Diesel Question for truck campers
I believe a diesel engine is the best for hauling a truck camper. With the price of diesel going up more each week is it still worth it? Just looking for opinions. Today in Canada a gallon ...
Forum Discussion
Simple fact: if you compare a gas engine with a diesel engine that has similar performance, the diesel will get 30 to 50 % better fuel mileage. This is inherent in the thermal efficiency of the diesel vs gas engine, and of course, you can sacrifice some of that mileage advantage to get better performance.
So if you take the lower figure of 30%, it means that if gas costs you $3.00 per gallon, diesel has to cost $3.90 to work out to the same cost per mile. Put another way, the OP would pay 15.8% more per gallon to go 30% farther.
I have two diesels, a VW Jetta that gets just under 50 miles per gallon. It was offered with a gas engine that was pretty well matched for performance, and fell close to the 50% better mileage range. I also have a Jeep Libby diesel that is substantially stronger than the alternate gas engine that was offered. 295 ft-lbs torque, compared to 210 for the gasser, and it gets closer to the 30% better mileage mark. (I've since chipped it to get 335 ft-lbs, and curiously it gets better mileage now too.)
So if you take the lower figure of 30%, it means that if gas costs you $3.00 per gallon, diesel has to cost $3.90 to work out to the same cost per mile. Put another way, the OP would pay 15.8% more per gallon to go 30% farther.
I have two diesels, a VW Jetta that gets just under 50 miles per gallon. It was offered with a gas engine that was pretty well matched for performance, and fell close to the 50% better mileage range. I also have a Jeep Libby diesel that is substantially stronger than the alternate gas engine that was offered. 295 ft-lbs torque, compared to 210 for the gasser, and it gets closer to the 30% better mileage mark. (I've since chipped it to get 335 ft-lbs, and curiously it gets better mileage now too.)
