We have a 2014 c class freedom elite 28z that we just took out to Yellowstone from Al. We are new to rv camping but in the last year we have spent a week in key west Fl. and two weeks in yellowstone. We are thinking about buying a little larger rv a A class or super c. What we are wondering is what kind of mileage they get both gas or des. Any help would be great. We avg. only 5.5 miles gas.

Your average was 5.5 in a 2014 28ft class C, seems low, do you drive fast ?A class A will have about the same average, can average about 6 plus if you keep it under 65 mph. {gas}My best mpg is 7 with a 33 foot class A gas, that is flat roads no wind however..

Depends on where you are (level/hills) and how fast you drive. We average around 8 mpg with our 8.3 Cummins but we only drive around 62 mph. I have driven faster in the past. At 75 mph it drops below 7 mpg. I usually do not get in a hurry. It is not worth the extra cost. Also generator usage will eat up a lot of fuel. When it is hot we do run the generator but only use the front A/C and it uses about a quart per hour = $1 per hour. We have ran both front and rear A/C as well as the hot water heater and it uses a half gallon per hour = $2 per hour. But at 62 mph you are using almost 8 gallons per hour = $32 per hour to go down the road.It's not cheap. You have to like it. Some on here say if you have to worry about the cost of fuel then you don't need to buy a MH. I disagree, you can be smart and try to save where you can. Every little bit helps.

You mentioned Yellowstone and Florida. That means that you travel on flat land and in the mountains. Since I live in Florida and travel mostly out West I can tell you that the mileage varies so much that there is no definitive answer that is accurate. Hills, wind, altitude, speed, loading, towing, and temperature all are factors that affect the mileage. You can drive over one road one day and have a tail wind and the next day, that same road could have a head wind. Since we travel a lot in the Great Plains, there is no such thing as a tail wind. It is always a head wind. On average I would guess that overall, if you figure 7.0 MPG you would be safe, whether it is a diesel or gasoline powered coach. Some days you may get better, and some days worse. You may get better with some diesels over gas, altho I did not, but the extra cost of diesel more than offsets any extra mile or two of mileage.

Soooo many factors in MPG. How you are loaded, wind, terrain, weight of the MH, the engine, etc etc. Gassers will get anywhere from 6-10. Some of the new short DP's can get double digits and FREDs (Front engine diesels) or B plus can get 20 or more. You would have to set your sites on a specific model and year coach to get anything close to an accurate estimate in MPG. Even then, all the factors can change it drastically. BTW your MPG seems really low. I would expect 8+ in your current rig.

I think your gas mileage is much lower than average for a Class C. Most on the Class C forum indicate an average of 8 mpg. The lowest in our 27 foot Class C was 7.5 mpg, driving 70 mph into a strong headwind in southern WY. Our best was 10. Driving a couple times a year between Western PA and Florida through the Appalachian Mts. we get about 9.0 - 9.5 mpg. We usually drive the speed limit and on cruise control. Did you run long distances with your water, black, and gray tanks full? Did you pull a toad? Are you certain that your tow/haul feature (on Ford E450) was not activated? Were you running the generator while driving? Was your weight under the OCCC? Do you have a new engine in the RV? A new engine takes a little time to break in. While in FL or other parts of the country that are very flat, I would think doing the speed limit and on cruise control, you should see at least 9 mpg or better.Bob

Fuel mileage | Good Sam Community

tyaughton
Explorer
Jun 27, 2014
Interesting. We saw signs which posted max and min speeds, generally when we entered the state. I don't recall seeing any such sign when we hit MD or VA, and we did 55 through both without issue. Some minimum speed posts were as low as 45, but I don't remember which state. Just because they post a maximum, you're not required to do it. I would never do 80 in UT (well, maybe in my car I might) but I didn't get pulled over at 55 either.
Effy
Explorer II
Jun 27, 2014
bluwtr49 wrote:
Effy wrote:
How do you guys drive 55mph on roads that the posted speed limit is much higher? In MD I know it's against the law to drive more than 10MPH under the posted limit.

Personally, I've never heard of such a limit. Can you tell us which state have that law?

