Most Efficient .5 Ton While Towing

Had a 68 Dart “5” cylinder 225 slant 6.

Same engine on the pea viners I used to operate in the Summers.

"I'm talking about any and all light duty I6 gas engines including the slant six"

While not powerful the slant 6 was actually a pretty heavy duty motor. I saw several used in commercial equipment like forklifts and small train engines for inside the factory use. The engine was designed to be made from aluminum but Chrysler decided to save money and build them out of cast iron, resulting in a way overbuilt engine. Someone who knew what they were doing could get some pretty serious horsepower out of them but most only came with a small 1 barrel carb and a mild cam. I have seen pictures of some that were built for the 4 liter class of sprint racing actually made of aluminum and sporting a 4 barrel carb. It was said that these engines were very competitive.

MFL wrote:

FishOnOne wrote:


The GM 4.3 is about as solid as they come. I even preferred these over the older I6 equivalents.

Just to be clear, you are talking about/comparing to, the OLD GM I6, not the legendary 300 ci I6 from the Ford early days...right?

Jerry

I'm talking about any and all light duty I6 gas engines including the slant six, legendary status or not.

Just so you know the original 4.3 was basically a Chevy 350 excluding 2 cylinders and was originally offered with a 4 barrel carb and was the first of the Chevy engines to have the vortec designed heads.

MFL wrote:

FishOnOne wrote:


The GM 4.3 is about as solid as they come. I even preferred these over the older I6 equivalents.

Just to be clear, you are talking about/comparing to, the OLD GM I6, not the legendary 300 ci I6 from the Ford early days...right?

Jerry

Having driven the GM 250/292 I6, a Ford 300 a few times. Also having owned a 4.3 TBI and vortex versions in an Astro and Safari van. Those 4.3s were better setup for mileage pulling power and speed etc than the three I6 rigs mentioned. As I am typing, I also.learned to drive in a 3 in tree 225 or there about.
Yes those motors were good in the day. No different than a 440/454/460 V8s of yore. Good at the time, but current motors are better.
I suspect current 4.3 will be on par with son's 4.8 V8, and similar to my vortex 350 in 2500.

Marty

Even for those that don't care about how much they spend on fuel there is are correlations between fuel economy, range and payload. I like being able to carry weight and go long distances in my truck without fueling. I do also like saving money.

FishOnOne wrote:


The GM 4.3 is about as solid as they come. I even preferred these over the older I6 equivalents.

Just to be clear, you are talking about/comparing to, the OLD GM I6, not the legendary 300 ci I6 from the Ford early days...right?

Jerry

blt2ski wrote:
Some of you beeching about prices, IE Pennsylvania prices listed, add $.60-1.00, and you have prices in Puget Sound. Western states when I see pricing are usually highest, mid west, then east coast cheapest. California usually highest.
I'm still on lookout to replace my 2500 with something that gets in the upper teens for mpg empty. A diesel is not in cards. Probably a GM 4.3. The frod eco in transit at work has yet to get me 19mpg running empty to maybe max gvwr, much less towing with no hitch on it!

Marty

The GM 4.3 is about as solid as they come. I even preferred these over the older I6 equivalents.

Perrysburg Dodgeboy wrote:
So why didn't they use the new 3.0 diesel Ford has?

Then everyone would be complaining that TFL is comparing Apples to Oranges. Having said that these gas powered trucks are probably not the most fuel efficient gas power available, but rather the best performing gas engines available. I would like to see both towing performance and fuel economy quantified.

VernDiesel wrote:

TurnThePage wrote:
This thread was about an efficiency comparison. Why all the belly achin' from so many of you that are obviously not interested? Move along.

Agreed. In my case I tow for a living in where towing economy directly affects my profit. Why others are afraid to let those that want to discuss fuel economy and towing economy makes no sense to me.

What I tow mostly is Airstreams & boats between 5 & 8k. A small diesel is perfect for this so I look forward to the Ecodiesel, F150, & GM small diesel comparison. If I did hot shot with a large GN with more 8 to 25k loads I would be looking at threads on longevity and towing economy for HDs.

Vern your in a different category from most here because you are towing for profit vs. plain old recreation. When there is a profit involved the entire perspective changes.
Most of us here just tow for fun. We fill the tank and head out for a relaxing adventure. MPG's simply aren't a priority in that scenario.
My goal is to have a safe relaxing trip. From the start RV'ing is not an economical activity. There are much cheaper ways to travel.
In the grand scheme of what I have spent before I leave the driveway, fuel cost are minor. If I save a few dollars in fuel will still only reflect a small % of my overall cost.
It gets even more jumbled when I try to compare my cost to others who: traveled a different route, in a different truck, towing a different trailer,at a different altitude,in a different climate, with a different payload,facing different winds, in different traffic conditions and at a different speed.
From all of this I'm supposed to make a meaningful conclusion concerning fuel efficiency.
Lastly throw in the lie o meters,and fudge factors and the efficiency analysis discussion maybe entertaining but it's not very accurate or beneficial.

TurnThePage wrote:
This thread was about an efficiency comparison. Why all the belly achin' from so many of you that are obviously not interested? Move along.

Agreed. In my case I tow for a living in where towing economy directly affects my profit. Why others are afraid to let those that want to discuss fuel economy and towing economy makes no sense to me.

What I tow mostly is Airstreams & boats between 5 & 8k. A small diesel is perfect for this so I look forward to the Ecodiesel, F150, & GM small diesel comparison. If I did hot shot with a large GN with more 8 to 25k loads I would be looking at threads on longevity and towing economy for HDs.