The Ford diesel trucks have been a favorite of many of Americas truck owners for the last decade. The powerstroke diesel engine puts out a lot of power and has been known to get excellent fuel economy. Times have been hard lately though. The economy has been down and diesel fuel prices have been on the rise. People are trying to figure out what to do. Their diesel gets better mileage than the gas trucks, but it just doesn’t seem like enough anymore. So I’m going to tell you what people have been doing to make things more affordable.


The first choice of any powerstroke owner to increase their fuel mileage is a chip or programmer of some sort. The types available change between the different powerstroke engines available. For example the 94-03 powerstrokes have a 7.3L engine, the 03-07 powerstrokes have a 6.0L engine and the new 2008 powerstrokes have a 6.4L engine. The chips and tuners available vary depending on the engine. Most of the 7.3L engines and 6.0L engines are able to gain anywhere from one to five miles per gallon just by installing the new chip or programmer or module. The 6.4L engines aren’t so lucky. They have an new emissions control system that hampers performance and especially fuel economy. Great for the air…bad for fuel consumption and the pocket book. The 6.4L’s are only gaining about .5 to 1 MPG with a computer upgrade.


Air intakes and exhaust systems are another thing that will increase power and fuel economy. Most intakes give about 1 mile per gallon, and most exhaust systems give anywhere from 2 to 4 miles per gallon of an increase. The best thing is the power is a by product of the increased fuel efficiency. Also by upgrading the engine, intake, and exhaust you relieve engine stress and back pressure. To a conservative driver this means added engine longevity.

Dr Performance & K&N Diesel Intakes are Ford Diesel Performance options- Nathan Young