New Ranger Lugging between 1200 and 1500 RPMs - Is this normal?

[Floyd]

I think you mention you have a 2wd Ranger, don't know the diameter of the tires but my Tremor has tires that are almost 32" in diameter. At 55 mph the engine would be turning 1200 to 1300 rpm in 10th. The 2.3 Ecoboost should never go below 1500 rpm in a steady state cruising state. As I said before it may not be detrimental but it sure is not smooth and it grates on me and degrades my enjoyment of the truck. This goes back to what I said earlier, if Ford was really interested in making this tranny the best it could be they would have tuned it to the tire diameter.

With the custom transmission tune my engine does not shift into 9th until just past 50mph and won't shift into 10th until a little over 60mph. Basically the transmission runs one gear lower than it did with the stock tune and keeps the rpm between 1500 and 2000 rpm in all steady state cruising situations.

Yep, I did mention weight and tire size earlier, in post #41.
I think that this truck has the perfect "tune" for a 2WD SuperCab. (Tires are 255/65R17 -30"tall)

My truck is as smooth as silk, except for a minor stumble the first 5 seconds after startup if you immediately drop it in gear in below freezing weather.
I consider that to be the nature of the beast.

All steady highway speeds are above 1500RPM in 10th gear.
Coasting in traffic with no load at 50MPH, happens rarely and is smooth as silk, any acceleration from that point results in a downshift. so the 1200-1300 RPM in 10th really is not a factor in my truck.

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[The Tremor]

FWIW, I have been driving 2.3 Ecoboost powered vehicles since Jan 2015 and have accumulated over 100k miles. This engine is not happy pushing a vehicle down the road under 1500 rpm. I would not call it lugging but it is not smooth. With my two Mustangs it was easy because they were manuals and I just used the gear that would keep the rpm between 1500 and 2000 rpm. The Ranger when stock would upshift into a gear which would have the rpm down around 1200 rpm. This rough running in this rpm range may not be detrimental but it goes against everything I have ever known or believed to be acceptable.

It was detracting from my enjoyment of the truck, I locked out gears, used tow mode and sport mode, none of them were acceptable to me. I tried the FP tune, it raised the cruising rpm in drive but not over 1500 but I could live with it. When gas started climbing and 93 was approaching $5 I wanted to go back to 87. Since I had an SCT X4 from back in my Focus ST days and had had great experiences with Unleashed I bought an 87 performance tune with custom transmission tuning. After a couple of revisions Torrie nailed it and I now have a transmission that keeps the rpm between 1500 and 2000 rpm, it shifts crisply and smoothly with no unusual behavior.

Best thing I can say about the transmission tune is I can jump in the truck and go and never think about what it is doing and the engine is smooth as silk in the 1500 to 2000 rpm with a bonus of my mileage going up almost 1 mpg. Haven't felt the need to switch on the gear indicator, lock out gears or use tow mode. This is how Ford should have tuned the transmission from the factory.

Thanks for this. Where do you get the Unleashed tune? Sorry if it's a dumb question. Also, how much does it cost? Do you do it yourself or do you need to bring it in somewhere?

 

[NotBudule]

Thanks for this. Where do you get the Unleashed tune? Sorry if it's a dumb question. Also, how much does it cost? Do you do it yourself or do you need to bring it in somewhere?

You can do it , tune box looks to be 500 and tunes 250... I would have done it but MAY void warranty ..
Maybe

 

[Joeiconic]

I really don’t have a problem with the way the truck drives. I’ve adapted to its quirks and use the options Ford has provided to manage the drivability. That being said, the below bullet points are from the advertised highlights of improvements that the Ford performance tune is supposed to provide. Even Ford appears to acknowledge that, as delivered, the engine/tranny is not optimal. I’m sure they have made concessions solely for fuel economy and the truck, with the tune, is the way the engineers would prefer to deliver it if they didn’t have to make concessions to the EPA and the bean counters.

• Improved drive-ability and throttle response throughout RPM range
• Optimized shift schedule

 

[Floyd]

I really don’t have a problem with the way the truck drives. I’ve adapted to its quirks and use the options Ford has provided to manage the drivability. That being said, the below is from the advertised highlights of improvements that the Ford performance tune is supposed to provide. Even Ford appears to acknowledge that, as delivered, the engine/tranny is not optimal. I’m sure they have made concessions solely for fuel economy and the truck, with the tune, is the way the engineers would prefer to deliver it if they didn’t have to make concessions to the EPA and the bean counters.

• Improved drive-ability and throttle response throughout RPM range
• Optimized shift schedule

?Observation...
By definition, "optimal" would be application sensitive.
The upshot of this thread seems to be that the stock tune is "optimized" for the 2WD SuperCab.
The vast majority of Rangers represented on this site are 4X4 CrewCabs....

