Ford 7.3L Gas Engine

[Hay Dude]

What do you consider heavy? All mine hauling 26k will get 10-12 on summer fuel and 18-20 empty.

With 4.89’s, empty I get about 16MPG in the Ram. Towing at the trucks limits, it drops to 10-11 average.
Gas isnt even possible for me and I always prefer an in-line six for off pedal and low end torque over a high revving V-8 diesel, which would end up using more fuel.

 

[jyoutz]

What do you consider heavy? All mine hauling 26k will get 10-12 on summer fuel and 18-20 empty.

15-20k. But the Cummins will pull heavier loads and still do it a 2500-2800 RPMs at highway speeds. It’s the massive torque and efficiency of an inline motor that makes this possible.

 

[Hay Dude]

Barely a V-8 in existence in a modern heavy OTR truck.

 

[Grumpycat]

My Cummins only loses 2 mpg when towing a heavy trailer. But Cummins I-6 motors operate at much lower RPMs than a power stroke.

My 6.4L ran 1500 to 1800 at 70 MPH.

 

[crashz]

I know this is re-hashing the diesel-vs-gas fight yet again but...

I have been a proponent of the "I'll never buy a complicated emissions restricted diesel truck" line. I have an older F450 with a 7.3PS and not so old Silverado 2500 with a 6.0 gas. Took the Silverado to OH to pick up a UTV. 4 tanks of fuel there and 4 tanks back. I have made the same run empty and its 2 tanks each way (650+ miles). So that's about 13 mpg empty and 6 mpg lightly loaded. The truck kept up with traffic just fine, but some hills and on-ramps got a little sketchy and wanting for power. And I wasn't pulling much weight. Just my equipment trailer (2,500lbs) and the UTV (1600lbs). I was not prepared for that.

 

[jyoutz]

My 6.4L ran 1500 to 1800 at 70 MPH.

Well then, the Cummins is just more fuel efficient.

 

[jyoutz]

I know this is re-hashing the diesel-vs-gas fight yet again but...

I have been a proponent of the "I'll never buy a complicated emissions restricted diesel truck" line. I have an older F450 with a 7.3PS and not so old Silverado 2500 with a 6.0 gas. Took the Silverado to OH to pick up a UTV. 4 tanks of fuel there and 4 tanks back. I have made the same run empty and its 2 tanks each way (650+ miles). So that's about 13 mpg empty and 6 mpg lightly loaded. The truck kept up with traffic just fine, but some hills and on-ramps got a little sketchy and wanting for power. And I wasn't pulling much weight. Just my equipment trailer (2,500lbs) and the UTV (1600lbs). I was not prepared for that.

The thing about diesel vs gas engines is that diesel mpg doesn’t change very much empty or loaded/towing. I get about the same mileage in the city, on highways, loaded or empty. But usage greatly affects gas motor mpgs. And this was the same with my old VW diesel car.

 

[Snobdds]

My 6.4L ran 1500 to 1800 at 70 MPH.

Yeah...where did this notion of a v8 diesel revving higher come from. Has no-one looked at a torque curve?

 

[Hay Dude]

Well then, the Cummins is just more fuel efficient.

That it is.
My not-yet-broken-in 6.7 Cummins is averaging 2.5MPG more than my 6.4L Ford it replaced and revving much lower doing it.
I’m done with V-8 diesels.…well, maybe a Duramax if I start using a large hay truck to haul again.

 

[jyoutz]

That it is.
My not-yet-broken-in 6.7 Cummins is averaging 2.5MPG more than my 6.4L Ford it replaced and revving much lower doing it.
I’m done with V-8 diesels.…well, maybe a Duramax if I start using a large hay truck to haul again.

A Cummins will also work well in a large hay truck. It’s significant that Cummins is the only light truck diesel that is also used in industrial equipment such as log skidders, etc… You won’t find a power stroke or Duramax in those applications.