Gas Mileage When Towing - Is Trading Worth It?

[JonesyTravels]

We have a Rockwood MiniLite 2109S that has a dry weight of 4037 and a hitch weight of 456. We were originally looking for something to tow with my Highlander, but decided on this one. Since it comes too close to the max numbers for our taste, we are towing with our Chevy 2500 HD 4WD. We have discussed the possibility of trading the Highlander for a Tahoe or a Durango with capacities around 7700. If anyone is towing similar weight with either of these, could you please tell me what kind of mileage you are getting?

[jake wolfpack]

10-12mpg lots of mountains 5k 2015 yukon slt. Gets better mileage than my EcoBoost did overall. Easily 20-26 on road trips. If we lived in flatter country I'd do even better

[bikendan]

Gasser mileage will always be in the 8-11mpg average, when towing a TT.
Low torque v-6 gassers will be at the low end mpg range, like your Highlander and other mid-sized SUVs.
Larger v-8 SUVs like the Tahoe have more torque and should get a mile or two better mpg.
Vehicles, like your v-6 Highlander, aren't as good handling the trailer's air resistance, like vehicles with more torque. Remember frontal air resistance affects fuel mileage way more than weight.

[mwdilday]

Originally Posted by bikendan

Gasser mileage will always be in the 8-11mpg average, when towing a TT.
Low torque v-6 gassers will be at the low end mpg range, like your Highlander and other mid-sized SUVs.
Larger v-8 SUVs like the Tahoe have more torque and should get a mile or two better mpg.

I get under 10 MPG with my Ford 6.7 diesel pulling a 18,000 lb fifth wheel at 62 mph. Not great but it comes with the territory.

[jeffnick]

How many miles will you have to tow to cover the beating you'd get on a trade?

[GalsofEscape]

i am towing a bit heavier 25 foot long hybrid camper (the 23WS) with the V8 Durango. we are at 6200 lbs loaded. The worst I have gotten is 8 mpg. I plan on 1 hour of towing for every 1/4 tank of gas - top off the tank every 2 - 2.5 hours unless my endpoint in within 3 hours.

[rsdata]

Gasser mileage will always be in the 8-11mpg average, when towing a TT. Remember frontal air resistance affects fuel mileage way more than weight.

I agree...
generally any TV with a V-8 will do 8 to 12 ... a V-6 will lose 1 to 2 MPG off those numbers...

If your Chevy 2500 is in that range you are getting what others do. You might gain up to 2 MPG with some of the modern 6 to 9 speed trannies they offer now in some 1/2 ton pickups. I am up to 9.5-12 MPG with my hemi powered 8 speed 2014 RAM crew cab pulling at 62-65 MPH. A nice tail wind sure helps push up the MPG's on flat land. I also get about 20+ on the interstate when not pulling.

[Kimber45]

Originally Posted by jeffnick

How many miles will you have to tow to cover the beating you'd get on a trade?

X2. don't thing you could ever make up the difference. if worried about gas mileage get a tent.

[jake wolfpack]

Originally Posted by mwdilday

I get under 10 MPG with my Ford 6.7 diesel pulling a 18,000 lb fifth wheel at 62 mph. Not great but it comes with the territory.

Lifetime on my 6.7 is under 9 lol

[TitanMike]

The only real question to ask is "How much gas can I buy every month for $500-$800 that the new truck would cost?"

I took a trip in May that totalled just under 4,000 miles. I gave up 5-6 mpg towing from what my truck yields under normal highway conditions. Average price of gas on the trip was around $3 per gallon. I burned an extra 150 gallons of gas over the entire trip which cost me approximately $450 in extra fuel cost. That's less than one month's payment on an AVERAGE pickup/SUV today.

I can wring another 100-150 thousand miles out of my old paid for Titan. That's how I answered the question.

This pretty much applies to the Gas vs Diesel argument. If both vehicles will tow your trailer adequately then how much fuel could you buy with the amount of money you have to pay extra for the diesel engine. Remember, I said both vehicles could get the job done adequately and the only issue would be fuel mileage.

