NSR: New Baby & checked mileage on the Chevy F-150

[Stig / Major Tom]

My offspring #30* - arrived recently to #2 son & his wife.
Baby girl - all doing fine - while son looks appropriately alarmed at his growing responsibilities.

And, while I was out buying another stroller/car-seat/ski-do baby thing I stopped to fill up my 6 cyl. Silvertornado Chevy.
I finally set the 'trip odo' so I could check the mileage.
It is @ an 'o6 - a gift from my FIL - after I sold my last VW , to drive only my LIKE into my sunset.
(he decided that was crazy - "in Ohio!" - and made me take his rarely used truck)

I did the maths and came up with 15.4 MPG.
This involved rather a lot of idling this winter....but I doubt I'd get much more than 17 or so in the summer. @56,000 miles.

Mothers get a pretty nice set-up in our small town's new hospital. (deliveries often can be done right in the mom's private room - while C-Sections are performed in a fully equipped surg. room) Fold out couch for the Dad. Hosp. feeds all 3 three meals a day. Private RR with shower. Pop watches the proceedings. (nurse watches the pops!)
I took some snaps yesterday....







Stig
* My youngest daughter did the math - This little gal is my 30th offspring. (children, grand children, great grand children)
She said, "see, if you hadn't made it home from Vietnam the world would be missing a couple of soccer teams!"
** speaking of Vietnam - I noticed the name on the bed of my DIL's hosp. bed, "STRYKER"
In the 1960's, when I was in medic training at Brooke Army Med. Cen. in San Antonio we were shown a rotating "Stryker frame" bed being used on casualties flown in from Vietnam. This company has a long history!

[randyo]

that is horrible mileage, My '02 Silverado 4x4 5.3 V8 gets 20+,  I get 18 towing a trailer @ 70mph, even in winter with lots of warmup time I get in the mid 19s

[Stig / Major Tom]

that is horrible mileage, My '02 Silverado 4x4 5.3 V8 gets 20+,  I get 18 towing a trailer @ 70mph, even in winter with lots of warmup time I get in the mid 19s

Suggestions?
It runs fine.
I can't get at all of the plugs - or I'd try changing them.
I replaced the air filter and battery.
It gets reg. oil & filter changes.
I had the brake line kit installed when it blew the lines in my driveway. ($800)
Throwing an airbag code - nothing else. (dealer said it needs a new 'clock-spring' in the steering wheel, $800)
Open to ideas.

Stig

[randyo]

Probably cause it's a 6 not an 8, it's a fallacy that less cylinders = better economy,   almost everybody I know,   with a 5.3 gets 20±,  I don't really know what my Tacoma gets, been doing plowing in low range, and as much backing up as foward, I might get 50 miles on this tank

[Stig / Major Tom]

Probably cause it's a 6 not an 8, it's a fallacy that less cylinders = better economy,   almost everybody I know,   with a 5.3 gets 20±,  I don't really know what my Tacoma gets, been doing plowing in low range, and as much backing up as foward, I might get 50 miles on this tank

Probably has something to do with every mile is in town....city driving, never over 40mph.
Stig

[Ex-KLR]

I got 22 mpg freeway driving on my 2009 F-150 V8 when it was new. Haven't checked it lately.

[Tromper]

Is this the beastie you're referring to Major?
https://www.fuelly.com/car/chevrolet/silverado_1500/2006

[Stig / Major Tom]

Is this the beastie you're referring to Major?
https://www.fuelly.com/car/chevrolet/silverado_1500/2006

That, my friend is amazing 👏!
I had no idea that this sort of information is out there!
Thanks a bunch for sharing this with my wife and I.
I will quit trying to figure out what is wrong with it...and just enjoy my late FIL's gift all the more
I actually drove a 1987 Chevy crew cab with an 8-foot bed for nearly 30 years when I worked for the state of Ohio. They had to practically pry the steering wheel away from me because they said it was getting too unreliable. I loved that big red truck. I resigned not long after that.
Thanks again!
Major Tom

[Iahawk]

congrats on the new grandchild!...and I wouldn't worry at all about that fuel mileage...in town, winter, a full sized truck? That ain't no Prius!

For comparison purposes, my 2014 Dodge Caravan gets between 15-18 mpg in town in the winter. (upper 20's on the highway, but most of its time is spent in town, much like your truck).

[Stig / Major Tom]

congrats on the new grandchild!...and I wouldn't worry at all about that fuel mileage...in town, winter, a full sized truck? That ain't no Prius!

For comparison purposes, my 2014 Dodge Caravan gets between 15-18 mpg in town in the winter. (upper 20's on the highway, but most of its time is spent in town, much like your truck).

Thanks Hawk,
Yeah, she's a little cutie. Very little!
As for the Chevy - I take a deep breath at the end of each month when I go to fill it up, even though I often have as much as $1.00 off the pump price with my grocery savings card (we buy groceries for my MIL as well as my son's family often - so we reach $1K a month!)
Still - darn thing has a massive tank - and I feel a little guilty that it doesn't get any Top Tier gas - just Kroger's gas. $66.00 yesterday.
The scoots and the Scion get Top Tier only --- at SHELL.

Stig

[randyo]

fwiw, I do zero urban driving, and almost zero highway,  just rural roads, 45-50 mph, not fighting wind or traffic

[mrmike]

Suggestions?
It runs fine.
I can't get at all of the plugs - or I'd try changing them.
I replaced the air filter and battery.
It gets reg. oil & filter changes.
I had the brake line kit installed when it blew the lines in my driveway. ($800)
Throwing an airbag code - nothing else. (dealer said it needs a new 'clock-spring' in the steering wheel, $800)
Open to ideas.

Stig

  Don't forget tire pressure. Colder weather the pressure can drop. It could be a mile or 2 per gal.

[Stig / Major Tom]

  Don't forget tire pressure. Colder weather the pressure can drop. It could be a mile or 2 per gal.

Good point.
But tires were checked recently at oil change place.
Gramps put truck tires on this thing rather than highway tires..
and it already rides like a chuck wagon. Wouldn't want any more air!
Fuelly graph says my MPG is normal.
Stig

[randyo]

  Don't forget tire pressure. Colder weather the pressure can drop. It could be a mile or 2 per gal.

winter fuel mixture as well,  and just the energy it takes to keep the engine at optimal temperature, rolling resistance with stiffer viscosities of axle grease, etc. all add up.

years ago, I had a Chevy LUV (Isuzu) that would get close to 30 in summer, but dropped to less than 15 in winter, I covered the radiator with cardboard to keep it above 15, but I'm talking driving in sub-zero weather

I think cast iron blocks do better than aluminum block engines in that respect

[Neil955i]

Looks very well equipped Stig and congratulations on the new Granddaughter!