So I have noticed that my MPG have been going down for about the last three weeks and i just thought it might be due to the fact that i my oil change had arrived and needed to be changed. So this weekend i changed my motor oil and also my tranny fluid. I also use chevron fuel at every fill up because i feel that it is a better fuel than mom and pop stations, but i could be wrong. Anyways my trips with the truck consist of driving 2 hours down south monday morning and park the truck at school all week and then on fridays i drive it back home. So the last three weeks it has been foggy during monday mornings and today it was especially foggy the whole drive i had to use my windshield wipers quite a bit. My question is would the dense fog hurt my fuel mileage since the air fuel mixture would have moisture in it. Thanks and sorry for the long post

 

Since you can't do anything about the weather , look at what else will hurt mileage under those conditions.
Your wipers are on.
Your lights are on.
Chances are the defroster is on to keep the windshield clear.Which means the A/C compressor is cycling.
It's a two hour trip so you most likely have the radio on.
All these put an added load on the alternator.
Which gets its power from the engine.

 

Very true, and i thought about that too but but was curious to see what peoples opinions were especially what moisture in the fog does to maybe the filter and such after that. Im guessing it is just a combination of all of the above i guess.

 

I doubt the "load" of wipers, lights, and the blower are making any measurable difference in engine load therefore mpg. But now that you mention, I am going to to check this with my scan gauge on GPH this evening.

The AC compressor though, that will definately make a difference.

 

hello!! winter fuel mixtures are watered down with ethonal....


i drop 2-3 mpg in the winter due to the watering down of my fuel with this subsidized additive crap.

 

DITTO

 

^^ probably why i get 16mpg, because all the stuff around here has had it through out the summer....

 

You can gain MPG by installing fog lights. The light cuts through the fog which causes less drag on your vehicle.

EDIT
If you go to HID's you MPG will double at night!!

 

hahah add some nos stickers and you will gain like 10000000 hp too

 

If you are in the fog you will only gain half that amount. Unless of course you have fog lights.

Back on topic...

I think the problem is the fog filter, it probably needs replaced.

 

^^those can be pricey...i'd check out rockauto.com for that. cheapest place for new replacement parts i've found.

 

I know, I was kinda shocked at how high Ford charged for my fog filter...Damn dealer prices!! I picked mine up at NAPA though, I didnt want to risk driving around in the fog with a bad fog filter...Plus, mine went out when gas was $5 gallon, so it was costing me out the @ss.

 

by fog filter are we talking cabin filter??

 

No, I think the part # for my year fog filter was FF16A

 

no....fog filter. check out rockauto.com. they have them on the site for our trucks.

 

oh yeah i just replaced mine.. got another 3 mpg and 20hp.. and 40 tq.. weird how those things do so much.

 

If you add stickers to your truck, make sure to add them in front of the rear wheels. By adding them behind them (like my truck) you are putting more stress on the tail pipe, which could make you feel like a rock star, and possibly make you drive like a retard and break down (see my thread for an example of this).

If you run your wipers really fast in dry conditions, the wind speed will be greatly reduced on your windshield, as the wipers act like a samurai sword blocking death causing blows. You'll gain about 12 MPG's. Don't get the cheap wipers, though. $40 per pair of wipers are the ones you want from your local auto parts store, as they are made by Japanese samurai warriors (they may say they are "Made in China" but we all know that's just a cheap ploy by the government to hide the Samurai Warrior's true location).

One last thing:

Make sure you run with your high beams on at all times. This process is called the Captian Jean Luc Packard, and will make your vehicle go as fast as the USS Enterprise. You'll have to change out your Flux Capacitor Muffler Belt Bearing every 3,000 miles, but it's a cheap fix.

 

Water in the A/F mixture helps power and MPG.

However, sucking more dense mixture into and through the filter is more difficult and if the filter becomes saturated it will make pulling the air more difficult. Add in the extra electronics and pumps and the extra 5-10% ethanol in the fuel mixture plus the extra time to get the engine oil up to temperature and all of the moving parts expanded to spec and I wouldnt be surprised if you dropped a good 2-3mpg assuming driving style is constant.

For some reason I really like to put my foot down this time of year, especially to get the engine warm so I can crank the heater. I go from 21-22mpg in the summer to 15-18 in the late fall/winter.

 

All the "blend" talk is going to confuse the OP, he states its only if its foggy out. This would make me believe that its the fog filter that is the issue and probably needs to be replaced. You can get one on-line at rockauto or go to NAPA to get one like we said earlier.

 

i like to run 0w-30 in the winter......warmer oil faster = better.

 

I have had the truck for almost three years and have never noticed a drop like it has been but i will keep an eye on it so thanks for all the replies

 

I guess fog is like water injection so I doubt it would hurt your mpg, however I read that if the average american driver drove with his lights on all the time, they would spend $250 more a year in fuel vs someone who drove with lights on only at night (probably halogen bulbs).

 

Jay Cheetwood= slow learner. Fog filters thats great, I buy them buy the case you can get them cheaper in bulk.

 

They sell them at Costco don't they?

 

Yes yes it happens... Wal mart has then.. and they are for sure rolling back the prices.