2021 PowerBoost and Towing... Terrible MPG while towing

[Snakebitten]

Agreed!
Always err in that direction.
In my opinion at least.
I'd rather have a complaining/burdened, but planted truck than a tail wagging the dog.

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[DOUGIE0426]

Yeah we're driving about 3 hours for each leg of the trip with a good mix of highway/non so I'm hoping for a good overall feel for everything when I'm done. The rolling hills part from SE OK to Hot Springs area really excites me as far a "fun" driving. I will definitely report back on both MPG and felt sway.

 

[turbopilot]

The shocks are more about the pogo affect of vertical forces on an underdamped leaf spring. So it's nice to address that with some inexpensive Bilsteins back there.

But white-knuckling in winds is all about horizontal stability. Side-to-side wallowing of the back of the truck.
Tires are way underappreciated in that respect.
And the rear Antisway Helwig is fantastic for fighting that lateral influence. My complaint with the Helwig is the basic doubling in price for our generation of truck. Why? Makes no sense to me.

One other approach that addresses both vertical and lateral, basically increased damping and less body sway is the RAS from Activesuspension.com

I added them to my 2022 KingRanch Powerboost a few days ago just to compare to my traditional approach of shocks/Helwig combo.

I haven't put them to the towing test yet but they sure planted the rear of this truck! And a bargain for what they accomplish. Fully adjustable too.

Did you do the HD kit. How much weight do you tow?

 

[Snakebitten]

Did you do the HD kit. How much weight do you tow?

Did not do the HD.
I don't tow very heavy either.
I do have one RV that I would consider heavy for my Powerboost, but it sits wherever I want it to be for long periods of time. (~7500lbs)

I'm actually experimenting with the RAS as an enhancement to my new CCD. Or put another way, I'm hoping to find that I will be satisfied with CCD if I can use RAS to tweak it a little. Ford doesn't want me to make any decisions myself with CCD, and I'd be OK with that if they weren't so dang conservative.

 

[turbopilot]

Did not do the HD.
I don't tow very heavy either.
I do have one RV that I would consider heavy for my Powerboost, but it sits wherever I want it to be for long periods of time. (~7500lbs)

I'm actually experimenting with the RAS as an enhancement to my new CCD. Or put another way, I'm hoping to find that I will be satisfied with CCD if I can use RAS to tweak it a little. Ford doesn't want me to make any decisions myself with CCD, and I'd be OK with that if they weren't so dang conservative.

Not familiar with CCD. I am just starting to tow a 25' Airstream at around 7,000lbs loaded and 920lbs on the hitch. No F-150 mods yet. What do you recommend?

 

[Snakebitten]

Not familiar with CCD. I am just starting to tow a 25' Airstream at around 7,000lbs loaded and 920lbs on the hitch. No F-150 mods yet. What do you recommend?

I recommend you sign that Airstream over to me immediately.
I'm so envious. I'm an RV full-timer and I admit that I need a slide out just for sanity, but oh how I admire...

OK, this is just ME.... I loath being uncomfortable behind the wheel while towing. If I can't be confident and relaxed, I'm upgrading or downgrading whatever is called for.

If you REALLY really are less than 7500lbs behind the truck, then you should be able to get an F150 dialed in to be rock solid. But at 7000lbs, it takes the whole ensemble to get to what I'm describing.

Shocks, front and rear (adjustable if budget allows)
Rear Helwig
Load E tires (Michelin Load E preferred because even Load E, they ride nicely)
And then the WDH set to where you or some expert THINKS it should be, and then purposely adjusted in either direction so you can experience the difference and become knowledgeable yourself for how it affects the towing feel.

 

[turbopilot]

I recommend you sign that Airstream over to me immediately.
I'm so envious. I'm an RV full-timer and I admit that I need a slide out just for sanity, but oh how I admire...

OK, this is just ME.... I loath being uncomfortable behind the wheel while towing. If I can't be confident and relaxed, I'm upgrading or downgrading whatever is called for.

If you REALLY really are less than 7500lbs behind the truck, then you should be able to get an F150 dialed in to be rock solid. But at 7000lbs, it takes the whole ensemble to get to what I'm describing.

Shocks, front and rear (adjustable if budget allows)
Rear Helwig
Load E tires (Michelin Load E preferred because even Load E, they ride nicely)
And then the WDH set to where you or some expert THINKS it should be, and then purposely adjusted in either direction so you can experience the difference and become knowledgeable yourself for how it affects the towing feel.

