Fuel Stats 2015 Transit

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
I would like to add to the above for those seeking a van to expedite. When going up the hills I deactivated the cruise control and used only the gas pedal my gas mileage was better doing that. Also going up the hills I would lose speed. I did not lose any speed if I let the motor remain on cruise control it had plenty of torque and Power butt I did not like the RPMs in the 35 - 4000 RPM range . When I only use the throttle the RPM's would decrease but the power seems somewhat lacking because I would lose about 5 to 8 miles per hour climbing the hill. Coming from a Chevy 6.0 that was not the case. It is a different way to make tourqe .This motor requires higher RPM it takes getting used to. I'm just concerned about reliability issues at higher RPMs. I know Ford does make high RPM engines that are very dependable look at the 3:02. Subaru makes the 2.5 engine that was made to rev High and they last 700000 miles so if anyone has any comment about the reliability other 3.7 gas engine please elaborate

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there was discussion a few years ago and we came to the conclusion...that cruise should NOT be used on hills....its poor fuel mileage and the van goes into overdrive far too easy....when you pedal it.... you can feather the pedal and most times avoid overdrive...
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Year to date Transit fuel stats:
.

16140

emlm
somewhere I see in March/April you picked up about 1.5 MPG.....difference between winter blend?
 

Moot

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
there was discussion a few years ago and we came to the conclusion...that cruise should NOT be used on hills....its poor fuel mileage and the van goes into overdrive far too easy....when you pedal it.... you can feather the pedal and most times avoid overdrive...
How long have you been retired? You seem a bit confused. If I run a hill with the cruise control on it will drop out of OD going up. The same on the down side, it will drop into 5th to hold the speed. My Chevys never down shifted that often, especially going down hill. Probably the difference between a 5 speed and a 6 speed.

When I first got my Transit with the stock diameter tires I ran Jellico going south with the cruise on just to see what would happen. I was light and I made the summit without a downshift.
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
there was discussion a few years ago and we came to the conclusion...that cruise should NOT be used on hills....its poor fuel mileage and the van goes into overdrive far too easy....when you pedal it.... you can feather the pedal and most times avoid overdrive...
How long have you been retired? You seem a bit confused. If I run a hill with the cruise control on it will drop out of OD going up. The same on the down side, it will drop into 5th to hold the speed. My Chevys never down shifted that often, especially going down hill. Probably the difference between a 5 speed and a 6 speed.

When I first got my Transit with the stock diameter tires I ran Jellico going south with the cruise on just to see what would happen. I was light and I made the summit without a downshift.
Maybe I have my terminology confused ...the sprinter would go into overdrive on most hills if I left cruise on... I could make it without cruise and it wouldn't go into o/d... especially Jellico, lookout Mt or Eagle Mt
 

piper1

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Maybe I have my terminology confused ...the sprinter would go into overdrive on most hills if I left cruise on... I could make it without cruise and it wouldn't go into o/d... especially Jellico, lookout Mt or Eagle Mt

You do have your terminology confused

Overdrive is any gear ratio numerically lower than 1 to 1 (direct drive) such as .74 to 1...usually just expressed as .74.

On your magical Sprinter the only overdrive gear was 5th (.83) so on those mountain climbs with the cruise control on you van was actually going OUT of overdrive.

On MANY of the newer vans with smaller engines and 6 or more speed transmissions, there can be multiple overdrive gears. These vans will also downshift at the slightest load...and are designed to...and it's normal. While these engines are beneficial in many ways, they do not possess much meaningful torque or horsepower at lower RPM's...like under 2500 etc. Under low load on flat land they will happily purr along at low RPM because your van may only need as little as 30 or 40 hp to maintain 65 mph. As soon as some load is applied..a headwind, a hill, passing or even maybe just a jump up to 75mph..the required horsepower will exceed what the smaller engine can provide at the lower RPM. The ECM will initiate a downshift to get the engine RPM up to a point where it will produce the required hp or torque.

The days of old with 4 speed transmissions and 5 liter plus engines where the transmission got into top gear around 40mph...and it stayed there unless you needed rocket mode to pass someone...are gone.

Moot's engine for reference...doesn't produce appreciable torque until over 3500 RPM and the horsepower is even higher than that. Small engines need to rev to make horsepower relative to a larger one. Turbo's can help alter this...a bit.

Your other question...warmer temps don't only mean different fuel blends...warm air produces less aero drag than cold air due to it's lower density. Dry roads also use less fuel (lower rolling resistance).
 

OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
I suppose I meant down shift...sorry for that
Magical sprinter? Lol

So warm moist air/humid have less drag than cold dry air? Hmmmm
 
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piper1

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
It seems counter intuitive...but yes...humidity actually lowers air density along with higher temps.

It's easy math. densit2bb.gif

Cold air is quite a bit denser (why diesel engines have aftercoolers after the turbo). It even affects airplanes..this summer there were days in Phoenix that some aircraft couldn't fly..because the low density air would not allow the wings to produce enough lift.
 
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OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
It seems counter intuitive...but yes...humidity actually lowers air density along with higher temps.

It's easy math.
16143


Cold air is quite a bit denser (why diesel engines have aftercoolers after the turbo). It even affects airplanes..this summer there were days in Phoenix that some aircraft couldn't fly..because the low density air would not allow the wings to produce enough lift.
Now did you know that formula in your head? :p
 

Moot

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Year to date Transit fuel stats:
.

16140

So why the difference ?
Year to date Transit fuel stats:
.

16140

emlm
somewhere I see in March/April you picked up about 1.5 MPG.....difference between winter blend?
Most of the gasoline I buy is 10% ethanol no matter what time of year. I have seen gas in Iowa recently that is 15% ethanol.
So why the difference ?
Over the years January and February are usually my worst months for fuel economy, with some exceptions. May and September are typically the best months for fuel economy, again with some exceptions.
 
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OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
Year to date Transit fuel stats:
.

16140

So why the difference ?
somewhere I see in March/April you picked up about 1.5 MPG.....difference between winter blend?
Most of the gasoline I buy is 10% ethanol no matter what time of year. I have seen gas in Iowa recently that is 15% ethanol.
So why the difference ?
Over the years January and February are usually my worst months for fuel economy, with some exceptions. May and September are typically the best months for fuel economy, again with some exceptions.
Thanks for not getting too techy on me....:p
 
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Moot

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
I almost always kill the cruise in hilly areas unless I doze off for a few miles. In the mountains or steep hilly areas I often button shift to control my speed and rpm. Also on curvy and or hilly 2 lane where the speed limit is 55 mph I will run in 5th and keep the rpms at about 2000 or less. Same goes for icy roads. I run in 5th to keep the revs up a bit and the transmission from down shifting. Eastbound out of Mont Eagle with some weight I will run 5th gear to stay off the brakes as much as possible.

Like Piper said, these small gas engines with turbos and 6 speeds are quite different than the V-8 slop buckets. My Transit has double overdrive with 4th being direct.
 
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OntarioVanMan

Retired Expediter
Owner/Operator
I almost always kill the cruise in hilly areas unless I doze off for a few miles. In the mountains or steep hilly areas I often button shift to control my speed and rpm. Also on curvy and or hilly 2 lane where the speed limit is 55 mph I will run in 5th and keep the rpms at about 2000 or less. Same goes for icy roads. I run in 5th to keep the revs up a bit and the transmission from down shifting. Eastbound out of Mont Eagle with some weight I will run 5th gear to stay off the brakes as much as possible.

Like Piper said, these small gas engines with turbos and 6 speeds are quite different than the V-8 slop buckets. My Transit has double overdrive with 4th being direct.
the sprinter will downshift on a downhill when loaded and speed gets too high when in cruise...I find I have to slip it into N and back to D to get it back into sync.....
 

Worn Out Manager

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
US Air Force
Ok, why the Octane difference around the west? I try to stick with 87 but out here it becomes almost premium price. A lot of 86 and even 85 is considered regular? I read high altitude doesn't require high octane. What is the effect on engine and MPG??

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billg27

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Ok, why the Octane difference around the west? I try to stick with 87 but out here it becomes almost premium price. A lot of 86 and even 85 is considered regular? I read high altitude doesn't require high octane. What is the effect on engine and MPG??

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Good question! In my older Chevrolet van with the naturally aspirated engine I used the 85 octane and it ran great and actually picked up a little fuel mileage. But what worries me is that having the twin turbos now, do I still need the higher octane because this engine will make the same horsepower at high elevations as it does at sea level? Not paying attention, I have put 85 octane in my Transit. Had no issues with that but was still worried. Next tank I choose the 87 octane again. The few dollars I felt was cheap insurance against having an engine failure. All newer vehicles have knock sensors but I'm unsure of their range of self adjustability.


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piper1

Veteran Expediter
Owner/Operator
Isn't that a wonderful coincidence....your lowest MPG occurred at your highest PPG. Nice stats Moot.
 
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