[JonesyTravels]

Okay, just to clarify...I won’t be out much on the trade, don’t make payments on vehicles, and was simply wondering if, given almost no outlay, would it be worth it to think about parking the truck and using a large SUV. Thanks to those who gave examples. That is very helpful. Sounds like 10ish is where it is going to be regardless of vehicle.

[JonesyTravels]

Originally Posted by TitanMike

The only real question to ask is "How much gas can I buy every month for $500-$800 that the new truck would cost?"

I took a trip in May that totalled just under 4,000 miles. I gave up 5-6 mpg towing from what my truck yields under normal highway conditions. Average price of gas on the trip was around $3 per gallon. I burned an extra 150 gallons of gas over the entire trip which cost me approximately $450 in extra fuel cost. That's less than one month's payment on an AVERAGE pickup/SUV today.

I can wring another 100-150 thousand miles out of my old paid for Titan. That's how I answered the question.

This pretty much applies to the Gas vs Diesel argument. If both vehicles will tow your trailer adequately then how much fuel could you buy with the amount of money you have to pay extra for the diesel engine. Remember, I said both vehicles could get the job done adequately and the only issue would be fuel mileage.

That is exactly the math I was going for once I got some specific mileage numbers from those driving in similar situations.

[mwdilday]

I guess I look at it a little different that simply payments. If I buy a truck and pay say $65,000 for it and borrow the full amount I am paying $5,500 in interest over 60 months at 3.29%. If I drive the truck for 15 years I could probably sell it for $10,000 (todays $). So for the 15 years the truck cost me about $60,000 total or $4,000/yr todays $. If I drive 25,000 miles/yr I would have to save $.16 (16 cents) per mile to make up the $4,000/year. Only thing left is maintenance costs which are less on a newer vehicle. If you are in the 10 mpg range you are spending about 30 cents/mile for fuel. Not even close unless you go from 10 mpg to 20 mpg.

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by JonesyTravels

Okay, just to clarify...I won’t be out much on the trade, don’t make payments on vehicles, and was simply wondering if, given almost no outlay, would it be worth it to think about parking the truck and using a large SUV. Thanks to those who gave examples. That is very helpful. Sounds like 10ish is where it is going to be regardless of vehicle.

I understand the point about ignoring finance costs, because how you finance the purchase is irrelevant to the question about gas economy. But how can you trade to a newer vehicle and not lose something in the deal?

[Reverse_snowbird]

As I keep reading in these threads, it's not always about gas mileage.
If he's near the max tow weight on his vehicle, it might pay in terms of safety to upgrade to a vehicle with a greater tow capacity.
He also might get better gas mileage with a newer vehicle that won't be struggling to tow the trailer.
But I agree, it's tough to get good mileage when you're towing a wind resistant box.

[kltk1]

FWIW, I tow a Flagstaff 23LB that comes in around 4k loaded up with a 2016 RAM 1500 Quad Cab Pentastar V6 and I'm getting 11-12 towing at 60 mph.

[timfromma]

I pull a 10,000lb TT with a 2500HD diesel and get 12MPG while towing and 20 unattached. Poor fuel economy comes with the territory if you want to own a camper.

[DRogers]

RAM 3500 Cummins, towing 31ft Denali 5er (13000 lbs), getting almost 17 mpg on flat and level ground. But I do agree why worry about the gas mileage, I understand trying to make sure you getting the best bang for you buck in regards to mpg, but if it concerns you, don't buy an RV.

[JonesyTravels]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

I understand the point about ignoring finance costs, because how you finance the purchase is irrelevant to the question about gas economy. But how can you trade to a newer vehicle and not lose something in the deal?

Sell almost new, decked out and buy slightly older, less decked out, low mileage. Looking at all of the price info online, I could get out close to even.

[JonesyTravels]

Originally Posted by JonesyTravels

Sell almost new, decked out and buy slightly older, less decked out, low mileage. Looking at all of the price info online, I could get out close to even.

Based on all of the great input here, though, sounds like I can sit tight and cruise in the monster truck. [emoji2]