My tow vehicle is a 2000 Ford E350 Club Wagon Chateau. The van known as "Big White" has a 6.8L V10 with a 3.73 axle. The van in the city does about 10mpg, on the highway it has done as much as 17, but typically 15-15.5mpg. Towing the T-2970 the high is 10.5mpg but you can expect anywhere from 8.5mpg to 10mpg. My tow speed is usually around 68mph.
My previous tow vehicle was a 1997 E150 Club Wagon XLT with a 5.4L V8 and a 3.55 axle. The most I ever got with it was 16.5mpg on the highway. City was about 11mpg. Towing with the T2251 was over 11mpg, but when we got the T2970 it delivered about 8.6mpg max. The power of the 5.4L was fine, but braking was not as good as I would have liked. The E350 does a much better job of controlling the T2970 and with the 6.8L V10 it has better fuel economy than the 5.4L.
I had a friend that was a calibration engineer for the V10 and he told me with a 3.73 axle and the 305 HP version of the V10 I have in the Club Wagon, or a two wheel drive Excursion I would get up 15-17mpg on the road and if I am towing 7,000lbs at 65mph I will get 10-11mpg. If I get less than that there is more weight, or some condition like wind or grades. From what I have experienced he was right.
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