Surprised. It's typical of roads like 95 etc. Major 2 lane highways. There is a minimum to discourage vehicles on a roadway that are too slow and thereby can contribute to an accident if you are not keeping with the flow of traffic. The MD law is; Subtitle 8 - Speed restrictions, Section 21-804 - Minimum speed regulation. Which in a nutshell says: "a person may not willfully drive a motor vehicle at such a slow speed as to impede the normal and reasonable movement of traffic. " Often it's posted (Max 65 Min 55). In VA I have seen Max 70 Min 60. So if you are on I95 in a 65 zone going 55, I would bet dollars to donuts you are impeding traffic and subsequently inviting risk.
hipower
Explorer
Jun 27, 2014
Snomas wrote:
I drive 65 mph average and get 7.6 mpg average w/ 4800# Toad behind!

My Dutch Star ('03) Cummins/Spartan pulling a Silverado PU is exactly where you are. We usually weigh out at about 34,000# gross combined weight. I drive as fast or as slow as I feel is right for the circumstances which is dictated by many factors including traffic, speed limits, weather etc. and feel we are doing about average on fuel consumption. Moving a house up and down the road just isn't a very fuel efficient operation.
flapbreaker
Explorer
Jun 27, 2014
Effy wrote:
How do you guys drive 55mph on roads that the posted speed limit is much higher? In MD I know it's against the law to drive more than 10MPH under the posted limit.

In Oregon you will not find single lane highway's with speed limits above 60 so it's not to big of a deal. There are however, some two lane highways with higher limits but with two lanes I just stay to the right so folks can get around. Also, there are lots of hills/mountain passes so you won't always be able to drive the posted speed limit even if you wanted to.
bluwtr49
Explorer II
Jun 27, 2014
Effy wrote:
How do you guys drive 55mph on roads that the posted speed limit is much higher? In MD I know it's against the law to drive more than 10MPH under the posted limit.

Personally, I've never heard of such a limit. Can you tell us which state have that law?
Effy
Explorer II
Jun 27, 2014
How do you guys drive 55mph on roads that the posted speed limit is much higher? In MD I know it's against the law to drive more than 10MPH under the posted limit.
Snomas
Explorer
Jun 27, 2014
I drive 65 mph average and get 7.6 mpg average w/ 4800# Toad behind!
J-Rooster
Explorer
Jun 27, 2014
I get 8 MPG in my Class A gasser! I don't tow a vehicle and I drive under 59 MPH always! I'm in no hurry to get where I'm going! If I was getting 5.5 MPG in a RV I would get rid of it to! Every RV that gets behind me passes me! And I could care less!
flapbreaker
Explorer
Jun 27, 2014
Wow, surprised at the low MPG reports. I suspect it's mostly due to the speed at which folks drive. We have a 2000 32' Monaco v10 triton and have averaged 10 mpg not towing but did have a 1300 foot "mountain ridge" to climb over. I do not drive fast, mostly 55-60 mph. Towing my saturn vue on a similar trip I got 7.5mpg. I was most impressed with my last trip up over Mount hood where I got 8mpg (not towing). The pass level is approximately 4500 feet and I started at approx. 100 foot level. If I was getting 5.5mpg in a smaller rig I definitely would be concerned about moving up. If you're bent on driving 65-75 then your milage will suck. There's a reason why the government set the speed limit to 55 in the 70's oil crisis. Pulled this off the interment "According to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), as a rule of thumb, you can assume that each 5 mph you drive over 60 mph is like paying an additional $0.21 per gallon for gas (at $3.00 per gallon).

So, the Fuel Economy Benefit of driving slower is between 7 and 23 percent. The equivalent gasoline savings is $0.21 to $0.71 per gallon."
Richert
Explorer
Jun 26, 2014
Slow down, enjoy the company, the scenery and let the MPG be what they are, MH travel is still the best way to travel around this great country of ours!!! If it is windy take time to enjoy the day somewhere then travel, if it is raining, cuddle up with your significant other and listen to the rain on the roof, don't drive after dark or before dawn, can't see all the scenery when it's dark out! Just have fun out there!!!!!

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