[455Grandville]

Originally Posted by Fishin2Deep4U

I hear you on the cost/ vs value thing.

I get the absolute upper end of mileage for any comparable setup. Most newer trucks get poorer mileage due to exhaust cam timing, retarded injection timing, ect. In cylinder EGR I call it. In fact, many of the newest trucks get less than 17mpg on average. Teh old 12V Dodges (94-98) were about the best. They could routinely get over 22MPG with a simple timing adjustment, grinding the plate, GSK, and a little AFC tuning.

And many of the DPF trucks get the worst mileage on the road.

Since I work in the diesel performance biz, I see lots of trucks roll through the doors. But with this setup, he could add an early model Powerstroke CAC and turbo and turn up the fuel slightly. It can also be retimed and that'll also help economy. The CAC piping will have to be custom, but it can be done. But even with 12-18 psi boost(210-250ish HP), it's only gonna get high teens for mileage and will get a little toasty when towing.

If it' gonna be a cheap beater, then you don't have much to lose. If you want to tow heavy loads and or get better economy, I would see if the budget allowed for a slightly different model is all. One note, my biddies mileage did increase with a few mods and going to 285 tires with the 4.10 gear. The extra torque helped him pull the same grades with less throttle.

Dave

I know someone who specially ordered a F250 7.3 5 speed extracab 2wd with a factory 3.08:1 rearend. Added a 75 hp boost and that's it. They claim to usually pull 25 mpg. Being the wifes F350 auto crewcab pulled 20-21 mpg to Florida recently (mostly 75 mph), I'm sure 25 is correct.
One of my customers has a few VW Rabbit diesels that pull 48-50 mpg and is currently putting in a 1.9 TDI in a VW Caddy Pickup (aka Rabbit pickup) using the older injection pump setup to avoid all the computers & wiring.
As far as I'm concerned it's hard to beat a diesel for fuel economy - anyone know where I can find a 4.3 V6 powered GM diesel ?