More fifth wheel questions.
These 2 came from my DW 1. The ventilated fifth-wheel tailgates. Do they do anything besides making it easier to hitch up? My DW was wondering about fuel mileage and wind resistance. 2. The mud ...
Forum Discussion
Range Maggot Bob wrote:md_procouple wrote:
Hubby replaced our regular tailgate with a Louvered on last year, and says he gets about 3-5 more miles per gallon, as far as the mud flap brushes, we don't know, never installed any on our pickup. Good Luck and Happy Camping !!
Sorry, don't believe that for a minute. That's kind of like the trucks you used to see running around with their tailgate down. Don't see that much any more cause it's an old wives tale about better mileage. We have the louvered one, and minuscule difference in mileage. Less than 1 gallon. Like everybody else says- I want the one that gets 3-5 miles better mileage. Dream on...
The folks at Myth Busters had this as a task a few years back.. closed tailgate-VS-Open tailgate
In a 100% completely controlled environment between the 2 the tailgate closed was better..!! See below
Finding: BUSTED
Explanation: If you drive a pickup, common sense might lead you to think that opening the tailgate on the road is the more fuel efficient way to go. In fact, the idea that tailgates block airflow and increase drag became widely circulated, and some truck owners intentionally drive with the tailgates down to ease up on gas consumption.
But when MythBusters Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage drove identical trucks under the same conditions across the desert — one with the tailgate up and the other with it down — Jamie's tailgate-closed pickup outlasted Adam's by more than 30 miles (48 kilometers).
Closing the tailgate actually improves fuel efficiency because it creates a type of airflow called a separated bubble within the bed of the truck. As wind rushes over the moving truck, that bubble of slow-moving air deflects it over the raised tailgate. By guiding surrounding air over and across the bed of the truck, that vortex effect prevents added drag.
However, driving with the tailgate open eliminates the bubble effect, pulling the air toward the truck bed and creating more drag rather than deflecting the wind. Some gas-conscious pickup drivers still swear by leaving their tailgates open, but science sides with leaving it up.
