Fuel economy question, 90 E350

[masterbeavis]

What kind of fuel economy can I hope to get out of an early 90s E350 van with an E4OD trans? The local junkyard bought one (cheap I assume) and he will sell it to me for $1000. The trans looks recent(30-40K) but the fluid is brown(doesnt smell burnt.) ODO reads 92K, I assume its 192K. I suspect it needs glowplugs, it takes 3+ cycles of the key to get it to fire in 80* weather, and lots of cranking. ONce running, it fires right up. I need another truck like I need another hole in my head, but I try to haul so much stuff for work, I almost feel I need a van to properly organize my tools, and keep them more secure. Also, what is this thing rated to tow? I am not interested in trying to burn up the transmission, but would be nice to know.

I need to find an SCA kit to see if this thing was properly maintaned or not.

 

[david85]

You could probably get up to the low 20s depending on the conditions of the vehicle and environment. Brown transmission fluid is bad news though. The price is not bad if the engine is good as that alone is worth $1000, but I would plan on having to rebuild or replace the transmission sooner rather than later.

Are you able to test drive it?

 

[masterbeavis]

Its not a dark brown, and does not smell burnt, it just is not pink like it should be. Yeah, I can test drive it, the only challenge is the owners friend has first dibs on it, so I am second in line.

 

[LCAM-01XA]

my '90 can run at 20mpg all day long if I take my time getting where I need to go, on good days I've seen 22 or so. Aerodynamics don't matter a whole lot under 55mph, so I'd say low 20s should be achievable for you too.