Diesel fuel penalty

45Ricochet wrote:

Terryallan wrote:

Don't know about the MPG, But on the down hill. Gas has got diesels beat. They already hold back the truck and trailer. All you got to do. Is drop down thru the gear box.
Diesels have to add some sort of brake (trany, Exhaust, engine) to make a diesel do what a gas engine does naturally. With out some sort of add on. A diesel just free wheels down a hill, in ANY gear. I understand many manufacturers are putting them in their truck either as a option, or in some cases standard equipment. It should be required.

I can come down from Blowing Rock, 7 miles of 6 to 7% grade, with sharp curves and hardly touch the brakes.

LOL
Try that with 15k lbs on your tail Terry and get back to us with your results :E Think brake fade here. "hardly" means your service brakes are warm to put it mildly. Most likely hot and in a failing state, err not exactly what the manufacture engineered it for.
Your call, but the gasser back pressure is very limited with a big RV.
BTDT :E

No hardly does not mean my brakes were warm. It means I barely touched them. Maybe you can't. Maybe you didn't drop down far enough. But when I drop down to 1st at the top of the hill. It holds it back just great. I actually had to shift up, and give it a little gas to keep it from stopping. I've been coming down those mountains in 1st, and 2nd gear for 40 years. Never got the brakes hot while towing.
On the other hand. Starting down in the 3RD gear of 13. The big truck just ran past the redline like it was in netural. No back pressure at all, no braking at all. Only my foot, and one of the best drivers in the world beside me teaching me what to do. I lerned pretty quick. Or we would have been in the runoff ramp.

Diesels are great for towing. But have no back pressure for braking, unless it is added. And gas does it naturally.