Hello!
 

Hey Everybody :) Been a big fan of this site for a while now and as I am moving soon and will have a 40 mile round trip to and from work instead of a 6 mile round trip lol figured I would join in and see what I can do for some mpg :)

I have no tools, no experience and no desire to drill holes into my truck lol I'm not going to go nearly as far as any of you but a few extra mpgs will help me get my transport costs in budget. Thinking of making a tonneau cover out of plywood, adding a partial grill blocker and maybe a lowering kit, but I don't want anything that will mess with suspension linkages or anything else. So pretty much cheap and easy mods for now :)

I have a 2000 F-250 Supercab Superduty 7.3 turbo diesel, short bed, 2 wheel drive, automatic, previous owner did a bunch of deletes added a bigger turbo and exhaust which means it actually gets pretty decent mileage already. Right now I'm recording about 20mpg on average per fill up and am hoping after I move, as it is all highway to get 25mpg at least.

Think that covers my intro, so look forward to hearing from everyone :)

If you're looking to save money, buying a beater car is the way to go. You can spend $1500 and the car will pay for itself in a year. Its hard to beat that anyway you look at it.

Not really, the cost of the extra insurance and the space taken up would just not make it worth it.

Yes, insurance would cost something, but you're literally saving $1500 a year in gas alone if you only drive it to work and back. If you drive it more, you save more. Not to mention you save miles and thus depreciation on your truck. Also, insurance won't be THAT much more because you will only get liability on the car, and insurance for the truck will be less because you aren't daily driving it.

Space... well that is a different issue. Money wise, it works out.

If you can't or don't want to swing the car thing, check out the 65+ mods link and the hypermiling tips. Adjusting your driving technique will be your biggest gain, especially if you're not going to go overboard on mods. Oh, and start with getting instrumentation too, it really helps tweak your driving. Good luck!

Having one super reliable vehicle instead of a super reliable vehicle and a beater just makes sense to me, like I said no tools or experience so as soon as something breaks on the beater there goes all the fuel savings for the year. I'm keeping the truck forever so just wanting to get the most out of it.

Was looking at instruments but then heard that the scan gauge does not work on diesels?

Hello EcoSD, you have an admirable goal.

Boosting your rig's economy by over 20% is doable, there are other guys on this site who drive trucks comparable to yours and doing as well as that. You're running a diesel, too, which means some things might be a bit easier - forum member Diesel Dave's White Whale2007 Dodge Ram 2500 ST Quad Cab 2wd, short bed Gas Mileage (White Whale) - EcoModder.com whistles up damned good numbers, and his rig is in about the same weight class as yours.

I totally get not wanting to drill holes. But if you're going the distance of the tonneau, take a peek at some of the aerodynamic bed toppers guys have put on here, including Bondo's "Aerolid," an excellent example of the breed I tend to call a "whaleback." It looks pretty slick.

Aerohead lives and breathes aerodynamics. I think the guy is a literal rocket scientist; if he ain't then he's an aerodynamicist. I dunno, I just know he knows waaaay too much about aerodynamics for a regular person. I view his suggestions as citable resources.

Me, I'm just a guy with a little pickup.

Welcome. It's fun here.

Wow awesome thank you very much I will check out everything he has done and see what I can apply to my truck :)

That aero lid is fantastic but I want to keep it down to a 5 minute job to remove lol

Thanks for the welcome and the info :)

Sir, we are very similar. I wanted to make my Mustang as FE as possible, and did not want to hurt it or depreciate it while having no valuable skills.

I have explored on here and resources in these volumes of knowledge, and been able to build my skill set AND my vehicle. I thought the same about another car, but full coverage for my Insight took me from 440~ to 540~ for six months- and that was full coverage, the same as my Mustang.

Plus, it not only let's me keep my baby in the garage, but works as a mule to experiment on and it doesn't take much space sitting out in my yard.

Since you are familiar with the site, you know the links at the top, and one of our top dogs Diesel Dave, so welcome aboard and we look forward to seeing your progress!

Not every econobox has to be a rust-bucket. Something like a '02-'08 Corolla would be a good choice, and occasionally even handle some towing :thumbup:
http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...uck-25485.html


If you're gonna keep it "forever", you might feel free enough to do some experiences with it if you were more mechanically-inclined. Maybe it's time for a new hobby :D


Since your truck is compliant to OBD-2, the ScanGauge is going to work with it.

