Gas vs diesel class A questions
Is it true that diesel is a cushier ride than gassers? And does it get better gas mileage? Does it climb hills better and do better going downhill as well? Thanks for your help in advance!
Forum Discussion
Assuming two identical coaches one with gas & on with diesel of the same HP...
The diesel will win on MPG (but cost more up front and cost more per gal)...net cost isn't greatly different. The Gas engine will be fine but will rev higher to make it's rated HP (no concern just a bit of noise). If you drive few miles, the gas will likely be a little cheaper. If you do a lot of miles, diesel likely will be a little cheaper. Unless you are doing a crazy number of miles, expect the rest of the MH to age out before either engine type wears out.
The problem with this comparison is there aren't a lot of MH's where you can get everything identical except for the fuel source. Diesel MH's tend to target a more affluent market as they are more expensive but usually the whole coach is typically upgraded.
- Diesels often add an exhaust brake and have a turbo which means they keep full power at altitude and can limit speed on along downhill runs better but you pay for that.
- Often they come as Diesel Pushers built on motor coach chassises which give a nicer ride. You could outfit them with a gas engine but when you get into the $500k range, the extra $10-20k for the diesel doesn't matter much, so no one would get the gas option...net result is they don't offer it.
Basically, it's comparing apples and oranges and the fuel source is only on small part.
The diesel will win on MPG (but cost more up front and cost more per gal)...net cost isn't greatly different. The Gas engine will be fine but will rev higher to make it's rated HP (no concern just a bit of noise). If you drive few miles, the gas will likely be a little cheaper. If you do a lot of miles, diesel likely will be a little cheaper. Unless you are doing a crazy number of miles, expect the rest of the MH to age out before either engine type wears out.
The problem with this comparison is there aren't a lot of MH's where you can get everything identical except for the fuel source. Diesel MH's tend to target a more affluent market as they are more expensive but usually the whole coach is typically upgraded.
- Diesels often add an exhaust brake and have a turbo which means they keep full power at altitude and can limit speed on along downhill runs better but you pay for that.
- Often they come as Diesel Pushers built on motor coach chassises which give a nicer ride. You could outfit them with a gas engine but when you get into the $500k range, the extra $10-20k for the diesel doesn't matter much, so no one would get the gas option...net result is they don't offer it.
Basically, it's comparing apples and oranges and the fuel source is only on small part.