Thanks for your recommendations. What kind of shops typically can do the suspension mods?

I just completed a Winter project completely converting a 2022 25' Globetrotter to "All Electric" now it is time to get the PowerBoost modified. I documented my Airstream conversion over on the Airstream forum here.

 

[Snakebitten]

Thanks for your recommendations. What kind of shops typically can do the suspension mods?

I just completed a Winter project completely converting a 2022 25' Globetrotter to "All Electric" now it is time to get the PowerBoost modified. I documented my Airstream conversion over on the Airstream forum here.

Wow!
Cheers to you and your de-propaning that 25! I only read page 1 of 8, but I am addicted to threads like that. Or to put it another way, I admire the tenacity that one man or woman can sometimes have to overcome an obstacle that most just accept as a limit to live with.

In this case, perhaps oversimplified, you are addressing the Payload relationship between THE one and only truck that meets your desires (Powerboost) with the one and only Airstream.(GT25)

And you aren't just fiddling either!

No spoiler please. I want to read it.

Thanks for the link, by the way

 

[DOUGIE0426]

Ok the fam and I just got back from a 9 day, 630ish mile, 3 state tour with the RV. I recorded the miles, MPG, fuel type, drive mode type and elevation of each leg. so here goes:

Leg 1 - 198 miles from Denton, TX (elev 574ft) to Broken Bow State Park (elev 690ft) - 7.9 MPG using no tow/haul mode and premium gas

Leg 2 - 111 miles from BBSP (elev 690ft) to Lake Ouachita, AR (Hot Springs area, elev 650ft) - 10.4 mpg - tow/haul mode and regular gas

Leg 3 - 130 miles from LOSP (elev 650ft) to Clear Springs State Park (Texarkana area, elev 243ft) - 11.3 mpg - tow/haul mode and mid-grade gas

Leg 4 - 195 miles from CSSP (elev 243ft) to Denton, TX (elev 574ft) - 8.2 mpg - tow/haul and not depending on the road and speed as this was the only real highway portion of the drive - regular gas.

I was towing a 6783lbs (dry) TT with me, the wife, and 2 small children. Didn't really have any excess weight during any particular leg as we would get groceries without the trailer and obviously consume most of them during our stops so I can't see weight being an issue. Anyway, just wanted to share for everyone.

 

[KDPGame02]

What were your typical speeds on that trip, @DOUGIE0426. That would likely affect you MPG as much as anything.

My 2015 3.5EB did anywhere from 8.5 to 11 towing our 5,500lb travel trailer in Sport mode, but I never really went over 67mph. We take out the new PB this weekend, and will be very interested to try different modes, probably normal and sport at first.

 

[DOUGIE0426]

What were your typical speeds on that trip, @DOUGIE0426. That would likely affect you MPG as much as anything.

My 2015 3.5EB did anywhere from 8.5 to 11 towing our 5,500lb travel trailer in Sport mode, but I never really went over 67mph. We take out the new PB this weekend, and will be very interested to try different modes, probably normal and sport at first.

I rarely went over 65, (prolly 55 avg) and that was usually only on a downhill or straightaway highway section.

 

[DBL R]

Did not do the HD.
I don't tow very heavy either.
I do have one RV that I would consider heavy for my Powerboost, but it sits wherever I want it to be for long periods of time. (~7500lbs)

I'm actually experimenting with the RAS as an enhancement to my new CCD. Or put another way, I'm hoping to find that I will be satisfied with CCD if I can use RAS to tweak it a little. Ford doesn't want me to make any decisions myself with CCD, and I'd be OK with that if they weren't so dang conservative.

i was debating RAAS but got the timbren system. I haven’t had time to install it yet. I’m hoping unloaded it lets the CCD do it’s thing and loaded helps with lateral sway and reduced squat.

 

[Litebulb]

What's everyone doing about squat for trucks with no CCD? I love the truck but it squats crazy even with load in the bed. I cant find airbags that will work and the RAAS looks sketchy but I'm not educated enough on them. Will a weight distribution hitch help enough? Thanks and I'm welcoming myself to this thread !!

 

[Snakebitten]

Raas looks sketchy?

It's actually rather clever engineering and absolutely accomplishes what it's designed to do.
But nothing is a substitute for a weight distribution hitch.

 

[Litebulb]

I've just always been a fan of airbags so I'm "scared" of different things i dont understand!

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