No Wonder Ford is Going Under

You bought a big truck and are outraged that it gets poor mileage. I
agree...who woulda thought it?!

I am a tech at Beach Ford in Suffolk. Fords are so poorly engineered
that your problem dose not suprise me. The best bet is to bye the new
Chevy Silverodo HD It has better fuel milleage and you really only
loose alittle torque. For me Chevy has been more relaible and easier
to work on. Hope this helps

A lot of things can affect your MPG. Driving habits is a big one. If
you are doing a lot of short trips with a lot of stops and starts and
carrying a lot of weight, that decreases gas mileage a lot. So does
not properly inflating your tires. Highway driving at high rates of
speed decreases your mileage, too.

Maybe you should do a little more research on gas mileage before
blaming Ford for a defective product (I'm assuming that's what you are
doing).

Since you purchased this in October 2008 can you please provide me
with the lotto numbers for next weekend? I need help filling up my
gas tank....

Not sure how anyone could make a decision to purchase a large, hulking
truck and then expect decent gas mileage? And the subby here is only
talking about a 3mpg difference? Check your tire pressure and read
about hypermiling. As far a Ford products go, I don't think my parents
ever bought one that didn't experience a major drive train failure
before it even got to 100,000 miles. You can't go wrong with a Honda
or Toyota.

Check the gas and see if you're getting E10 or E15, gas stations
(generally the ones that advertise cheapear gas than the average for
your area) will put those in to help alleviate the high cost of gas.
It is cheaper but it will give you significantly worse fuel economy.

Recently my gas mileage took a dip too. I don't have an F150, but I
get a lot worse mileage. I was thinking maybe a tune-up was needed or
there was another issue, but after talking with a few people they said
the same thing.
I wonder if the gas is being 'watered down' somehow in the past
year.
Just curious, anyone else notice this happening over the past 12
months?

Buy a used vehicle that is "broken in" It does not make financial
sense to buy a brand new vehicle. I always buy a slightly used
vehicle from an individual that maintains his vehicle and keeps
receipts.

I am more picky about that than the vehicle, the color, the options
etc.

There are no guarantees about the vehicle but I have read alot of
stories on here about new car warranties that deny claims.

Had this been the case your truck would have been "broken in" at
someone else's expense.

Good Day

"I bought a 2008 F250 in Oct. 2008."

In October 2008? Say hi to Griff Tannen for me, k?

I bought an F250
darn that thing's a yacht
Everybody wants a peek
at the monster that I got

I passed by the F150
no toy would please me
Give me the ultra-sized
the one with great big V!

Now I come to find
something that couldn't be foretold
The mileage sucks big time
what a beast to me they sold!

And don't forget....filling up with gasoline blended with ethanol with
make your mpg a little lower also.

I feel your pain, Dolores. I own an F150 myself that I bought almost
4 yrs. ago and even back then, that first fill up almost caused me to
faint as the pump sped past the $40 mark! My cost per fill up 4 yrs
later is nearly DOUBLE that price and I don't even own the big engine
version of this truck!

But you own a Triton (V-8) engine utility vehicle that is actually
performing within the specifications the manufacturer stated in all
their literature and you're quibbling over approx. 3-5 mpg??? Granted
gas is expensive, but the time to scrutinize this was not AFTER you
bought the truck!

This isnt a Ford thing, this is buyer's remorse and even if they put
it on the equipment, it doesnt mean they would find a cause for the
poor performance other than its an enormous truck that sucks up A LOT
of gas.

How do you drive your vehicle? Do you accelerate quickly out of stop
signs and stop lights? Do you brake hard? Speed?

I love that someone who bought a sub-par mileage vehicle has the
audacity to make this complaint.

There are just too many variables that have an effect on mpg. Dirty
air filter, tire pressure, the way you accelerate, a/c or electornics
on, any additional weight in the truck. It could even be that the gas
you are putting in it isn't up par. I know in my state, there are no
audits on where that 87 octane gas I am putting in my car is really
87.

There are no perfect vehicles out there only perfect people who keep
their vehicle in tip top shape and never let the tire pressure fall
below what it should be, never accelerate past 55 MPH, use cruise
control when they are on a freeway and you could set your time when
they get their oil changes and tune-ups done.
Of course I do not fall into that category either although I do keep
up with the oil changes every 3,000 miles...that part I am adamant
about.

And since I rarely drive anywhere but to work, the store and a few
friends homes, my driving pattern is pretty set and if my gas mileage
varies I know there is a problem.

Its not Ford...its all vehicle manufacturers that cannot build a
perfect vehicle.

Dolores W.,

Sounds like a major case of Buyer's Remorse brought on by $ 5.00 per
gallon gas on the horizon.

Take it to another Ford Dealer if this letter does not work as they
can plug it in and check it agaisnt established parameters.

What the other commenters say is right on the money.

BillR.

I WORK AT A CAR DEALERSHIP (NOT FORD) AND I HAVE HAD SOME SIMILIAR
COMPLAINTS LATELY WHAT WITH HIGH COST OF FUEL BEING ON EVERYBODYS
MIND. IT IS NOT UNCOMMON FOR MILEAGE TO VARY DEPENDING ON DRIVING
CONDITIONS..SUCH AS NOW IT IS SUMMER AND PEOPLE ARE RUNNING THEIR AC
WHICH WILL MOST DEFINITELY TAKE YOUR MPG DOWN BY SEVERAL MILES, IS
THERE WEIGHT BEING CARRIED AROUND IN THE VEHICLE, WHAT SPEEDS ARE YOU
TRAVELING ETC ETC. FOR YOUR MPG TO BE OFF BY 3 MILES PER GALLON IS
NOT AN UNCOMMON VARIANCE, ESTIMATED MPG IS NOT WRITTEN IN STONE...AND
LASTLY YOU PURCHASED AND EIGHT CYLINDER F250 GAS GUZZLING VEHICLE AND
THERE IS JUST NO WAY TO GET AROUND THAT, PERIOD....IT IS WHAT IT
IS...PUSHING IS ABOUT THE ONLY WAY YOU ARE GOING TO GET BETTER GAS
MILEAGE OUT OF IT...WHAT WERE YOU THINKING WHEN YOU BOUGHT IT? I
OFTEN WONDER HOW SO MANY PEOPLE WITH SO LITTLE COMMON SENSE GET THE
KIND OF JOBS WHERE THEY MAKE ENOUGH MONEY TO BUY THESE TYPES OF
VEHICLES.

I looked around on the internet and your mileage is average for the
F250. A lot of factors effect mileage. Tire pressure, stop and go
driving, frequent short trips, any accessory added to the bed such as
a cargo box, use of 4WD, poor road conditions, etc.

Since you have not broken in the engine (3 to 5 thousand miles) since
October, I think you make a lot of short trips. Unless there is a
computer error code, there is no way to diagnostically check to see if
there is a reason your mileage is lower nor are they going to drive it
at their expense until it's broken in.

You had to know that the F250 was not an economy car, it's a big truck
with a large engine.

If you've been driving the vehicle since October, shouldn't it be
broken in and getting better mileage instead of worse? Maybe using
the air-conditioning is causing it to get less miles per gallon.