E 450 V 10 MPG

2014 Jayco Greyhawk 31FK with only 1200 miles on it. Two occupants. Full propane and FW tank. Rear cargo compartment was reasonably well loaded. No toad. Measured true gas mileage (no generator time) at 9.0 mpg running 58-60 mph on I-40 between Morganton, NC and Cookeville, TN. This stretch included crossing the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Just returned from a trip to Palo Duro Canyon, about 1300 miles roundtrip. I managed to get 8.1 MPG for whole trip and was very proud of that.....

I thought I would share with you my actual mpg for my western trip in my Fleetwood Montera 25K E450 V-10

We left Raleigh, NC and travelled to Mt Rushmore, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Bryce Canyon, Zion, Grand Canyon North and South Rims, Monument Valley, Canyon de Chelle, Albaquerque, Santa Fe and then eastward on I 40 to pigeon Forge and then home.

We were gone from Labor Day to October 13 and travelled 6,264 miles and we purchased 702.2 gal of regular fuel for overall mpg of 8.92. We were not towing anything.

During this trip we used the generator a good bit at Yellowstone, Grand Teton and the North rim as well as Canyon de Chelle in addition to lunch stops. I was surprised that a lot of the regular gas was 85 or 86 octane rather than 87 octane we have here in NC.

The majority of the trip was at 60-62 mph and the tach showed about 22-2300 rpm except for I 90 and I 15. 90 is 75 mph and 15 from Sault Lake is 80! The fastest I went on these highways was 70.

My starting mileage was 3800 mi so the engine was not really broken in and now I am over 10k and think the flat country mileage with neutral wind and not towing is 9.2 to nearly 10. I did not have the wind at my back at any time so I did not benefit from it.

I guess this mileage is the norm?

I wish the Ford cruise control fed more gas rather than allowing the down shift but I guess that is the nature of the beast.

Tow haul was a great friend on the mountainous roads and I used cruise sparingly. If I was using cruise I gave it a little acceleration on the hills (up to 2500 rpm) and allowed it to lug down to 2000 rpm to avoid the downshifts

I too drive an Aspect 26A. The prior owner tried to tell me that she regularly got 13 MPG in it. I didn't argue with her but I also took her comments with a grain of salt. I haven't gone through my first tank yet but I expect it to be around 8 or so and I'm good with that!

mikeleblanc413 wrote:
To pnichols....how does the oversize tires affect the speedometer?

It makes the speedometer read too slow.

Our Class C motorhome speedometer now reads maybe 1/2 MPH slower because of my slightly over-diameter tires. I consider this as being of no concern, as we don't push the limits on speed in an RV anyway.

I've been running over-stock-diameter tires on my trucks for years. Besides the added ground clearance, it's an easy way to make all gears taller for improved gas mileage and the tires last longer because of less revolutions per mile -> which reduces rubber contact with the road per mile for each section of the tire and reduces the heat-generating "sidewall bulges per mile" for each section of the tire as it comes to the bottom during the tire's rotation.

IMHO, larger diameter tires are a poor man's way to improve several things at once ... unless you're a speeder.

Jopopsy wrote:
I've always stayed off the cab A/C for fear of running things too hard, hot, or just losing too much power.

Am I babying my 2013 Chassis E450 too much? *The rig is a 2014, but the chassis is a 2013*

Just run the thing, they were designed to take abuse the average consumer won't dish out. I bought my coach to enjoy not save fuel . It's all

just the cost of having my comforts right behind my driver's seat.

To pnichols....how does the oversize tires affect the speedometer?

Jopopsy wrote:
I've always stayed off the cab A/C for fear of running things too hard, hot, or just losing too much power.

Am I babying my 2013 Chassis E450 too much? *The rig is a 2014, but the chassis is a 2013*

I don't have coolant and oil temp numbers, and the coolant temp gauge has a huge dead spot near the operating temperature. I don't hesitate to use my dash aIr when I need it. The engines have reputation for very long life, some examples in motorhome duty are well over 150,000 miles. Some examples in pickups towing loads are higher than that. These people are running their engine driven AC.

The engines have an oil cooler, and a high volume clutch fan. The fan in mine runs infrequently and when it runs I know it due to the sound of the air it moves.

I wouldn't deprive myself of comfort for any hypothetical savings on the engine or AC system. FWIW I can also feel little or no effect on power from running the AC. The big deal is pulling around 11,000 lbs, not running the air conditioner compressor.

someone made the comment: IT IS WHAT IT IS, yep we are driving our house, and it has a big flat front on it. Can't be concerned about the MPG driving a motorhome
Life's a trip, ENJOY the ride.
safe Travels
Bill

I've always stayed off the cab A/C for fear of running things too hard, hot, or just losing too much power.

Am I babying my 2013 Chassis E450 too much? *The rig is a 2014, but the chassis is a 2013*