[JimA]

148" WB, 3.5 EcoBoost, AWD HR XLT. No passenger seats, but carry around 1500 - 1600 pounds. Power wheelchair, Wheelchair lift system, Refrigerator, etc..

All suburban driving - no highway driving but almost no traffic delays. Longest trip we take is 10 - 15 miles from home and back. Just passed 500 miles on the clock.

It's reporting 9.1 MPG. I'm suspicions. It was reporting an average of 10+, and suddenly while I watched, the "10" turned into a"9". The number of miles vs gallons to full are also higher than you'd expect - probably a little over 10.

So I think there's something funny with t MPG calculator, BUT the big question is whether this gas mileage (9-ish - 10-ish) Is what you'd expect from the Transit. Seems awfully low to me compared with the MPG that folks report.

Thanks

 

[surly Bill]

That seems really low, especially with the equipped start/stop feature so you aren't idling at red lights. I average between 15-16 doing the same type of driving, but different engine, and maybe a bit less cargo weight.

People have complained about the inaccuracy of the onboard MPG calculator for years. You'll get a precise MPG when you do a manual calculation at the next fill up (odometer miles driven / gallons used to fill up).

 

[Vanaroo]

I'm thinking along the same lines as surly: How does a manual calculation compare? Seems like you will either get the same results, and then something seems off with the mileage; or you will get much better results and then somehow the mileage computer is off.

On other vehicles it seems the more usual thing is for the mileage computer to be 1-3 mpg optimistic as compared to actual (hand calculated)

 

[JimA]

Manual calculation comes out a little more than 10 MPG. Which seems too low. I know it's not an econo-car, but i'd have expected something in the 12 - 15 range

 

[Covid van de Mic]

I think it's accurate. Turbo's get terrible stop-and-go mileage to begin with, and the Transit is a very big chunk of metal to accelerate and decelerate.

I get ~14.5mpg in "city" driving where stop signs/lights come every ~1 mile. Auto stop disabled, A/C on, and hypermiling by driving like a granny (I'll coast a 1/4mi to a stop sign if I'm not holding up traffic).

My 2005 Subaru Outback (turbo) gets 16.5mpg in similar driving (but 22-23mpg highway at 70mph). It takes premium, so at least in city driving it's a flip of the coin which is cheaper to operate.

And I do think I see an improvement when the "eco mode" is selected if you haven't tried it. Dunno if it is changing the shift points or not spooling up the turbo as much, but at least at freeways speeds I've noticed a change in throttle responsiveness.

 

[kazuo]

With 500 miles on the van you are not broke in yet, everything is still tight, it will loosen up as you accrue more miles and MPG will improve (1 MPG ?), You-tube ambulance fleet mechanic mentions 10 MPG is average for a fleet of Ford 3.5L Eco boost Transits. I get 13.6 MPG with 3.7L 70% city 30% highway, approx 500lbs cargo, driven like a old man. this was measured over 4000 miles and 294 gallons of gas, no hills at sea level. (hand calculated)
Drive like there's an egg on the gas pedal—press evenly and gently on the accelerator to avoid breaking the egg. There is no free lunch.

 

[JimA]

The last vehicle I had was a 2015 Land Rover LR4. 3,0L Turbo v/6. Curb weight not too much less than the Transit, full time true 4WD. I averaged 15 to 17 MPG. The transit has a heavier load due to the wheelchair and lift Which is why I switched from the Land Rover - I really liked it, but there was no way to get my (pretty large) power wheelchair into it. I thought I'd drive the LR4 until my driving days were done, but that was before I needed a wheelchair.

We're definitely going to keep my wife's car until they take our licenses away. 2001 BMW Z3M bought new in 2001 with a lot of "go faster" Dinan "upgrades". 70k original miles, still looks like new, goes like H..., a blast to drive. The manual transmission poses some challenges for me now, but with perseverance I can still drive it. The 3.2l straight six is a marvelous piece of engineering. It started out at around 315HP, but it's closer to 400 now - in a tiny car that could just about fit inside the Transit. Steering is tight - 2.5 turns lock to lock, Just think about a lane change and it's done with next to no wheel movement. Did I say it's fun to drive? Every time my wife gets behind the wheel her face just lights up and her aggressive driver score shoots up.

 

[Grizz1]

2021 HT AWD EXT 350HD DRW with 3.5 Ecoboost with bed and some shelves in probably around 1000 LBS getting 14.5 in town, 18.7 on highway according to gauge. But I found that coasting in town to be your friend. With that weight you can take your foot off the gas and the weight will push you down the road. Also on the highway, which has been stated on the forum before, that 65 mph seems to be the sweet spot for saving on gas for the highway. Over that and you see your MPG going down.

 

[CrewVanManInfo]

I drive 500 to 800 mile one way trips and get 17.8 MPG if under 70 MPH in a T250 MR 148 WB CrewVan. Past that speed it goes down considerably. My 2017 MR DSD did 19.3 MPG on my last trip to Kansas City but it has the 3.31 rear axle ratio versus the 3.73 on the CrewVan.

 

[CrewVanManInfo]

Manual calculation comes out a little more than 10 MPG. Which seems too low. I know it's not an econo-car, but i'd have expected something in the 12 - 15 range

You never get up to speed to get the transmission in the higher gears to get the better mileage. You might make use of the + button on your shifter to see what gears you are reaching. Making a lot of stop and go driving keeps in transmission in the lower gears with more RPMs and less fuel mileage.

