I have a 100 mile commute every day to work and was wondering if they're were any ways to improve mileage out of the 3.0, I've been watching my rpms and can get it to cruise at 50-55 mph at 2000 rpm which has worked okay but i was wondering if i could do anything mechanically speaking to improve mileage

Thanks
Andy

 

a tune up if you haven't already.
oem plugs, oem wires, oem fuel filter, oem air filter, fresh oil/filter (i use oem too), and the best aftermarket thing on top of all that is an SCT tuner. It really woke up my 3.0L and i got around 3 more MPG

 

Driving habits are really the only thing to change if the motor runs well.

End of the day its a 3.slow in a brick of a vehicle. Its not gonna be amazing.

I do 140 miles commuting. Did it for 2 years in my ranger (4.0 averaged 17 mpg year round)

Finally I decided to buy a cheap car. I advise you to look into doing the same. Car will pay for itself in under a year and all the savings after that is money in your pocket.

 

Reduce weight of vehicle, so don't carry what you don't need.

"A pint is a pound the world around", I still remember that saying about how much water weighs.
8 pints in a gallon so a gallon of gas = 8lbs (actually 7.9lbs since gas is lighter than water)
10 gallons = 80lbs
18 gal = 128lbs

so full tank is like carrying a hitch hiker, lol.

Thinner tires = less friction, so better mpg
less friction = less traction, so ..........

Make sure engine temp is running at 195-210degF, just below 1/2 on most Ford gauges, best MPG at that temp reange

 

Thanks everyone

 

Correct me if I am wrong, but aren't the Ford temp gauges in ranger more of an on/off gauge? Meaning that they only fluctuate when the temperature is above or below a certain parameter. They do not record accurate temperatures.

 

The oil pressure guage is (on at 6 pounds; anything less is "off"), but the temp guage does work with all ranges. Case in point; the temp guage will begin to rise as the thermostat opens, stoping just below the half way point of the guage if you are using the stock thermostat. If yours does not operate this way, you might want to consider changing the coolant temp sensor for the guage (or thermostat). There are two coolant temp sensors, one for the guage (single wire), and another for the ECU (two wire).

 

+1 ^^^

I believe the 1/2 way point on the gauge is about 220-225degF

 

My mistake. I was thinking of the oil pressure gauge. Thanks for pointing that out.