Forum Discussion

Road_Phantom's avatar
Road_Phantom
Explorer
Jul 21, 2022

16' Scamp and 2018 Ram 2500 diesel

Over kill? Hell yes!
But, I believe I would get around 17-18 mpg towing. With gas going through the roof, we are considering a 16 foot Scamp for long trips to visit family. (I don't fly) We used to travel in a 32 ft 5th wheel) Rather than to sell the truck which has 4 wheel drive and only 50,000 miles on it, we'd like to keep it. The truck gets 27 mpg hwy with 342 gear ratio, no wind doing 60 mph. It's comfortable and has a cap with a slide-out aluminum tray.
Is this a fair assessment? It seems to me that pulling a 2000 lb trailer with a low profile (7'.6") would be nothing to pull. I'm blocking most of the wind with the cap.
  • bjkb1f's avatar
    bjkb1f
    Explorer
    Jul 21, 2022
    Sorry, but if it's not a 3500 dually, the most you can tow is a pop-up.

    :B
  • valhalla360's avatar
    valhalla360
    Navigator
    Jul 21, 2022
    While there is certainly no issue...I wouldn't count on huge MPG increases.

    A little different but...we have a V10 F250.
    - Pull a 25ft camper and get around 9mpg.
    - Pull an 8ft enclosed utility trailer and get....wait for it.... around 9mpg.
  • spoon059's avatar
    spoon059
    Explorer II
    Jul 21, 2022
    27 mpg hwy...? Sounds like one magical Cummins...

    I can get 22 on a perfectly flat road with no traffic in the most of ideal conditions.

    That being said, I believe that any flat front trailer will have a major impact on your towing mileage. You are towing a sail, regardless of weight. Perhaps going up grade won't have as big of an effect, but you are still pulling a sail behind you.
  • TravelinDog's avatar
    TravelinDog
    Explorer II
    Jul 21, 2022
    spoon059 wrote:
    27 mpg hwy...? Sounds like one magical Cummins...

    I can get 22 on a perfectly flat road with no traffic in the most of ideal conditions.

    That being said, I believe that any flat front trailer will have a major impact on your towing mileage. You are towing a sail, regardless of weight. Perhaps going up grade won't have as big of an effect, but you are still pulling a sail behind you.


    27mpg Really? You must be driving down hill all the time.
  • Grit_dog's avatar
    Grit_dog
    Navigator
    Jul 21, 2022
    Other than exaggerating your fuel mileage grossly, yes you will still get pretty good mileage towing a small camper.
  • Road_Phantom's avatar
    Road_Phantom
    Explorer
    Jul 22, 2022
    Speed has a lot to do with mpg. I don't go over 60, while most of the campers passing me do 70 and better.
  • Durb's avatar
    Durb
    Explorer
    Jul 22, 2022
    I towed a flatbed trailer with a SeaDoo, maybe 1,000 pounds total on a long haul for a houseboat trip. Still cost me 3 miles per gallon, 21 to 18 MPG. The truck had lots of stuff in the bed and there were plenty of grades. The best my 5.9 Cummins has ever seen is 24 MPG, flat freeway, no wind, empty bed except for auxiliary tank. My truck's sweet spot is 63-65 MPH in OD.
  • wanderingbob's avatar
    wanderingbob
    Explorer II
    Jul 22, 2022
    My Ram 2500 CTD got more than 25 MPG while on the Natchez Trace for 400 miles at 50 MPH pulling our 20 foot Winnie , so it is possible !

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