How's your towing gas mileage?

[Tom_OC]

10 to 13

[SmokerBill]

Overall, about 9.5.

[ttavasc]

Towing average over all last season was 12.3mpg. Ranges from a low of just over 10mpg when crossing the mountain passes to a high of almost 14mpg on the flats. On the highway w/o towing it's about 20mpg. I use the recommended 89 mid-grade for the Hemi and cruise speed when towing is 62mph.

[Rustysocket]

I am going to guess about 10 when towing possibly a little better or worse. I drive faster than most report here based on the recent speed thread, and I'm sure that has a lot to do with my mileage. I can buy more fuel, I can't buy more time.

[cekkk]

Close to 11 towing @ 62 mph. 16 home to town.

[Guntr]

Originally Posted by Rustysocket

I am going to guess about 10 when towing possibly a little better or worse. I drive faster than most report here based on the recent speed thread, and I'm sure that has a lot to do with my mileage. I can buy more fuel, I can't buy more time.

I thought the same thing, but you would be amazed how little time you actually save. On my one hour commute if I drive 20km/h over the speed limit I barely save 5 minutes.

Besides the gas savings I have avoided probably dozens of speeding tickets, and worse the insurance hikes that go along with, not to mention wear and tear on my cars and tires.

[us71na]

I tow our Skylark with a Honda Pilot. I get between 10 and 14 mpg when towing depending upon terrain. I also found that I get better mileage not using the cruise. You also get significantly better mileage driving at speeds between 55 and 60, you lose about 1 mpg for every 5 mph over 55 that your drive while towing. You also get to enjoy the scenery more at 55 than you do at 70. Your trailer tires may not be rated for 70+ mph either.

[northwindone]

With my V10 F-350 I usually average:

<10 - City
~12 - Highway @ 65-75
8-9 - Towing @ 55-60

While towing my instantaneous MPG will sometimes drop to around 3 or 4 MPG on grades, but keeping it at 55 mph will quickly recover the average fuel mileage since on the flats I'll get around 12-14 MPG. If I lived in the "flat-lands" and not in the California mountains I would get much better mileage I'm sure. But since I have to climb to get anywhere I have to pay for that gas, and almost a $1 a gallon more for weaker gas living in California. It's amazing how my mileage always goes up as soon as I fill up outside California.


As commonly said about the V10 - "I can tow anything...at least to the next gas station."

[Loboclone]

I get 9.5 MPG towing 20k + Seismic toy hauler, F450 with 4.30 rears. keep in mind I am in the mountains 80% of the time.

[cekkk]

Originally Posted by Guntr

I thought the same thing, but you would be amazed how little time you actually save. On my one hour commute if I drive 20km/h over the speed limit I barely save 5 minutes.

Besides the gas savings I have avoided probably dozens of speeding tickets, and worse the insurance hikes that go along with, not to mention wear and tear on my cars and tires.

This all reminds me of a lesson my father, a traveling salesman, taught me about speeders. On both city streets and country highways the good driver will pass the fast driver time and time again. The good driver is driving ahead, times approach to traffic lights, avoids getting trapped behind traffic, knows what's next to and behind him, other little stuff.

It works to this day. I can't count the number of times the guy who passed me a while back has to pass me again because I drove by him because he had been at a full stop after racing to the next red light. Or is behind me again because he sped right up to the back of a truck and was unable to cut into the next lane before I passed him again.

There are bonuses, too. Better gas mileage, fewer brake jobs, less stress on many of the vehicles components. I guess speeding doesn't hurt your radio.

Both he and I drive over the speed limit, five or six mph, so we can expect to drive right past a radar car and not get stopped. Making the best time is our goal. Moving with traffic at whatever speed is safer than having every car behind you pass you. Every time you are passing or being passed, the chance of contact increases.

[spepi]

I get about 15 normal conditions, down to 9.5 towing. 26 gallon tank means more frequent stops for gas on a long haul. I estimate about 200 miles every fill up

[mike837go]

We use about 30% more fuel when towing. We visit friends near where we camp using the same truck.


Without the trailer, a full tank of fuel gets us from home to the vacation spot and then back to civilization.


With the trailer, we have to stop for fuel while still on the Interstate, about 3 exits short of our exit. That fill-up will take us into the wilderness and back out (depending on side trips).

[jconner]

17 - 20 not towing. 8 - 10 towing. 8,000lb TT with F150 EB

[RP53]

first trip with new TV avg about 23-24mpg unloaded, got 13.7 on 300 mile trip in the Tennessee North Carolina mts. I was impressed

[ParrishCamper]

We tow with 5.7L V8 Tundra. Tow Eagle 284bhbe 8500lb.
Not towing I get 16-17 MPG.
Towing 10-11 MPG.

[LarryJ]

Average 10.8mpg towing, 17-20mpg not towing. The 10.8 is an average over last season's camping with about 3K miles. Think the worst I got was 10.2mpg. Mostly cruising at 58-62mph.

Larry J
2015 SLX 264BHW
2007 Ram 1500 5.7, 3.92 gears, Equalizer and brake control.

[CaldwellOne]

2012 Silverado 5.3/3:73 ratio/6 speed non towing mostly city 13 mpg... towing 9500 lb tt 9.1mpg. I usually do around 6-8 over speed limit.

[DanNJanice]

We get around 16mpg combined (more highway than city) without the trailer. When towing we get about 10-12 depending on conditions.

[Camper_bob]

9-10 towing; (2015 RAM 2500, 6.4L Hemi, 3.73 RE, towing 2014 28BHBE about 8200 lbs ish) Usually between 65-70 MPH, (yes, my tires are rated for it).
13-14 commuting
up to 18 on hwy empty

[Guntr]

Wow, with such a broad range of TVs and camper sizes/weights I really expected a much broader range of gas mileage numbers, but everyone seems to be at 9 to 12 MPG.

How many track exact mileage by writing down your odometer readings at every fill up vs guesstimating based on about how far per tank of gas?