towing mileage

S

ssobol

Active member
Just came back from our first long haul trip. Went 1520 miles (East coast to the Great Lakes and back) and averaged 13.7 mpg (according to the van computer) at 60-65 mph. The boat was probably towed for all of that except for about 100-125 miles. While there are only two of us and we are not set up for more than a day or two at a time outings, we did haul about 1/2 fuel, tubing stuff, inflatable raft, cooking supplies, the normal amount of misc stuff, etc.

I was quite happily surprised at the mileage I got, I was expecting something under 10 mpg. It is the same (actually slightly better) than what I got when towing my 16 RIB (although that was at a higher speed).
 
Since rebuilding the tranny, reflashing the electronics, and doing a tuneup, my hemi cherokee (2005) gets 11-13 towing the CD22.

before that it got 9.

I could swear we got 15-17 towing with my dads '99 3/4 dodge cummins but I could be mistaken.
 
My 2006 Doge 2500 diesel consistently gets 15, plus or minus 1 mpg as measured fill up to fill up pulling our moderately loaded 2007 22. Never goes out of over drive and I never run faster than 65. I'm pretty sure if I could keep it at 60 I'd do closer to 16. Just enough better than gasoline to make up for the added 10 or 20 cents per gallon difference, but, oh, the torque for hills; that makes the diesel worth it.
 
ssobol":1t0cg35x said:
Went 1520 miles (East coast to the Great Lakes and back) and averaged 13.7 mpg (according to the van computer) at 60-65 mph.
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You're doing just fine! That's just about exactly I used to get with a full sized Ford van with a 5.8 liter engine and 3-speed+overdrive tranny.

Don't compare your set up to the Diesel crowd, they get more mpg, but the Diesel costs more, so it's mostly a wash. They're all probably a bunch of braggerts and liars, anyway :lol:

(Note to self: prepare for incoming!) :mrgreen:

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
Sea Wolf":36qadcmb said:
ssobol":36qadcmb said:
Went 1520 miles (East coast to the Great Lakes and back) and averaged 13.7 mpg (according to the van computer) at 60-65 mph.
Click to expand...

You're doing just fine! That's just about exactly I used to get with a full sized Ford van with a 5.8 liter engine and 3-speed+overdrive tranny.

Don't compare your set up to the Diesel crowd, they get more mpg, but the Diesel costs more, so it's mostly a wash. They're all probably a bunch of braggerts and liars, anyway :lol:

(Note to self: prepare for incoming!) :mrgreen:

Joe. :teeth :thup
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Well, that hurts. I can't compare my numbers to either one of you & brag, being as I get very close to the same with just a camper shell on the back of our 2006, Silverado one ton, crew cab, 4x4, duramax diesel dually. It was 14 mpg keeping the speed at 60 or below on our last 2200 mile trip with the CD to Portland ---- Bellingham & back. On our 2007 approximately 6000 mile trip it was only 12 mpg, but that was with a very heavy full sized camper too. The area bragging is fully justified, at least in my opinion is comfort & control in most any road condition & the ease of the steep mountain passes like the one just before Skagway, Alaska with this way over kill combination.

Jay
 
This will make you feel better: I just came back a week ago from Seward and towed my CD 22 with my 25 foot V10 class C E-450 Winnebago and got 8 MPG (I live 160 miles away). You're light years ahead of me..... However, that said, it did save us $5000 as the 6 of us didn't have to stay in the hotel for our 7 day trip.
 
Before we bought the diesel, I'd always heard these numbers (mpg) that I thought were, uh, questionable at best and fantasy/bs at worst. I had people telling me they'd get 22mpg w/ a 1 ton, 4X4. That's more than our 6 cyl 4.0 liter Explorer gets. :roll: I was cynical of the accuracy of their data.

Since we bought is in 2009 I have entered every fill-up/mileage into a cell phone ap called "Fuelage". So, in essence, I have data going back to our fill-up #1. It will give you total mileage, total fuel used, total cost, avg fuel economy etc. I just looked at it:

avg fuel economy 13.61 mpg
avg fuel consumption 20.76 liters/100 km

Such is life. Right now diesel is actually cheaper than gas here in WA.
 
localboy":1qbsc1a9 said:
Before we bought the diesel, I'd always heard these numbers (mpg) that I thought were, uh, questionable at best and fantasy/bs at worst. I had people telling me they'd get 22mpg w/ a 1 ton, 4X4. That's more than our 6 cyl 4.0 liter Explorer gets. :roll: I was cynical of the accuracy of their data.

