Fuel efficiency...what MPG do you get?

[Matt Man]

on my old 86 c30 crew cab dually (truck in my profile picture) had a 454/turbo400/3.73 gears with the quadrajet and a recent tuneup the best I saw was 12mpg, but the truck usually got around 7-8mpg.

Truck went through lots of gas but it was worth it!

[piecesparts]

City driving with mine does suck, but on the highway, I have spent enough time in getting the RPMs to a point where they are just about right. I still can put down 15 MPG and that is at 70 to 75 MPH.

My son's 86 does not do as well as mine and he has a 350 with a 700 R4 and the same rear end gears. It is all in the mix of each vehicle and how they are built.

[Oregoon]

'74 GMC 1/2 ton LWB, 2WD, 250-6, 3OTT, 3.73 rear end, Mighty Monojet (1bbl) with a recent rebuild, HEI, fully desmogged.

Highway, I get 17 if I keep it at 55. Have done as well as 20, but I was taking it super-easy on some relatively flat back-roads between Portland and Eugene.

In town, I get about 15.

I have no plans to change anything in my drivetrain. Would like to move up to a small 4bbl, or more likely, a 2bbl on a Clifford intake with a set of matching headers. Might be a small improvement in MPG, but mainly it'd just be more fun to cruise around in.

I love a column-shifted manual, and prefer back-roads to the interstate. I live in Western Oregon, so I coast down all hills, and we have a lot of them. And I drive a semi for a living, so I'm used to taking my sweet time going uphill, which I do in my pickup too (within reason).

If I have some long miles to go in a hurry, I'll take the family Corolla.

Or more likely, I'll just leave a lot earlier and drive my truck. An empty road, a deep mug of hot coffee, dawn breaking over the mountains, and a happy inline-six warbling under the hood... Man, that's the only way to fly!

[Edahall]

1990 Suburban 3/4 ton 4x4
25 mpg highway
Cummins 6BT diesel
Unfortunately, diesel is $1 more per gallon so there is little savings over a gas vehicle.

[Bigstevex4]

The other thing that happens is you dont have to fudge the# much to realy improve milage. Another guy and i got work trucks same time his got way better milage. No rounding up or down. 200 miles 10 gals 20mpg actual 190 miles 10.8 gals 17.5 mpg

[D13]

81 3/4 ton 250 3OTT 3.42 16.5 8 ply snows, 17mpg at 45mph, 15 at 55.

[KrazyRay]

'87 GMC SWB R10 4.3 tbi, 700R4 don't know the gears. I'm getting 18 mpg on the highway. It goes from zero to 60 in about 3 1/2 years!

[dieseldawg142]

lousy....
5 mpg's empty, around 3 with the camper & trailer on it...
'85 K30 crew
454/T400/205, 4:56's 39" swamps

[MikeB]

Originally Posted by swb85

-383ci stroker (~450hp/475ft lbs)
-M21 4 speed
-3.42 gears, 28" tires

14-15 MPG (50/50 city/highway)

Wow, that's great! My 69 C10 had a fairly mild 383 (maybe 350 hp) with a 600 CFM carb, 3.08 axle, and 29" tires. Best it ever got on the highway was 12-13 mpg. Probably got more like 10 around town. Even with a very mild 350 and a Holley Economaster 450 carb, the truck got 14-15 hwy. Both engines had 2-1/4" dual exhausts and were in excellent tune.

No numbers on my 82 C10 with 250 six, but will post some when I get the 355 installed. Should be pretty good with a mild GM roller cam, Vortec heads, and a 2.73 axle. Maybe 16-17 highway?

I think the biggest problems with these trucks is wind resistance. And you can't tune that out or make up for it with taller gearing.

[Oregoon]

Originally Posted by Bigstevex4

The other thing that happens is you dont have to fudge the# much to realy improve milage. Another guy and i got work trucks same time his got way better milage. No rounding up or down. 200 miles 10 gals 20mpg actual 190 miles 10.8 gals 17.5 mpg

No doubt! Since becoming a truck driver in the early 'nineties, I've tracked my fuel economy on every vehicle I've ever owned. It's a great way to keep track of how well your vehicle is running, and in a semi truck, it's the difference between revenue-miles and repair bills.

I had a guy at work claiming his 14L Detroit was making 7 mpg over 900 miles. I pulled his fuel receipts and logs, and showed him how to do math with decimal points. Turns out he made 5.2 mpg...

7mpg in a 80,000 lb truck would be unheard of. If the numbers seem outlandish, they probably are.

[mrolds88]

The 86 K10 I had, had a 305, 4 speed and 3.08's. Ran 32's on it and would regularly get 15.5 MPG.

[NewMexCrew]

1990 1 Ton Crew Cab 4x4 Cummins 4" lift 34" tires with a heavy foot 22mpg

[Corts60]

1978 1/2 ton with 5.7 diesel, T400, Gear Vendors overdrive, and 3:73 rear end yields me around 20 MPG on the highway and around 17 MPG in the city.

[donut]

Ok, I'll add mine. '73 included as I still owned it when this thread started.

--'73 K-20 Vortec headed 350, Summit 1103 cam, dual exhaust and headers. Stock size tires, no lift, 4.10 gears, turbo 350, np 205, plow gear installed, no dump, dump bed installed.
13mpg

--'86 C-30 Stock 454, stock size tires, 4.10 gears,turbo 400, headers into factory duals.
11 mpg.

