Fuel Mileage

[john97301]

What fuel milage can one expect with the Jayco Class C sries while pulling a small VW Jetta and also without towing anything? Of course depends on terrain, average speed, wind speed and direction ,and loading. Speed would be about 60mph, moderately loaded and with no significant head wind, and rolling terrain.

John

[Tpratt83687]

I average 8 mpg

[Bobx2]

Not being a wise guy, but if fuel economy is a concern then maybe RVing is not for you. It is rare to see better than 12 mpg with any type of RV and/or TV while towing. I average around 10 mpg pulling my 5th wheel.

[john97301]

Yes, fuel milage should not prevent rv ownership. I get 8-9 on average puling 32 foot Cameo fifth wheel. I do like a good stiff tail wind though. I was just wondering how the Class C would compare to pulling a high profile fifth wheel. Looks like about the same.

John

[snowbird47]

I get 7.8 to 8 mpg towing a Ford Focus on relatively flat ground at about that same speed. In hilly country about 7.2 mpg. I just installed the "5 Star Tune" (mostly for more power and smoother shifting) and am anxious to see what that does to the mileage.

[TX_Arvee]

5-9mpg in Summer, 2012 31FS V10 gasser

[reitrof]

Originally Posted by TX_Arvee

5-9mpg in Summer, 2012 31FS V10 gasser

Same here.

[cdrcos@gmail.com]

Originally Posted by Tpratt83687

I average 8 mpg

Ditto

[cb1000rider]

Originally Posted by john97301

Yes, fuel milage should not prevent rv ownership. I get 8-9 on average puling 32 foot Cameo fifth wheel. I do like a good stiff tail wind though. I was just wondering how the Class C would compare to pulling a high profile fifth wheel. Looks like about the same.

John,
If you're concerned about mileage, get a Sprinter Chassis... Course, it probably won't pull your Jetta.

Class-C's as noted (gas) are 5-10 range, depending on length. Note, that often the larger ones are close to gross weight maximum and adding the weight of a car on the hitch can take them over gross weight, not to mention not-so-wonderful handling.

I have friends 1-ton diesel trucks pulling 5th wheels, they generally do better mileage, but not by much. 31 foot Class-C to 31 foot Fifth wheel behind a 1-ton diesel truck, the diesel handles it better in general.

[cdrcos@gmail.com]

Originally Posted by cb1000rider

John,
...I have friends 1-ton diesel trucks pulling 5th wheels, they generally do better mileage, but not by much. 31 foot Class-C to 31 foot Fifth wheel behind a 1-ton diesel truck, the diesel handles it better in general.

Had a 33' fifth wheel with a 1-ton diesel truck and it did handle the load better, but got the same 8 mpg.

[fidalgo66]

On a good day, we get around 7.5 towing our Explorer Sport with our Greyhawk. Most of the time, I don't bother to check it, it's just the cost of having fun!

[jeffdee]

I have a '99 Eagle 283G, 6.8L V10. I average 8.8 mpg. I just replaced the original fuel filter with 61,000 miles. I haven't made another trip yet to see if the fuel usage improves. I don't think anything else will help mileage except keeping the tires fully aired up and minimize total weight of the vehicle as best as I can.

[cb1000rider]

Originally Posted by jeffdee

I just replaced the original fuel filter with 61,000 miles. I haven't made another trip yet to see if the fuel usage improves.

Changing the fuel filter will probably not have any impact on mileage. These motors are EFI - so they self-tune to a specific air/fuel ratio. A clogged filter might make fuel pressure drop - go lean and set a code, but if you were running fine otherwise, it won't make a difference.

Note, I've had 3 V10 RVs. 61k is really really long in the tooth for a fuel filter. It's like driving a Honda 400k miles on the same filter... I've seen them be in really bad shape at way less mileage.

The good news is that they're pretty easy to change with the correct tool.

[Bluesky46]

2012 3100 SS Greyhawk Ford V10. Weighs 13,280 ready to go, including wife and I and full fuel, no water. I drive conservatively and never exceed 60 mph. Towing small pickup that weighs 4,100#. Mileage varies, best 9mpg, worst 7 mpg. Towing the pickup seems to make less difference than I expected, and mpg seems more dependent on severity of wind and hills.

[Marshmellow]

My first summer with a new 2013 Greyhawk I calculated 10 mpg or 23.5 l/100 km for all the Canadian folks.

[TroutScout]

2004 Escalade V10. 10 mpg. 8.3 towing a 2700 lb boat. With a head wind I lose about 5 mpg. Have Banks systems.

[Paulx213]

If you want better mileage you have to go smaller. My 4.0 Grand Cherokee towing my 15 ft Sprite Musketeer TT averaged 15 mpg. My Expedition gets 10 mpg towing my JayFeather X213.


Basic physics.

[SecretCoveDave]

I started to measure my mileage/kms in amount per day.

Softens the blow a bit.

[Eric6A]

Originally Posted by Bobx2

Not being a wise guy, but if fuel economy is a concern then maybe RVing is not for you. It is rare to see better than 12 mpg with any type of RV and/or TV while towing. I average around 10 mpg pulling my 5th wheel.

There are many different RVs, with greatly differing fuel economy, and it's smart to ask the question. If you travel less than 5000 miles a year, mpg might not be important at all, but if it's 20,000 miles a year - that'd cost $7600 at 10 mpg. That's significant, and could be the major cost of ownership, especially if it's used RV with modest depreciation.

[Bassdogs]

Another fuel milage thread and the answer is always the same, 8 to 12 mpg depending on vehicle, load, road condition and speed. RV fuel cost is going to be higher than a non-RV but unless its a super lite tent camper, its pretty much always going to be in the 8 - 12 range. But the cost estimate above for an RV of $7600 at 10mph is a misnomer. The net difference between an RV and your TV without an RV or a truck with the same engine package will be less than half that amount since your MPG will maybe go from 18 to 10.

Don't let MPG run you out of RVing. Drive to that resort and stay in a hotel or cabin and add up your cost when you get back home. We don't RV just to save $$ but we often do.