2015 23MBH increase in fuel cost?

[Overlander]

So my wife and I bought a 2012 X19h hybrid back in 2012 when we had a Jeep Cherokee. I tried to convince her to go buy a truck then select a trailer but that didn't happen... What did happen was two months after we settled on the X19h we realized we weren't happy with how the Jeep towed or the fuel mileage we were getting which resulted in a 2012 F150 ecoboost.

Well here we are two years later and after some recent electrical issues with the X19h we're looking hard at making one more big purchase (hopefully the last for a long time) and upgrading to a 2015 Jay Flight 23MBH. Its much roomier and the fresh water tank is about 3 times the size!

Anyway, the X19h dry weight is approx 3700 lbs and the 23MBH is 5600 lbs. Difference of 1900 lbs. Also the 23MBH stands about 2 feet higher than the X19h which may increase wind drag.

I've got the max tow / cargo capacity on my truck which is 11,300 lbs so I know I can definitely tow it. My question is will I notice a significant decrease in fuel mileage by towing an additional 1900 lbs? As it is I get approx 600 km to a tank as I live in Northern British Columbia and we travel a lot of hilly terrain here.

Thanks!

[SkyBound]

You will see a small difference in fuel economy, yes. It's more so to do with the profile causing increased drag rather than the weight. I tow a 5200lb Jay Flight (loaded) and my parents tow a 6000lb Jay Flight (loaded) both with Max Tow EcoBoosts. My estimates below are based on our towing experiences combined.

With that set up, you will burn about 24L/100km on flat highway (approx 100km/h) with no significant wind. In the mountains, be prepared for 28-30L/100km when you're climbing big hills. When you're fighting a nasty headwind (praries) be prepared for 30-32L/100km.

The EcoBoost will tow that bigger trailer like a boss, no worries there whatsoever. The fact you have 3.73's is perfect for that terrain. Have fun climbing those hills in 5th gear!

By the way, do you have the larger 136L tank? I'm assuming not since I can squeeze almost 1000km out of a tank... not towing that is.

[clutch]

I agree with SkyBound. The extra weight won't make much difference but a higher profile trailer will.

[Overlander]

Thanks. I was pretty sure my fuel tank was 129L ? I should have mentioned what my liters per hundred were. Towing my X19h I get 18.4 L on the Hwy driving about 90-95kmhr, I sure do hope that the extra 1900lbs doesn't bring me up into the 24L per hundred range

[UPCamper]

I've never noticed a big change in fuel economy due to weight. Size and drag are the only things that I have noticed change my fuel burn. An example is I regularly pull my boat behind my fifth wheel. It average the exact same as when I don't have it. And it weighs about 2300 lbs. I have pulled pop ups, TT, and 5ers. My fifth wheel actually does better than my TT did.

[SkyBound]

You may be 22L/100km on the lower side, but I wouldn't expect anything better than that. I'm towing with a 2in lift, 33.5in LT tires on 20in wheels, and I burn about 23-24L/100km towing about 5000lb.

Speed is also a big consideration. Drag is an exponential relationship to speed, meaning if you double your speed, your drag quadruples and power required is therefore much higher. The difference in drag between 90-100km/h and 100-110km/h is NOT the same increase.

[kjohn73]

My wife and I just did 3500 miles pulling a 197 Ultralight with a 2013 Ecoboost Super crew. At 90 kph, we would average around 13-14 miles per gallon. At 100 kph, down to 10-11, so, as others have said, drag is the deciding factor. If you can keep your speed down, your mileage will fare better. I stayed in tow/haul and 5th most of the time. At 90 kph, it ran under 2000 rpm. Didn't seem to be laboring in 5th.

We had all kinds of great big 5th wheel jobs go by us like we were backing up. I can imagine they were getting great mileage.

[SkyBound]

My parents just pulled their 26BH about 500km with the EcoBoost and averaged 21.8L/100km on regular fuel with water tank 1/3 full and all their gear. Pretty damn impressive if you ask me.

[dmward]

Towed my trailer (see signature) 2000 miles, through the Black Hills and across the windswept prairies and averaged 23L/100km.

I agree that it has to do less with weight and more with profile. I lent my truck to a buddy to tow a 2000-lb boat and he only averaged 21L/100km.