 

[Big67]

10-12 MPG all day long from my transit

 

[njvagabond]

I noticed that the GPH that is shown when the vehicle is idling is significantly higher before the engine is up to temperature. Don't know if there is a similar impact on MPG under those conditions. Not sure how long that condition exists either, cuz I won't see that when driving due to auto stop/start. Only noticed when I was idling at start one day to put some charge back in the battery.

When I am running mostly around locally suburban-ruralish with my mostly empty van (148"/HR/AWD/EB) I am getting around 16mpg, but I am very judicious in the use of the go and stop pedals. I am still trying to adjust to all the momentum of the beast, so there is some room for improvement in avoiding the brakes. I would expect it would be significantly lower if I drove it more "normally" like my sedan (12 would not surprise me). Not sure how much it matters, but I'd say I remember to put it in Eco mode about 1/2 the time.

For reference, I'd say my minivan gets around 18mpg around town (20mpg when I have tried to see what max would be) and I drive that easier than the sedan, but harder than the Transit.

Since with short trips only, I'd suspect you won't be putting many miles on (in those conditions), so fuel will not be very significant in terms of total cost of ownership. Enjoy the van ... perhaps I should take my own advice and play with the turbos some more ...

 

[surly Bill]

Wow, 10 mpg is "normal". That's a travesty in this day and age. If it were my van, I'd also assume something is wrong with it. I don't think I've ever had a tank less than 14mpg, and the max has been maybe 18.5. There are some downhills where my OBD connected app says I'm getting 244mpg, but unlike others, I don't list that as my mpg, I only count the hand calculated mpg at fill-ups. I've also seen 4-5mpg going up some hills.

 

[amwbox]

The difference between city and hwy is pretty amazing in some vehicles. My daily beater is a 2002 Ford Ranger... 2.3 4cyl, 5 speed manual, 2WD. (267,000 miles, runs perfectly). Out on the highway with me hanging out in the right lane trying to get max MPG at 55 or 60, I can reliably get about 29 MPG, which is good for a 20 year old pickup. If I move with traffic and go 70 or 75...it dramatically falls to about 21 MPG.

Around town though, no matter what, it gets about 14-16 MPG. Half as much.

Long story short, my compact pickup which weights half as much as a Transit, with a 4 cyl engine 40% smaller and with a manual transmission gets about the same around town mileage as you do in a gigantic cargo van with a 300 horse turbocharged engine.

 

[amwbox]

I'm betting those Euro Transits are killing it right now, relatively speaking. They are available with manual transmissions and fuel sipping little diesels. Things that the American car buyer finds abhorrent. Apparently a cargo van needs to accelerate like a Mustang while we hold our Slurpee cup in our right hand, requiring an automatic, or we won't buy it?

 

[CrewVanManInfo]

The USA has too many emission regulations that keep the 4 cylinder Diesel engine from coming here. Ford was going to offer the 2.0L EcoBoost Diesel like the one in Europe but it would never pass EPA and USA Emissions. The manual transmission is just something that only a few buyers in the USA want so that is keeping it from showing up as a option here.

 

[surly Bill]

Double whammy on fuel efficient engines: emissions requirements and minimum acceleration standards. Third force-multiplier applying limitations on fuel efficient vehicles: US crash test standards.

Side note; ICE engines do better on long sustained speed drives, aka highway driving, than they do in stop and go city driving. EV engines do better with stop and go city driving than they do on highways. Obvious solution that is already being employed is hybrid drive vehicles.

 

[phil]

@surly Bill
I wonder what the reason is for not offering a hybrid van, I get that the Transit would be more engineering, but the '22 Promaster has a Pacifica drivetrain which has a hybrid option. In the minivan category the Pacifica is the least and most efficient.

 

[carringb]

Very short drives are killer on fuel economy.

This sounds like the ideal application for a Transit EV.

JimA - You might be able to sell yours at a profit, and get an EV Transit at a discount because some dealers were forced to take them, even in low-adoption areas, and regardless of whether they have the skills to even explain how it works.

 

[timreg2]

I think it's accurate. Turbo's get terrible stop-and-go mileage to begin with, and the Transit is a very big chunk of metal to accelerate and decelerate.

I get ~14.5mpg in "city" driving where stop signs/lights come every ~1 mile. Auto stop disabled, A/C on, and hypermiling by driving like a granny (I'll coast a 1/4mi to a stop sign if I'm not holding up traffic).

My 2005 Subaru Outback (turbo) gets 16.5mpg in similar driving (but 22-23mpg highway at 70mph). It takes premium, so at least in city driving it's a flip of the coin which is cheaper to operate.

And I do think I see an improvement when the "eco mode" is selected if you haven't tried it. Dunno if it is changing the shift points or not spooling up the turbo as much, but at least at freeways speeds I've noticed a change in throttle responsiveness.

Regarding “eco mode”, I can’t speak for the Transit, but I have a 2018 F150 with the EB. In “eco mode” I’m not sure if the shift points are different but how hard you have to press the pedal to accelerate (“throttle responsiveness”) is dramatically different. Same effect in our Lexus RX450h. It’s almost to the point of feeling sluggish until you get used to it. This is from a stop, or at freeway speeds. Not sure I’ve ever noticed a change in mileage, though.