454 Engine MPG: How Many Miles Per Gallon Does a 454 Get?
It is an older engine. But many of these powerful motors have lasted and passed the test of time. They are good workhorse-type motors that get your older RV down the road and to your next destination safely. However, not many owners are happy with their mpg.
The range of mpg you should be getting is between 10 and 12. The Vortec 454 is supposed to get more but that is debatable. If you are getting only 6 mpg with the regular 454 something may be wrong and you should check it out.
To learn more about this topic, just continue to read our article. It has the information you want to know about so you can see if your older 454 is meeting expectations. If you are getting more than 12 people may call you out on that claim.
How Many Miles Per Gallon Does a 454 Get?
The best you should get would be about 10- 12 mpg. That is probably unloaded, going downhill both ways, and our RV is in neutral. Some owners have reported getting 13 but that seems to be a bit much.
The consensus is around 7 to 9 mpg when loaded and when other driving factors are included. As you already know, how you drive and the weather conditions will affect your mileage.
So will the type of roads you drive as your performance will be better on the plains than it will be in the mountains. On top of that, the amount of cargo that is inside, including passenger weight, will affect your fuel efficiency.
Some people may get up to 15 mpg but their 454 may be placed in a nice older Chevy muscle car and not a big lumbering RV. Wind resistance will play a role in how much mileage you achieve.
Then, if you make a lot of stops along your route, that will cut your fuel mileage down some as well. All those starts will take a lot of fuel from the tank and produce lower results.
Fuel-Injected 454 Gas Mileage
Under ideal conditions and not placed in an RV, you may get or can expect to get into the high 20s mpg-wise and some say up to 30 mpg. But they may never have driven this motor when it was placed in an RV.
According to one report, you can expect to get about 12 mpg and possibly 13 depending on those factors we just mentioned. Your results may differ from others but one thing is for sure, you may not double your mpg when you change from a regular 454 to a fuel-injected option.
Needless to say, if you do a lot of city driving, do not expect to get high mpg at any time no matter the conditions. If you go by certain rules of thumb that say your fuel mileage will drop by 2% per 1o0 pounds added to your load, then do not expect a lot of gas mileage on the highway either.
Your results are going to depend mainly on those factors we listed above. However, there are other factors that influence your fuel rating. If your tires are under or over-inflated you may lose about 3% in your mpg totals.
Properly inflated tires are supposed to increase mpg by 3%. Do not forget to balance your cargo. That will influence your mpg as well as your driving. Unbalanced loads do not bode well for RV drivers. Making sure everything is in its proper place should get you better results.
454 big Block Gas Mileage
The 1990 SS 454 big block was rated at 10 in the city and 11 on the highway. Put that same engine in an RV and watch those figures drop. Not because the 454 big block is an inefficient engine, which it was, but because of the weight it has to carry.
Adding thousands of pounds to the load will have a big effect on your mpg results. Some people reported getting only 5.5 mpg with their big block and that seemed low to the other members of that specific discussion forum.
Other members were reporting getting a little over 8 mpg and another owner had some carb work done and he went from 7-7.5 to 8 after the work was done. If you are getting lower than 7 to 8 mpg, then you need to work on your engine and get some parts repaired or replaced.
One of those parts that may need to be replaced would be the coil. When it gets older, it loses something in performance and can affect your gas mileage. The hotter the spark, the better the fuel consumption.
The thing to watch out for are those people who like to show off or brag and report higher than normal mpg. If you are getting 10 to 12, then you are doing great and everything is working on all cylinders. Don’t be sad if you are only getting 8 that is still okay.
RVs With a 454 Engine
This engine model is said to be one of the better engines for RVs, at least at that time. It had a great run but EPA regulations killed the motor but you can still get it if you like owning older RVs. Here are a few RVs still on the road that has the 454 engine under the hood.
- 1998, 30-foot Georgie Boy
- 1991 Bounder
- 1984 Revcon Kin, 33 feet long
- 1989 Fleetwood Bounder
- 1990 Chevy RV
As you can see there are still some older motorhomes with great engines under the hood.
Some Final Words
You can do a lot worse than the 454 regular or fuel-injected engine. The key to owning one is to make sure you keep the maintenance up and replace key parts when you think you are losing mpg efficiency. If you are getting below 8, something is wrong with the motor.