Since we bought is in 2009 I have entered every fill-up/mileage into a cell phone ap called "Fuelage". So, in essence, I have data going back to our fill-up #1. It will give you total mileage, total fuel used, total cost, avg fuel economy etc. I just looked at it:

avg fuel economy 13.61 mpg
avg fuel consumption 20.76 liters/100 km

Such is life. Right now diesel is actually cheaper than gas here in WA.
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That is really good mileage.
 
localboy":1u3rqhoc said:
Before we bought the diesel, I'd always heard these numbers (mpg) that I thought were, uh, questionable at best and fantasy/bs at worst. I had people telling me they'd get 22mpg w/ a 1 ton, 4X4. That's more than our 6 cyl 4.0 liter Explorer gets. :roll: I was cynical of the accuracy of their data.

Since we bought is in 2009 I have entered every fill-up/mileage into a cell phone ap called "Fuelage". So, in essence, I have data going back to our fill-up #1. It will give you total mileage, total fuel used, total cost, avg fuel economy etc. I just looked at it:

avg fuel economy 13.61 mpg
avg fuel consumption 20.76 liters/100 km

Such is life. Right now diesel is actually cheaper than gas here in WA.
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We had a small AWD Chev Astro Van hooked to an aluminum boat trailer & 12.5 foot RIB, which weighed approximately 400 pounds, that we made two, adventure exploration of rivers, lakes & ocean trips to Alaska, Yukon & the Northwest Territories two years in a row before buying the C-Dory. The small Astro van had a 6 cylinder 4.0 engine & with the little boat trailer RIB, I got almost the exact mpg on these, as I do now with the 1 ton crew cab, 4x4, diesel dually & with the Astro van a real pain to keep on the twisty roads or in strong winds where as with the duelly diesel you just sit back & relax & let the miles zoom by.

In 2003 I did drive the Astro van from Wyoming to Vancouver BC to pick up the Hunkydory & was pleasantly surprised with its ability to tow the CD, at least until the motor blew up near Tri Cities in eastern Washington on the way home. This led to the purchase of a 3/4 ton Duramax diesel on the spot, that year & no doubt in the long run saved us some major head aches, because if the motor hadn't blown we would have no doubt attempted our our first trip to Skagway, Alaska in 2003 with it, instead of the pickup. The Astro van was rated for 5000 pounds trailer towing. Oh ya, for both those rigs the mpg was the same at 14 mpg on those many thousand mile trips.

Jay
 
Our (mine and Dr. Bob's) gets about 21 when not towing and 15 when it towed the TC 255 from Pensacola to Virginia, about 900 miles. 7.3L diesel Excursion. Everyone wants to buy it. Don't ask, it's not for sale, it's my last "truck"!

Charlie
 
Just came back a little over a week ago from a 4000 mile round trip to the San Juans. Pulled my CD-22 with my 2010 Toyota Highlander, with the 6 cylinder and tow package. From earlier measurements, my boat and trailer weigh 5,065 lbs. (Full gas tanks, water tank 2/3 full, Cooler in cockpit approx. 80 lbs) However, my boat fuel and water tanks were pretty much empty, and while I had some additional weight from clothes and supplies, I had removed several heavier items (spare anchor, etc.) prior to the trip. My Toyota has a listed max tow weight of 5,000 lbs, and I estimate I was probably very close to 4,800 lbs. The Toyota weighs right about 6,000 lbs loaded. I towed at 61 mph. My best mileage was 16.4 mpg with a very strong tailwind flat and level. Otherwise, 12.3-12.4 was pretty standard. Pulling the mountain ranges put me back at about 9.6 mpg. (I could read all this pretty much instantaneously on the Toyota's gauges...) With out the boat in tow, my Toyota usually averages around 21. (And I drive 75 on the highways...) Prior to this setup, I had a Ford Excursion with the V10 and a 9600 lb Searay/Trailer combo. Then I only got about 9mpg towing, 15 otherwise. And before that, a 31' Winnebago motorhome on a Ford chasis with the 460? I think (it's been a while...). 7.3 mpg, regardless of towing or not. We won't talk about headwinds.... :-( Colby
 