Guys I don't think you are really getting the picture, I am buying a house I don't have extra money to buy another vehicle or the time to wade through all the cheapies finding the ones that have been taken care of instead of the lemons lol

I appreciate you trying to help really but you aren't going to sell me on getting a new vehicle right now.

With that said I do intend to start working on my mechanical knowledge and building up a tool and experience base but that's going to take time and the main reasons I don't want to drill holes in my truck are I don't have a drill and I don't want to end up drilling 3 times to get something to line up, which as most of you probably know is happens when you are inexperienced.

So simple things for now, more advanced stuff later lol

Also Scan Gauge 2 vs Scan Gauge E? Only thing I can see that I would want is the 2's ability to read codes if they ever came up other then that saving 50 bucks just to have instant mpg sounds good.

I have not drilled any holes in my Mustang or Insight. Mostly cable ties and polycarbonate. Great foam is also pretty great.

And you possibly didn't get the idea about a smaller car and a trailer: if you don't use your truck at its full capabilities, you could eventually get rid of it, and eventually use the cost difference between the Corolla and the F-250 for improvements at the house.

But since you would still rather keep the truck, a tonneau is a good start to improve the fuel-savings, and an electric radiator fan to replace the engine-driven one if you can get a mechanically-inclined friend to help you with it.

No I am fully capable of understanding the idea behind a car and trailer but right now I have my truck and have asked for advice on helping it, not what to sell it for. If that was the case I would get a cbr250 that gets 80mpg and learn how to vetter style it.

Am thinking of just attaching 3 pieces of plywood hinged together on the bed then if I ever have to haul anything I can just fold it up and lay it in the bed. All the DIY ones I have seen thus far though have 2x4 supports. Am wondering if this can be overcome by using 3 pieces so the weight of the plywood doesn't push down on itself or if using thicker sheets would work?

Hey,

I totally get not wanting to sell the truck. I could do way better than what my little truck achieves, if I just sold it and got a Corolla and an ultra-lightweight trailer from Northern Supply. But that Ain't. Gonna. Happen.

The truck is a known quantity. I am the only owner it's ever had, and every quirk is like an old friend. Some other hoopy with someone else's quirks is like starting a new job only to discover your new office mate can't stop whistling. There would be bloodshed inside a week.

The heavier plywood should hold up without bowing but you might get better results using lighter wood, and backing the panels with 1x stock, not 2x. If you don't plan on standing on your tonneau, that should be sturdy enough and still light enough for easy removal - which heavier ply might not be.

Yes, exactly. Thank you :)

I'm trying to find an option where it doesn't need any backing at all and can just lay it on the edges of the bed. Won't need to stand up to anything but the wind passing over the truck lol

$650 and close to 80 MPG. Insurance is $100 a year. It had 3300 miles when I bought it with some scuffs and scrapes.

How much did you spend on gas in the last 12months?

Lets say 15k miles at 15 MPG or 1000 gallons of gas, around $3500 (just guesses).

regards
Mech

Have you never considered a soft tonneau? When my grandpa had a truck he only used soft tonneaus, easily removeable when had to haul bulky items.

Getting 20mpg now with a 6 mile in town one way commute. I wish diesel was only 3.50 a gallon, cheapest around here is 4 or can do 30 mile drive for 3.75 a gallon lol

Looking at a DR350SE I spotted last night actually lol Problem is need to keep the truck insured for when I need to use it, wondering if I can have an auto policy open and just put the truck on when I need to use it then take it back off after....

As for the soft tonneau, I have considered that but saw some post about them flapping in the wind and negating any eco gains? Factory ones or DIY?

Folks,

Banging on the guy to change to a different ride feels unwelcoming. He's not here touting his miracle 85mpg bolt-on doodad, he's looking for advice and suggestions, and has already politely denied changing to a different vehicle. I totally get giving a Unicorn salesman a hard time, but EcoSuperDuty is just another pilgrim on the road.

Besides, the name at the top of the page is EcoMODDER - which is to say, making the best out of what you have, not changing up to something else.

EcoSD: I know you're not willing to make big visual changes to the truck, but I also know there's a lot of room underneath your rig for extra/new plumbing. I see you lamenting the price of fuel in your previous post, how do you feel about adding a WVO system? Then you could fuel up with free or nearly-free oil from local restaurants, and your main fuel cost would be in petrodiesel burned to warm the engine and WVO tank, and time spent collecting the WVO.

