Improving gas mileage
 

I own a '01 Ranger w/4spd auto and was wondering what kind of gas mileage other 3.0 owners are seeing. I welcome any tips for making improvements.

my 3.0 extended cab is getting about 17 now on winter gas (they add alot of alcohol and crap to gas here in the northern states and it lowers gas milage, not sure if you know or not living in GA) but i got a bone stock engine except i removed the snorkel... cant remeber what i got back on regular gas cuz ive only had the truck for about 4 months

gas mileage
 

I guess I shouldn't be complaining about my extended cab's 19 mpg.
Did you remove the snorkel and go with a different type air cleaner?

you get 19MPG and are complaining? whatever your smoking, please, share heh

i get like 14-16mpg in the winter id give my left nut for 19mpg..... well not really, but you get the point.

I'm not complaining anymore :cool:

19 is pretty good for a ranger, even with the 3.0 if you wanted to improve it, the only real upgrades you could make that would actually improve your mileage would be an electric fan or a tuner. even then, dont expect a miracle, you may just hit 20 or 21 mpg. i would just the electric fan, the cost is not that high and you will notice a difference, the tuner is really more for if you wanted performance, its a little expensive for a fuel efficiency mod.

I currently am getting 20 mpg. But in the summer i usually get around 22 mpg. Some tips that I do is keep a clean air filter, use full synthenic motor oil, during the winter keep the heat on only the floor or vents (every other setting uses the a/c compressor which is a no brainer that kills mileage), during the summer use the a/c little as possible, and the biggest thing dont lay on the gas.

well if it makes u feel even better i getting 10-12 in like 20degree weather but it has been warm for a week till today and now i getting better, i wish i had 19 lol

I thought only the vent setting did not engage the A/C compressor

i belive that the comprssor turns on when you have it on any of the controls BUT the floor only and top only... every other one triggers it, even defog.... thus why i and many others have done the A/c swtich mod...

switching to a quality synthetic in everything will help slightly.

A/C Switch mod?

AC compressor runs in all positions except floor only and panel only. Again, hence the popular AC Switch Mod.

The biggest gain will come from driving habits, unfortunately.

adding a switch to the A/c compresser on/off lead so that you control when it will go on, thus you can turn on all your controls w/o activating the compressor...

getting my trans fluid changed helped me a ton because it shifts into OD alot sooner and stays in it longer untill it downshifts...

the gas station you use will also effect it...speedway has reallly diluted gas where as shell has cleaner gas( but they middle eastern) so you gotta pick your battles...

Mine gets 24 mpg on the highway going 55.... No cats,kn filter, no snorkle,bosch platinum plugs,premium gas,... very impressed with my milage.

On regular 87, I average 18 MPG city, 23 MPG highway. This is before I installed my efan. I'm going to try and take a nice trip to try and calculate my MPG with the efan, but that will take a couple trips to get an average.

The only real engine mods I have at this point are the MAF mod, CAI, and the E-fan.

all the old gas mpg threads are poping up!! lol well to make u guys feel good again 2 weeks ago i was getting like 15 now i getting like 12-13 with no changes just colder weather.

I don't get it guys. I have a 99 Ranger Sport, standard cab with the 3.0 engine. I even have four wheel drive and I'm getting 25.5 miles per gallon. I do have a manual transmission, but I didn't think it'd make THAT much of a difference over an automatic.

I have a light foot- I change gears at 2k almost everytime. I drift to all stops. I don't use A/C, I crack my windows when I get hot. My truck takes it easy, it's not ever pushed hard.

I check my mileage everytime I get gas. I drove 337 miles and I put in 13.2 gallons of gas. I filled the gas tank to full capacity. I would say I drive 75% highway. My truck is all stock too. Do I have a factory freak and just got lucky, or am I driving like a granny would? haha.

I'm a Chevy guy at heart, have had Chevy's my whole life, just thought I'd try a Ford out this time, I bought this Ranger not too long ago and I'm VERY pleased with it, tough little truck. Don't think I'll be getting rid of this truck once it's paid off.

Each of those things is nearly impossible, or at least very inconvenient to do w/ an auto. This is why the trans choice makes such an impact.

If you were to drive the manual trans hard, your good mileage would evaporate pretty quickly. W/ my 4.0L 4x4 ex-cab I can easily go from ~16 MPG to ~20 MPG just by chaning my driving habits. The guys w/ the auto trans keep telling me it isn't that easy for them.

You are definitely 'driving like a grandma'. But if it lets you pull in 25+ MPG, I wouldn't let it worry you too much!

the prob is alot of those gouys are young and they like to drive fast, the ranger isnt a race car, drive like grandma, keep it under 2000rpm and ull be fine. when i drive conservatively, i can keep it under 2000 rpm just fine, and i have an auto

i have gotten about 20-21MPG, but i always have the vent turned one turn to the right so that it blows on the floor and out of the dash. so i should just have it blow out the dash if i dont want to turn the compressor on right? perhaps that will save me 1mpg.

That is correct. The only two positions where a factory Ranger's HVAC system does not run the AC compressor are the dash vents only and the off positions. All others run the compressor unless you do the G&M AC mod..

Well my 4L now that I have most things fixed is gettin 22-24 consistantly it is a 5spd but things that will help with mpg

Make sure all plugs are gapped right and ALL match
Royal purple synthetic Oil
Water Wetter in your Coolant
Electric fan
K&N
Exhaust mods even if just catback
and New O2's if your getting higher in your miles

Here in ABQ with the damn 86 octane gas I'm getting 21 consistently in town. I think it's the 5 speed and shifting at two grand. Then again at an altitude of above 5000ft i really expected my mileage to drop.

I get anywhere from 16-21.5mpg witha 4.0 4x4 auto. In town I keep my rpms at or below 2000. Yeah it takes a bit to get going but it saves me money so I do it. I also usually coast into stop signs and stop lights. I also try to use cruise control as much as possible while driving on the freeway/highway. Around here you'll get run over on the highway going too slow so I usually always have to go at least 65-75mph. My 21.5 gallon tank was using cruise control at 70mph. I took two round trip out to my dove hunting spot so it was 98% highway. Average tank for me is around 17-18 though. It's amazing how big of a jump in gas mileage it is going from all highway to almost all city. Most of my driving is city. I'm only 18 but I like taking it easy on my truck, it'll thank me in the long run. I do have fun though but that is off the pavement hitting trails!