colbysmith":3j5tamgp said:
(I could read all this pretty much instantaneously on the Toyota's gauges...)
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Do you find that your Toyota's gauge-output MPG pretty much agrees with the real world (e.g. miles divided by gallons "on paper" at fill up?). I run a Scan Gauge II on both my previous and current tow rigs (they don't have built in mileage displays), and it always shows a slightly optimistic mileage figure. It's the only computerized fuel gauge I've ever had, so wasn't sure if they were all that way or if some are accurate. Mine isn't way off, but it will show me around 2 mpg or so better than the real world.

As long as we're reporting in (these figures from pencil and paper):

Previous tow rig: Class B camper van, E-250 with 5.4 V-8, heavily loaded for long trip (~7,500#). Not towing, 17-18 mpg. Towing C-Dory (around 4400# all up), 12-12.5 mpg.

Current tow rig: Small Class C, E-350 with 6.8 V-10, heavily loaded for long trip (~10,000#). Not towing 12-13 mpg. Towing C-Dory (around 4,400# all up). I only have one long tow on record so far (fairly mountainous), so somewhat provisional stats, 10-11 mpg.

I noticed when I was vehicle shopping that while many vehicles got "good or better or even impressive" mileage when not towing, once a C-Dory is hung on the back, it's like they all go directly to "12 mpg" (with some exceptions of course, such as the purring diesels).

Always fun to read what others are driving and how it's going :thup
 
Gee Charlie, I thought you were finally going to sell me that Excursion back! Confirm Charlie's numbers. I am happily surprised with our 4 x 4 Yukon XL (Gas V8 5.3 L, towing package)--My wife can get up to 22 on the highway (when shadowing me when I am driving the RV…I can occasionally get 20 on the highway. Towing the C Dory 22 we get 12 to 13 on the highway with the Yukon truck in tow haul mode.

With the 40 foot Diesel RV non towing 8 mpg, towing the C Dory22 8 mpg, towing the Yukon 8 mpg..
 
Hello Sunbeam. Yes, I find the Toyota gauges pretty accurate the few times I've double checked the numbers filling up. Wife's Honda CRV shows fuel useage also, and also seems pretty accurate.
 
Yes those auto fuel milage gauges definitely can vary with the real world use, though with our Chev diesel it's accurate with in a few tenths of a mpg. All the rest of the vehicles I've owned with them have varied widely. Our 2012 jeep wrangler is notorious for being off at least 2 mpg. I really think Chrysler may have done this on purpose to try to put a happy face on its actual poor milage.

Jay
 
Our '06 Ford Ranger with 4.0L, auto, 4wd, 4.10s and factory oversize tires would get an easy 14 mpg at 60 mph before the the radar dome was installed on the boat. Just barely or almost 14 mpg after the dome was installed.
We haven't made long enough runs towing with the '13 F150, Ecoboost, 4wd, 3,31s and pizza cutter tires to get accurate readings but it looks like we will gain at least 1 mpg.
 
some are getting some decent tow milage our dodge 2008 1500 with the hemi motor gets 10mpg towing either in town or out to the coast. it only got 13-15mpg combo driving back and forth to PA and around town that is why it is only a tow rig now and we got a honda accord also.
 
thataway":1eqgvu33 said:
With the 40 foot Diesel RV non towing 8 mpg, towing the C Dory22 8 mpg, towing the Yukon 8 mpg..
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Towing the Empire State Building... 8mpg! :D

In towing, seems like "the smaller they are, the harder they fall."

Still makes sense to have a high-gas-mileage vehicle if one does lots of driving without towing (but that's a completely different purpose than an RV). I used to laugh because on a small-trailer towing forum I frequented, people were saying "Oh sure, you get 25 mpg when you're not towing, but then it drops way back to 16 when you are towing! That's a horrible drop!" I couldn't really see the logic, since most of us were towing about 5% of the time, and why is it better to have a vehicle wherein the mileage doesn't drop so horribly, but... that's because you are getting 16 mpg day in and day out (on an around town vehicle). Heh.
 
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