got between 8 to 10 miles per gallon.

 

[Jmitchelltfo]

Do you manually downshift to keep out of boost on hills? I've noticed that Ford's shift strategy prefers to hold a higher gear and let the turbos do the work at lower engine rpm. That is terrible for fuel economy.

Last time you changed your plugs?

 

[Mosey]

Sounds about right for a PB towing that big of a trailer. As others have said, keeping out of boost will help some. When I tow a cargo trailer (tall version) I can get upwards of 12 mpg empty. When I tow our boat and trailer (about the same weight) I get 16 mpg.

 

[22Platinum]

I get either 6 or 7 mpg towing 7000lbs at 75-80MPH with 35s and a 6" lift with 3.5 ecoboost

Here's that post

https://www.f150gen14.com/forum/threads/two-year-trip-around-the-usa-in-an-f-150.31789/post-638563

 

[Jerome10]

Do you manually downshift to keep out of boost on hills? I've noticed that Ford's shift strategy prefers to hold a higher gear and let the turbos do the work at lower engine rpm. That is terrible for fuel economy.

Last time you changed your plugs?

I've read this several places as well. Using revs instead of boost apparently results in better towing mileage. Use the shift buttons to prevent the truck going into the top gears and keep the revs up. Also I believe it helps keep engine temps down? I think this might be why I've heard the V8 actually has the best towing mileage? No boost, no rich fuel mixture necessary.

Otherwise it could be the aerodynamics. It could be you had a slight headwind, even a few MPH of wind makes a difference with a large surface area.

I frequently get above sticker MPG when driving on the interstate at 70-75mph. There are times with wind though that 18-19 occurs.

Since I bought the truck, mostly suburban driving with a bit of interstate I'm showing 24.5 MPG on my PB.

 

[Gros Ventre]

Headwind makes a real difference, even without towing. Recently I covered the same route one time with a headwind and the second time with a tailwind: 15 MPG versus 25 MPG. The truck itself has bricklike aerodynamics... Any tow that has a large frontal area will add to this.

 

[UGADawg96]

We pull a 6500lb TT. At 65mph with 93 octane in tow/haul mode and gears 8-10 locked out, we get 8-9 mpg.

Unloaded driving normally, 19-21 mpg.

Unloaded driving very conservative, 22-23 mpg.

Running tow mirrors and 285/60r20 LT tires.

 

[hpwjr]

I have recently started locking out 8,9,10. I need to track boost. I’ll run some tests with 93 octane and see if mileage improves enough to justify the price increase.

 

[Jmitchelltfo]

I have recently started locking out 8,9,10. I need to track boost. I’ll run some tests with 93 octane and see if mileage improves enough to justify the price increase.

93 is usually not going to pay off unless you can get it for 30-40 cents over 87 (rarely happens for me). I still run a full tank of Shell or Sinclair 93 every once in a while but if I was towing in hot or high altitude conditions, I would definitely consider it to reduce chances of detonation.

 

[Samson16]

I just finished reading Turbopilot’s report on pulling the new Lightstream Rv over on the Overlanding and camping forum. Very interesting, but what caught my eye was his mpg towing his Airstream at 62 mph. I have a 2465 Lance, not as slick as an Airstream but at 7200 lbs loaded and better aerodynamics than a lot of trailers I get dismal mpg even at 62 mph. In fact, I get dismal mileage period and am a very conservative driver. I typically exceed others in mpg when I’m driving. If I get 8 mpg towing I’m doing good. And when not towing I rarely get better than 18 on the highway. I know speed kills mpg, but Why does everyone get good mileage and I don’t? I’m wondering if something is wrong with the truck. When I first got the truck at 11,000 miles, I would seemingly get significantly better mileage solo. 20-22 mpg. Now it’s not unusual for it to drop to 16-17. Towing has never been good. I was hoping for 10+. No go. I downsized from a F350 and 16,000 lbs fifth wheel and got better mileage (I know it’s a diesel) with a setup over twice as heavy and sticking up 13 feet in the air! Big disappointment. I know the hybrid is of no value towing, but still I’m shocked at how bad my mpg is. I realize there’s so many variables that a diagnosis is near impossible on a forum like this, but this report caused me to again worry that my truck simply isn’t working as efficiently as it should. So I decided to rant.

I have a completely unsubstantiated theory that the PB can decide to run rich for one reason or another. The reason may be real, temporary, or imaginary, but it gets in this condition as a default “safe mode”. When in doubt run cool and don’t knock.

A good way to shake it out of this confused condition is to put it in sport mode and let it rip. Blows out the cobwebs and clears the registers. Helps burn off contaminants and is generally good for your soul and your truck. ?

 

[Jmitchelltfo]

A good way to shake it out of this confused condition is to put it in sport mode and let it rip. Blows out the cobwebs and clears the registers. Helps burn off contaminants and is generally good for your soul and your truck. ?

I like your theory…….but I’ve also had a couple funny situations where someone pestered me in traffic and got dusted after little stop light drag.

One of them was a BMW 335i and he followed me to my next stop and asked if I had a tune or turbo upgrade (I removed my powerboost badges). I just told him it’s a hybrid and he would be really upset since I was in eco mode to keep the 35’s from killing my MPG’s around town. ?

 

[Gros Ventre]

I like your theory…….but I’ve also had a couple funny situations where someone pestered me in traffic and got dusted after little stop light drag.

One of them was a BMW 335i and he followed me to my next stop and asked if I had a tune or turbo upgrade (I removed my powerboost badges). I just told him it’s a hybrid and he would be really upset since I was in eco mode to keep the 35’s from killing my MPG’s around town. ?

This engine, when pushed, produces boatloads of power...

 

[Jmitchelltfo]

This engine, when pushed, produces boatloads of power...

Definitely adequate……maybe even approaching unnecessarily fast for a run of the mill pickup.

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