Hello all!

I just bought a new to me 2013 F-150 XLT Ecoboost with about 134.200 miles on it. It was well taken care of as far as I can tell, as the previous owner was running synthetic oil and everything was pretty clean except the air cleaner. That surprised me as there was paperwork in the vehicle for a dealership oil change from June of 22 with everything in the inspection sheet marked as good. I would have expected something like that from a Jiffy Lube. At any rate, after reading the great debate about catch cans, I pulled the throttle body and found it to be much cleaner than I expected. With a new air cleaner and cleaned-up throttle body, I took it on the road for a 2,000 mile highway trip expecting to see this 20mpg-22mpg gas mileage being hyped for the Ecoboost. Driving open Western US highways with 80 mph speed limit I got no better than 15mpg for the trip. I admit I do push 80pmh - 85mph where I can get away with it, but most of the trip i had the vehicle on cruise control for long stretches.. Still I was getting 14 mpg to 15 mpg which I used to get with a 2007 Cadillac Escalade 6.2 liter V8 under the same driving conditions. When I got home, I changed the spark plugs so I can monitor many miles they will accrue, even though I was not having any issues with rough idle or misfires. The plugs that were in it appeared to be the originals but were all clean with no oil or carbon. So my question is, what are you Ecoboost owners seeing in real MPG for the series (1) engine? Am I missing some fuel/air issue that can improve the mileage I am getting? What can a person reasonably expect for mileage out of this engine under the conditions I described. I know the obvious solution is to slow down, but I grew up in Montana back in the day of the "reasonable and prudent" speed limit and I never got over it.

Thanks for any help on this.

Jim

 

Axle ratio? 4x4 or 4X2? They all make a difference.


You're driving a truck that is as aerodynamic as a brick. Anything above 65-70 and mpg's are going to take a big hit. In a more aerodynamic car, the difference isn't nearly as great.

In that model year there is little, if any fuel mileage advantage to the 3.5 V6 vs the 5.0 V8. The turbo's make more torque and the 3.5 pulls a trailer better.

FWIW my 2014 Supercrew 4X4 with a 5.0 mated to 3.55 gears will normally get 15-16 around town. On shorter hwy trips, keeping it at or near 70 mph, 17 mpg is the norm. I've taken it on several long road trips, twice from GA to CO. On one fall trip loaded heavy with camping and hunting gear I averaged 18 mpg for the roughly 4500 mile round trip on winter gas. On another trip when loaded lighter, and on summer gas I averaged 19 mpg. I've gotten the occasional fill-up and hit 20, but those are rare.

The newer generation of trucks do a little better. I have a BIL with a 2021 4X4 Crew cab and the 3.5/3.55 gears. He averaged about 22 mpg over a similar Colorado road trip this summer.

 

85mph takes twice the power as 65mph. 100% more fuel to go 30% faster.

 

If you are cruising at 80 to 85 mph, you're doing about as good as to be expected.
My 2016 heavy-*** Lariat would get 19 without exceeding 75 mph. Generally I kept it around 72ish, or less. If posted limit is 65 I push 70, at 70 I kick it up a few notches is about it.
I think 14-15 is low for highway, however it depends on the terrain and how you get to 80. Is it your goal to get to 80 and above or do you gradually get there. Are you travelling 80 from elevation 1,000 to 4,000?

I think if you dial back the speed you'll get better economy, if you wish to travel at 80 then what you are seeing should be your expectation.

 

Thanks for the response. Driving that Cadillac was essentially the same as driving a brick as well, but it actually got better mileage.. The fact of life out here is that the freeway speed limit is mostly 80mph. Driving any slower is taking your life in your hands, so I am no doubt stuck with 15mpg.

Regards

 

Thanks for the input. Elevation has plenty to do with it. I live in the high desert above 5K feet. A great deal of my driving is between 6K and 8K and higher on the passes.

 

The Cadillac has a significantly better drag coefficient than the F-150. The 2007 Escalade is 0.363 vs. even the new F-150 Lightning at 0.463. The older trucks will be much worse than that.

Turbo engines are only more efficient if you're out of boost. The EcoBoosts spool fast and early, so by 80-85 you're probably into the slightly positive boost region, so you're not saving anything on fuel.

 

Well, 75 or 80 miles per hour at 6,000' or more is going to be asking for some turbo assistance. Especially if you are climbing.
If your model year allows a visual boost gauge, you should enable it and take a look.
One of the people here refer to the ecoboost motor as
It's either Eco or Boost, but not both.

I remember when I got my 2016 and climbing the mountains..... cruise control to around 65 or so up this one particular hill. Trans never down shifted, it maintained speed perfectly. The boost gauge would bounce around from a little to a lot but the truck was smooth as silk while maintaining an effortless speed. Coming from vehicles that are challenged by elevation, I was amazed at what a powerful motor could do for comfort on a road trip.

I was up and over Donner pass a few times and while it's a long long climb, the truck was just cruising right along. I drove manually so I could control throttle input and trans gear, but it was an effortless climb and peacefully quiet.

 

100-110km/h I can easily achieve 20+ MPG bone stock. Tires, leveling kit, and other mods can kill your MPG.

 

Welcome!.