Best towing vehicles for best MPGs

The subject does get brought up. A fellow posted his mileage with a 3.0liter Ram, surprise, my 6.7 Ram got the same mileage pulling about the same size trailer.

Change to a tent, Sorry.

The words 'towing' and 'MPG' just do not belong in the same sentence.

Adjusting how you drive will do more for fuel economy than what vehicle you drive especially while towing.

As you have probably figured out, gas mileage is low on many peoples list of priorities.

Here are my figures.

F-150 on highway 18 to 20 mpg.
F-150 and 2500 lb. PUP 15 to 17 mpg.
F-150 and 25 ft Dutchmen TT 9 to 10.5 mpg.

You might pick up a tad with a diesel but you can buy a lot of gas for the difference in operating cost if that was your only reason for a diesel.

RVs are a significant cash out lay, right size involves a lot more than gas mileage.

Gdetrailer wrote:


If I was worried about mileage I would be driving a Prius and stopping at Motels..

Let me just say that can be a delightful option!

Trust me staying in a well kept travel court was delightful.

Our 30+ mpg Malibu next the "motel room" we spent several nice Maine fall days in.
The Malibu even did 30 mpg at the legal 80 mph in Wyoming.

A 40 day Washington state to New Brunswick trip in 2014 without an RV was Fun.
Our eastern terminus The Roosevelt Cottage on Campobello Island.



Wife and rented German motorhome in a Paris, France RV park.
The small diesel in that Ford Transit did very well with fuel.


Some do not need what a large poor MPG RV provides. Small and thrifty will do for us.

Let me put this in perspective for people thinking about alternatives.
2011 Ram 5.7 Hemi 1500 with 25RKS probably 27-30 feet long at 60mph~9.5mph, 65~8mph anywhere there is a road wide enough.
35' Chris Craft Commander, my other over-nighter, with twin 5.7L (not hemi) engines, 10 mph-1mpg, 20mph- .5mpg anywhere the water is >4' and connected to the Mississippi River. Oh, and the fuel stops are not as easily available.
With neither do I consider bed bugs, packing or unpacking bags, allowance for the damncat or...
jmho

Check Youtube for Tow tests. Including a Link to TFLTruck. They have done various mileage testing. Your trailer weight and aerodynamics may vary.





TFLTruck Tundra

03-05 Ram 2500 or 3500 with single rear wheel and the 5.9L Cummins seem to have a great reputation for efficiency.

My dad has an 03 and he gets a consistent 22-23 Hwy (hand calculated) and he got 11-13 towing a 14k fiver… depending on his speed.

IMHO….If buying new...

A Ram EcoDiesel in a SLT trim would give you a near perfect mix of fuel economy, comfort, capability, and capacity.

Thanks!

Jeremiah

bobndot wrote:
What about the baby diesels ? Anyone tow with the 3.0 Jeep ?
3.0 Jeep

Ram 3.0 ?

Ram 3.0 diesel

Chev 2.8 diesel

A year ago or more, someone posted on this forum about their tow of an Airstream with a Jeep 3L diesel, and they said they got about 18 mpg on the trip. It was California to somewhere and back, I forget exactly, but they did go over some mountains.