It would seem that these trucks could be factory supplied with application specific "tunes"?
Perhaps it is either logistically or economically impractical to do so.
If true... than I have benefited from this circumstance and most other buyers are simply unaware.

Fact is, most buyers are not focused as intensely on nuance as the enthusiasts who participate here @5G.
If that too is true... then the practical solution is an optional "performance tune" for those who want them.
The added advantage of "performance options" ( in addition to profit) is the satisfaction of the enthusiasts knowing they have something improved over stock.

All this has been true for a hundred years for mechanical performance, it is now simply translating into the realm of electronic software.

?The enthusiast can now derive discernible improvement and the satisfaction of knowing they have effected that change themselves.

 

[Dgc333]

Is that pretty close to tow mode minus the engine braking?

Yes, and it does not hold the rpms before up shifting. Basically I asked Torrie at Unleashed for Drive to be the same as Tow Mode without the aggressive down shifting and rpm hanging that happens in Tow Mode.

 

[Dgc333]

The 2.3 Ecoboost should never go below 1500 rpm in a steady state cruising state

its funny, when you google this statement....you know, to fact check it and find out if its a common problem shared by others and evaluated by peers.....you come to this:

Note the author.


How much vacuum are our trucks pulling at 1500rpm? anyone measure it?

Yep that was me. I have a vacuum/boost that I have not installed yet. But I do have an exhaust and you can here the engine more below 1500 which would indicate that the engine is working harder and the vacuum would be lower.

 

[Dgc333]

I really don’t have a problem with the way the truck drives. I’ve adapted to its quirks and use the options Ford has provided to manage the drivability. That being said, the below bullet points are from the advertised highlights of improvements that the Ford performance tune is supposed to provide. Even Ford appears to acknowledge that, as delivered, the engine/tranny is not optimal. I’m sure they have made concessions solely for fuel economy and the truck, with the tune, is the way the engineers would prefer to deliver it if they didn’t have to make concessions to the EPA and the bean counters.

• Improved drive-ability and throttle response throughout RPM range
• Optimized shift schedule

Initially I installed the Ford Performance tune and it was much better in drive than stock but still let the rpm drop to 1400 rpm when cruising. With the FP tune you need to run a minimum of 91 octane gas. I told myself that when prices for premium went over $4 per gallon I was going to change to a tune where I could run 87. The interesting thing is the 87 performance tune from Unleashed is every bit as good as the FP tune under 4000 rpm where the majority of my driving is done.

 

[NotBudule]

Does the unleashed void factory warranty?

 

[THLONE]

I didnt read all 7 pages but in case nobody said this; your butt dyno doesnt know lugging.

 

[Dgc333]

Does the unleashed void factory warranty?

No tune "voids the warranty" but if you were to grenade the engine or tranny and Ford believes the tune to be the cause they certainly could deny covering it. If you were to put spacers between your wheels and the hub and the bearing failed they could deny covering it. Putting a leveling kit on it and a axle CV failed they could deny coverage. Basically any deviation from how the truck was delivered from the factory could result in a denial of warranty coverage.

It's all about how much risk you want to take.

 

[BassRanger]

Yep that was me. I have a vacuum/boost that I have not installed yet. But I do have an exhaust and you can here the engine more below 1500 which would indicate that the engine is working harder and the vacuum would be lower.

That is not how manifold vacuum works.... at all. Where are you getting this information from?

You can hear your exhaust more in lower rpms because the lower frequencies produced by your engine resonate more throughout your cabin. It doesn't necessarily mean your engine is working harder.

 

[Dgc333]

That is not how manifold vacuum works.... at all. Where are you getting this information from?

You can hear your exhaust more in lower rpms because the lower frequencies produced by your engine resonate more throughout your cabin. It doesn't necessarily mean your engine is working harder.

While what you are saying is true you can also change the exhaust note with very small changes in throttle position which has a very noticeable change in manifold vacuum and does not immediately effect the speed or rpm. Based on experience with my 2.3 Ecoboost Mustang cruising at a constant speed in a gear that allows the engine to run at 1600 rpm produces more manifold vacuum because the throttle is closed more. Run at a constant speed in a gear that has the engine at 1300 rpm the manifold vacuum will be lower meaning the throttle is more open.

A throttle that is more open means the engine needs more air and fuel to produce the power necessary to maintain speed at that rpm. In my book that means there is more load on the engine.

As I previously stated I have not installed my vacuum/boost gauge to confirm with the Ranger but the engine definitely produces more noise maintaining speed at 1300 rpm than the same speed at 1700 rpm. It is very reasonable to think it is because the engine is working harder.

 

[NotBudule]

a solid yes.

well damnit , thats depressing... they would have to look for it though , right ? does the Forscan thingy void it also ? im guessing yes... double damn it !

 

[Racket]

a solid yes.

I don't see anything'solid' regarding electronic programming.

(something something Smith Mundt Act)

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