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cbsurfmom's avatar
cbsurfmom
Explorer
Sep 12, 2013

Gas mileage, environmentally friendly remodel

I want to remodel my coach and lighten the load in order to get better gas mileage. I'm planning on a environmentally friendly remodel. (This is my one year plan after repairing my leak for those who followed that post) Things I've been thinking about are: The furniture weighs so much. The mattress in the back is on a thick piece of plywood on cut off 2x4's. The 2 swivel chairs, though very comfortable are heave and so is the fold down couch. The only thing about the couch is it has seat belts which we want to keep. Get rid of the AC unit. Switch out the Fridge and Stove when they no longer work. Get rid of the carpet and install cork flooring. Another thought I had is a composting toilet instead of a black holding tank, anyone installed one of those? Bottom line, is it worth doing this and will it really increase my gas mileage? Thanks for the replies in advance.
  • Thanks everyone! That's what I was told. Guess it's not like a catamaran. The lighter the load the faster it goes ;)
  • No and no. And you'll end up with something *I* wouldn't want to camp in. If you want better mph just drive slower.
  • I,d say no, your mpg might increase but not enough you,d see it, a truck chassis was built to work not get good mpg, the chassis when built has no idea its gonna be a MH. best way to get mpg is keep it at 55mph. or get a mercedes benz diesel. thats what I did and ain,t never going back to 8mpg. we had a 24ft bornfree V10 8mpg on a good day. bought a 24ft leisure travel van freedom serenity II. I 5 MB diesel and get just over 20 mpg .
  • Personally, I don't think making the RV a little lighter will make a difference in MPG.
    I believe wind resistance/drag is the big MPG killer on RV's.