I wouldn't mind adding visually obvious mods like air dam, side skirts wheel covers etc, but to me they need to look like they belong on the truck and I have not got the ability to produce that currently.

Although that would be nice, I envision using my truck as a long distance cruiser one day so need to stick to a fuel that's readily available everywhere at any hour. I appreciate the suggestion though :)

50 miles a week, 2600 a year (commute only). That's bicycle range. I'm not trying to aggravate the OP, but the real question is cost accounting and whether the cost benefit is justified. He could ride a bicycle but it gets awfully hot for that in summer. A scooter would work, even electric with that short commute. I just bought one from the scrap yard for $25 as a project. Even an electric bicycle that requires no license or insurance.

Of course I don't know the specifics of his commute or if low speed options as far as routes are available.

Bottom line is there are always options and his location has low annual rainfall.

ECO, if my answers are inapproprite, then feel free to ignore them. it's basically just thinking out loud.

regards
Mech

Yeah Old you really need to read my first post again, if you ever even read it in the first place?

I am moving in a month to a 40 mile round trip....

Roger, read it and forgot about the move, one of the issues with a 63 year old brain that used to memorize serial numbers on dollar bills to impress women in bars. Repeat the serial number back to them a week later.

With a 40 mile commute your fuel costs will skyrocket which makes the cost benefit of a cheap bike that much more apprealing.

Read the Bible and Rise and Fall of the Third Reich (W.L. Shirer) at age 10. Read my third grade reading text (385 pages) in 24 hours.

It's just the memory that I can't rely on like I used to.

regards
Mech

Diesel Dave is the man here as far as getting astounding mileage out of a similar vehicle.

regards
Mech

I can understand that, I am just getting a little aggravated with almost everyone posting unhelpful "change your vehicle" responses.

I have my truck for a reason, one day I would like to do long distance cruising as well as various other things. I cannot just sell it and only have a motorcycle as I have dogs, and if there ever were an emergency I can't very well strap them on the back of a bike and go to the vet. Also being in AZ with day temps of 110, I can't go out in the middle of the day full leathers to the grocery store and get anything that won't spoil on the ride back.

So yes I would love to have a motorcycle again, if I can work something out with my insurance company where they understand the truck would be a back up to the bike and thus decrease the cost of insurance that would be fantastic but without knowing if that is going to be possible I am looking for ways to lower running costs on what I have now.

I have PM'ed both Diesel Dave and Big Dave

Hey Eco,

Start a garage page for your rig:

at the top of the page near the center where it says "Garage & Tools" click "Garage," then find "Add new vehicle" and you can drop in some info on your rig. You can't tell how you're doing unless you have records of how you did, and this helps a bunch.

Yeah, both DD and Big Dave are The Man for squeezing more miles out of bigger trucks, it's bonkers. JRMichler does great with his midsize Chevy or GMC (Colorado? Canyon? Is there a difference?), too.

Yup it is up there, one of the first things I did :) No idea about weight, drag or frontal area lol

Same truck different badge lol

Ford's specs on the current F-250 XLT SRW SuperCab (I'm going with the SuperCab to split the difference between regular and crew, we're just ballparking here): about 7000 lbs curb weight. Obviously your real world results are likely different but it gets us in the zip code.

Frontal area: http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...ement-462.html

I saw someone else's estimate of 38 sq. feet for the F-250, that sounds close.

20mpg moving a bus that size down the road is, frankly, pretty good.

My grandpa never had any problem with soft tonneaus when he used it. Never had any flapping or other negative effect to the mileage.


Actually, if you would eventually add the secondary fuel system for vegetable oils, it's an advantage, since you would have another fuel option, no need to sacrifice the ability to run on regular Diesel fuel.

Best suggestion so far! Hard to argue with free fuel and that IH 7.3 could probably care less.

regards
Mech

Is the '99 U.S.-spec F-250 fitted with a plastic fuel tank or a sheetmetal one? I only remember the Brazilian F-350 being fitted with a sheetmetal tank. Anyway, with a metallic fuel tank it would be possible to get an electric fuel heater, and with a good filter it would be possible to use vegetable oils without a second tank for start-ups on regular Diesel fuel, or even to use summer fuel leftovers in colder weather.

