Thread: Cold air intake system

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Originally Posted by Dave Severson

Don't think you'd get enough return on the investment, if that's your concern.... but then that's not real unusual when playing with a truck anyhow....

the weight is the biggest hold back on the truck... Only thing I've ever got any kind of decent mileage out of in these behemoth trucks is a diesel. The diesels will really react to air flow improvements, bigger exhaust, and a chip... I've got a V-10 laying in the corner, someday going to build a light little car to put it in and see what happens....

Anyway, pulling around that much mass, a couple mpg improvement is probably about the best you could hope for... Changing all the lubes to synthetics would probably accomplish the same....

Mileage increase with syn lubes was a waste of $$. Mobil 1 - NADA, so am back to Motorcraft Semi Syn. ATF is whatever Ford uses. Differentials have a friction modifier that is compatible with the Ford Equalock/Traction Lock or whatever it's called.

Big mileage increases are not possible with this big of a truck and the less then spectacular aerodynamics - all I want is a consistent 10.5 to 11 town and 13-14 road. And the new Ford diesels, the 6.0 and 6.4 - their fuel mileage is not much better (1-2 mpg) then mine. With diesel fuel here over a dollar more per gallon, sure isn't worth it for a daily driver that seldom sees much bed or hauling load. Then there are the added maintenance costs (and warranty downtime) that really negate a diesel for the average joe. For a guy that regularly hauls a load though, the diesels are the way to go.

Funny, I never had any luck at all with cold air setups. On my '88 Merc 302, I gained 3 mpg by tossing the factory tube, opening the air cleaner entry hole, and sucking air from under the hood. On my '95 Dodge Ram, I'm going to make an old style open filter setup like on any 4bbl. carb and see what happens. I think most factory intake tubes are just too small to work at highway speeds.