I bought a 2014 E450 Dually 6.8L V10 Cutaway. It got shipped to Rockport van body factory in Elkhart Indiana. They built a 12' Rockport Workport Enclosed Utility body right on the truck. It has 6'6 headroom inside and you can stand up in the cab, walk through the slider to the back.

I flew from Connecticut to Chicago IL, took a bus to South Bend Indiana and a cab to Rockpot factory. I inspected the van and drove it 810 miles home at 65mph. I just got home at 9:00 pm tonight.

Van has a 4:56 rear end ratio and I got 8.7mpg pure highway driving at 65-70 mph / 2300rpm- 3000 rpm.

55 gallon tank had to fill twice.
Will it get better as engine breaks in?

Im thinking of changing the rear end from 4:56 to 4:10 . Its a V10 so Im sure it will still run with plenty of power.

Thoughts?

 

You got a big motor, tall vehicle and dual wheels, all working against fuel mileage. Yes, the 4:10 ratio will help but I don't know how much. Try to keep your rpm's as close to 2000 as possible. Imagine you have an raw egg under gas pedal. Keep it light . That's going to be your best improvement.


Good luck,
Jim

 

We did have some V 10s that obtained better mpg than the V8s. It should improve as it gets driven, but if you haul a lot of tools and weight mixed with some city driving and a wind mover body it's going to be tough to get great mileage. As Jim mentioned how you drive it will have a lot to do with the mpg you get and even then it's gonna be tight.

 

Thanks Guys ... Sadly I will put 3000 lbs worth of tools and stuff in it.
Any opinions on going from 4:56 rear gears to a 4:10 or 3:92's?
Funny thing is that the same van with the same body comes in a 5.4L with a 4:10 rear as stock equip. I would think the 5.4L would need the 4:56 ratio way more than the V10 would.

 

It would seem the spec was probably for a loaded vehicle pulling a load on some steep hills and not necessarily where you may be planning to use it. What was the est mpg they posted for your vehicle? Was it even close?

 

Hanky ... They dont post est fuel in those types of vans ( the cutaways ) as they don't know how they will end up. This could have been a motor home or something else. It is what it is I guess. Im having fun waiting on the answer from the other thread where High Mileage Jim gets 225k out of his tires!

 

I don't know what he delivers, but it's gotta be light.
Any kind of addl weight carried comes with a mileage penalty. There are some brands that do provide exceptional longevity , but some things are just hard for some folks to accept, and I'm one of them.

 

1 more Ford,


I didn't see your question about my tire mileage. I got 202,570 out of my first set and 179,131 out of the second set. The deer accident has thrown off the 4 tire replacements.


Hanky,


I deliver expedited freight. Mostly automotive freight direct to the auto assembly plants. Weight ranges are usually in the 200 to 1,500 pound range. Some shipments can range up to 2500 lbs by that is the exception.


To All,


It appears some are skeptical about my numbers. I'm only trying to offer help to some of you when a question arises. In my previous career, I have 20+ years experience with Econolines, managing a fleet of up to 212 vehicles at a time.


If you are having a hard time believing my numbers, research the expedited freight industry. There are many vehicles in the 800,000 mile plus range.


Enough said. If you need help, I'll try to offer something. But let's get off the believable or not.


Jim

 

Jim,
I maintained a fleet of only 160+ Econolines at one time . That is why I found it so difficult to believe some of the info you presented. I agree they were very dependable, but the MPG never was past 15MPG more in the 11- 13 area. We had all kinds and types of drivers and still the best and the worst were not too much different. Our vehicles always left the home base loaded and some overloaded and returned some half unloaded and some more. Thanks for sharing your info with us.