Summit Racing carries a 24.5 steel tank that's supposed to replace the OEM; even if the OEM is plastic, you could do a little switcheroo, make an auxiliary plastic tank the petro diesel option and let the new steel tank in the original location become the WVO tank. It's just a matter of plumbing, and while some elements of automotive technology leave me scratching my head, plumbing is not one of them.

All of that depends on EcoSD's current direction, of course. Me, I'd focus on aero and for me that would mean starting with fender skirts. The rear wheel wells on those things are both gigantic and, ironically, don't generally have much wheel in them. The wheel is largely below the level of the wheel well. The 4x4s in particular suffer from this.

That is one of the things I have been really looking at, as well as maybe using a spindle hangar to drop the rear a couple inches. Plus living out here in AZ the skirt doesn't really have to be weather proof so figured eventually might mock some up out of cardboard and figure out how to attach them. Probably not till after I move as I work nights so that's when I am awake, will need the garage and it's lighting to work by lol

Mocking it up on cardboard is OK, but I'd still advice you to weatherproof it, and eventually paint it to match the color of your truck if you want it to look clean.

Considering your level of modding ability / desire not to change the truck's visuals, your biggest gains are going to come from modifying the nut behind the wheel.

So you need a "game gauge" for sure, so you can start playing "beat my high score" on your regular commute. Also start logging every fill-up so you have a record & additional motivation.

The SG-e will read & reset codes. The major difference between it and the SG-II is it can't be programmed with custom gauges (which probably doesn't matter one whit to the majority of drivers).

Compare the Features of the ScanGauge products : Linear Logic

Welcome to the forum!

Having an automatic might make it harder to get the mileage you are looking for. But, I don't know how well that truck will coast in neutral so having an auto might not be that bad.

Does it already have a tuner? If so, which one? Is there an Eco mode?? If you don't have one, don't run out and buy one. They take a long time to pay for themselves, if you even see a difference.

As stated, your driving habits are going to make the biggest difference. Aero mods are going to be a close second. Is your future commute city or highway??

I don't know if it was mentioned, but pump those tires up. Are you do for new tires anytime soon? What tires are on there right now? If you have off road or all terrain tires, consider a highway rib that you can pump way up for your next set. You want to make that truck roll as easy as possible.

Also, remove all excess weight. People with trucks tend to carry a lot of stuff, like tow straps, tools, trash, etc. Take out everything you don't need to carry around.

I am not suggesting you sell the truck; I know you don't want to hear that. But, I just went through a similiar situation, but instead gave up on hypermiling and bought a beater... I had an 2010 Sentra and a 2006 Hemi Durango that got 14ish mpg (I LOVED the Durango). I did some car switching and ended up with a new Mazda5 for the wife and a very used, $1,000 Geo Metro for me. I was trying to boost my credit and fatten my wallet to buy a house. I went to a single car payment for a while, bought the house and got a great interest rate. I sold the Metro for $1,500 and bought my 2005 Civic. To quantify the savings, the Durango to the Mazda5 switch has saved us over $2,500 in gas in a year and a half. Not to mention, most of our family driving is done in the Civic, which gets 40 mpg. Again, I am not suggesting that you sell your truck, but only sharing my house buying story...

What kind of weatherproofing would you recommend for AZ?

Yeah I figured the E would be the one I would get the most out of, I'm sure all those other gauges mean something to you guys but to me all I care about is seeing instant MPG.

I coast when I can but no EOC for me, ford hydroboost means no steering or brakes if I did that lol
No tuner, was thinking one day getting an actual dyno tune but that's way off and just an idea.
All highway, 2 miles in 30-35 zone but that's skirting a small town so shouldn't face any stop and go situations.
Yeah all 4 tires are highway 10 ply, pumped to 75-80 psi.
It's empty, actually need to go on ebay and find a jack and spare kit as previous owner took those out lol
Am looking at getting a motorcycle but not going to spend the money till I know I have it to spend.

Thanks for the help :)

If you'd use the cardboard just for the mock-ups and make the skirts with some weather-resistent stuff such as coroplast there is no need to weatherproof it, but if you would like to just use the cardboard pieces you could weatherproof it with clear adhesive tape. But painting them before weatherproofing is recommended if you want a clean look.