Drag ?
I thought of putting this in the DIY section but thought it belonged here as it is a 5th wheel question. There has been many topics of does a wing benefit towing, and when everything is take into a...
Forum Discussion
I think the biggest difference in mileage will be determined by speed. If I drive my MH at 55 - 60, I get 9.5 mpg without the toad. When I drive 65 - 70, I get 7.3 mpg. Determined on a 140 mile trip on same road with minimal elevation change and side wind on both.
My son drives for Nussbaum Transportation and they determined that using trailer skirts and trailer tails improves fuel mileage by 0.2 mpg. If you're driving millions of miles per year across a large fleet, that is significant. Getting similar improvement on an RV might not be able to offset the cost of the installation of the aerodynamic devices in a reasonable amount of time. Nussbaum found that separating the turbulence from the back of the trailer with the trailer tail has a larger impact than keeping the air out from under the trailer. I doubt that you would want to install one of those on your fiver, but you might want to consider a flat spoiler on the trailing edge to separate the turbulence at the back, Using a vertical spoiler at the rear of the fiver would generate downforce which could result in uneven pin loading.
My son drives for Nussbaum Transportation and they determined that using trailer skirts and trailer tails improves fuel mileage by 0.2 mpg. If you're driving millions of miles per year across a large fleet, that is significant. Getting similar improvement on an RV might not be able to offset the cost of the installation of the aerodynamic devices in a reasonable amount of time. Nussbaum found that separating the turbulence from the back of the trailer with the trailer tail has a larger impact than keeping the air out from under the trailer. I doubt that you would want to install one of those on your fiver, but you might want to consider a flat spoiler on the trailing edge to separate the turbulence at the back, Using a vertical spoiler at the rear of the fiver would generate downforce which could result in uneven pin loading.
