2017 F-250 Ike Gauntlet

Bionic Man wrote:

4x4ord wrote:
I tow an RV as well as haul all sorts of equipment or other "stuff" on a tandem dually gooseneck. Any 22000 lb RV will tow easier than the equipment they towed behind the 1 tons. When they are only travelling 45 mph and going up a steep incline with 30,000 lbs GCVW the wind resistance is a very small part of the equation. The wind and rolling resistance combined at 45 mph is not going to require over 80 hp to overcome where as 287 HP are required to lift a truck and trailer up an 8% grade at 45 mph excluding wind and rolling resistance. So a total rear wheel HP of 367 rear wheel HP would be required for an 8,000 lb truck to tow a 22000 lb rv up an 8% grade at 45 mph with only somewhere around 35 of that 367 Hp being used to overcome wind resistance. At 65 mph more like 90 Hp is required to overcome air resistance.

I don't think you are correct on this. I know from experience that my 2012 will not tow my 12,000 pound fifth wheel up Eisenhower (eastbound) and maintain the 60 MPH speed limit. My buddy has a 2013 or 2014 F350 that will not tow his 5er up at the speed limit either.

Seems to me that the tests I have seen FLT tow similar weights, they are able to maintain 60 MPH (or even accelerate). Wind resistance must play a significant role.

There are some errors in my calculations, for instance if the HP to overcome air resistance is 35 HP at 45 mph I should have come up with a HP requirement of 73 HP at 65 not 90.

With the FLT test for the 1 tons,wind resistance would be quite insignificant because the speed going up the hill was only about 40 miles per hour. Pulling my 16000 lb rv I get about 10 mpg where as towing a 20,000 lb gooseneck equipment trailer I get about 7 mpg. Even though a RV has a large front it still catches far less wind than a piece of equipment plopped on a gooseneck.