[piecesparts]

The tranny and rear end gear combinations is the whole trick to this. My Son's truck had 3.08 gears and when we put a 700 R4 in front, the mileage disappeared. The engine had to work too hard to keep up with the hills and traffic. We put a set of 3.73 gears behind the OD tranny and his mileage returned to a 14 to 15 MPG average.

[Oregoon]

Originally Posted by piecesparts

The tranny and rear end gear combinations is the whole trick to this. My Son's truck had 3.08 gears and when we put a 700 R4 in front, the mileage disappeared. The engine had to work too hard to keep up with the hills and traffic. We put a set of 3.73 gears behind the OD tranny and his mileage returned to a 14 to 15 MPG average.

Agreed. Its a simple (ha!) formula that considers engine displacement, terrain, final-drive, rear-end gears, tire-size, fuel-type, load, ambient temps, driving style, overall tuning, recent arguments with one's significant other, prevalence of Damn Good Music/Attractive chicks with long legs/New Boot on the Right Foot...

You can wring some damn good numbers out of damn near anything, Squares included.

But, life is meant for living.

Do it your way. I sure do!

[meatwagon83]

mine got about 8 when i got it with the stock engine, i just rebuilt the engine with a small cam and a decent bump in compression, im hopeing for 11 or 12, the truck is a c30 crewcab,(like you dont already know!) with a 454/th400/3;73s,it has too short of tires on it right now, i am running 225/70/16, i believe they are 29" tall, i would like something 31" tall

[Tucson38]

I've tracked my mileage very carefully over the last 65,000 miles and have averaged 12.01 MPG. About 65% highway driving, not necessarily expressway speed. I usually drive 65 on the x-way. Occasionally tow a boat or haul a 2000 lb camper which drops it down to 10 MPG but still figures in the overall average.

1985 GMC HD 3/4 4WD, stock 350, 790 cfm edelbrock, no overdrive, 3:73 gears, manual trans, dual exhaust, no headers.

[slotard]

790cfm carb on a stock 350? Why so large?

[Tucson38]

Originally Posted by slotard

790cfm carb on a stock 350? Why so large?

Sorry for the late response.

Had to replace the original Q-jet shortly after installing a new GM crate motor about 12 years ago. This was the recommended carb for that app.

GM refers to this as an engine for commercial use (towing etc.). It has most of the torque at a fairly low rpm, seems to max out under 4000 rpm. Certainly doesn't bog so it's not overcarbed. Can't remember the original carb CFM but I believe it was similar to the Edelbrock.

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by meatwagon83

mine got about 8 when i got it with the stock engine, i just rebuilt the engine with a small cam and a decent bump in compression, im hopeing for 11 or 12, the truck is a c30 crewcab,(like you dont already know!) with a 454/th400/3;73s,it has too short of tires on it right now, i am running 225/70/16, i believe they are 29" tall, i would like something 31" tall

225/70-16 = 28.5" tall.

[CaptainAmerica]

Shortbed lowered 2/4, 350 with Comp 280H cam, Edelbrock intake & 600 carb, headers-n-Flowmasters(2.5"), TH350, 3.43 gears, 29x12.50 tire= 13.3mpg mostly cruising around between 45-60mph..

[piecesparts]

Originally Posted by CaptainAmerica

Shortbed lowered 2/4, 350 with Comp 280H cam, Edelbrock intake & 600 carb, headers-n-Flowmasters(2.5"), TH350, 3.43 gears, 29x12.50 tire= 13.3mpg mostly cruising around between 45-60mph..

I believe that your gear ratio and the 350 tranny is killing you. Your tires should be around 29" tall and when cruising at 60 MPH, you are at approximately 2300 to 2400 RPMs. That is not bad for the engine, but apparently you are missing the power curve somewhere. You may not be getting into the cam profile effectively.

[Gregski]

Originally Posted by knightlife

8 if Im lucky, on a downhill slope, and the wind is on my tail end...

I pass everything BUT a gas station...

LOVE IT, sounds about right !!!

[trenda]

82 Long Bed 2wd
350 crate motor
Edlebrock 600 carb and Edelbrock manifold
Headman headers, Thrush Turbo mufflers
33x12.5 15 tires (old and brittle Mickey Thompson ATs)
SM465 Trans
gearing unknown (but probably stock as speedo says 45 when you are doing 65)
Levelling/Lift kit (1 inch rear 3 inch front)

Recently, I got around 10 mpg on a mostly highway miles tank (using MapQuest to determine actual miles covered), and driving 65 mph

Switching to 235/75 15 Goodyear Wranglers this week as these weigh 33% less than existing tires and were a stock size for this truck. Thinking about removing the lift kit, as well, if it does not involve sourcing too many expensive suspension components.

I would like to get 15 mpg on long highway drives down to North Carolina and up to New Hampshire for motorcycle rallies. Am I dreaming?

This truck was a badly neglected old girl that I would like to bring back to good health and mostly stock condition and eventually pass along to my grandson. I have replaced the plugs, fluids, relocated a fuel line that was firmly hugging one of the right side header pipes (yikes!) and replaced the blown out glass pack mufflers.

I drive like a grandpa. Even on the bikes. (Well, most of the time, anyway)