Realilistic mileage with a fifthwheel.

[grizz272]

Just curious what kind of fuel mileage I can expect with a fifth-wheel.
1ton 4x4 duramax srw 36 Ft. 13Klbs fifth-wheel. I realize weather, road conditions whether it is flat or hills or mountains all can make a big difference. Generally speaking flat lands like the whole god forsaken state of Illinois.

[Old-Biscuit]

14K 13'4" 34' 5vr....10.5 mpg 62 mph with stock 2007 5.9L CTD QC LB 4:10 48Re trans

[DutchmenSport]

Not a 5er, but my TT (over 10,000 pounds) and length (35.5 feet) would be a comparable tow as far as fuel mileage. On average my 3500 Duramax Duly gets 11-12. Which I don't understand sometimes, because when traveling through the mountains of Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, and even the Black Hills of South Dakota, it will get 13-14 in tow mode, exhaust break mode, and cruise control! Go figure!

[judelaurenzo25g]

I get about 10-12

[Cummins12V98]

rhagfo wrote:

Earl E wrote:
Yep. 8-10 no matter what you are towing.

You must do all your towing at 70+, my 01 Ram gets 10 to 12 towing close to 12k. I would not expect much of a change going to a newer Ram.

I used to get similar mileage as you with my 98 RAM towing a similar 5er. Then went to a 11 HO Dually and wide body RV with 28K combined weight and HAND calc averaged 9.5, now with 15 RAM Dually and wide body 13' 5" high RV and combined 33K I get about 9 hand calc. All of this West Coast Towing.

Height, weight and width ALL play into REAL world mileage.

[allen8106]

I have a 2013 GMC 2500 6.6 L Duramax towing a 34 ft. 5ver at 10,500 lbs.

Over the coarse of 4 years of tracking my mileage I have averaged 11.5 towing and 17.1 not towing.

[laknox]

grizz272 wrote:
Just curious what kind of fuel mileage I can expect with a fifth-wheel.
1ton 4x4 duramax srw 36 Ft. 13Klbs fifth-wheel. I realize weather, road conditions whether it is flat or hills or mountains all can make a big difference. Generally speaking flat lands like the whole god forsaken state of Illinois.

My old low-profile Komfort, loaded, would give me about 9.5-11.5 mpg, depending on conditions. On a long trip to CO from AZ, I averaged right at 11 for the trip. My new KZ is 18" taller and 3' longer, but 800 lbs lighter GVW and I was towing light, with zero "stuff" inside and only a full tank of fresh water; 60 gallons. I was seeing 12-14 mpg on my ScanGauge II towing from Tucson to Chandler. Very slightly downhill, mostly flat and dead calm. Personally, I also think that my KZ is simply more aerodynamic. We're planning a trip to Laughlin NV next month and I'll give a trip report when we get back.

FWIW, I was towing my KZ at 65 mph. I usually towed my Komfort around 60, mostly due to tire concerns.

Lyle

[Jayco-noslide]

Unless an extremely heavy or lite load, 10 is the magic number. It won't be different from 10 enough to effect your budget.

[BB_TX]

filrupmark wrote:
9-11.5 with our rig

What my 2012 F350 6.7 towing high profile 35' 5er at 65-70 does, varying by terrain and weather conditions.

[filrupmark]

9-11.5 with our rig

[ford_truck_guy]

raygreg wrote:

rtyauch301 wrote:
i did 14 last year from Huntsville Alabama to Columbus and back. my truck has also had a lot of work done do it and generally doesn't downshift on any but the steepest grades and maintains speed very well

What truck and engine???

from their profile -


2013 keystone alpine 3600rs
07 ram 2500 5.9 compounds water meth and a built trans

[raygreg]

rtyauch301 wrote:
i did 14 last year from Huntsville Alabama to Columbus and back. my truck has also had a lot of work done do it and generally doesn't downshift on any but the steepest grades and maintains speed very well

What truck and engine???

[padredw]

With a D/A 2500 and 34' fifth-wheel: 9 - 12 is pretty well the range limits of MPG. The factor most important seems to be the wind. Head wind or side wind can hold down to 9 (or lower in really strong wind); favorable wind can bring the MPG up to 12.

It would be highly unusual for our MPG to fall outside those parameters over any extended distance.

The ONLY way to know is to keep an exact log from odometer and from the actual gallons from the pump--certainly not from the onboard computer readout.

[ACZL]

Old coach (Cedar Creek Silverback) netted 10.5
New coach (in sig) nets 9-9.5 at same speed.
Net difference, 4,000 lbs heavier and 6 feet longer w/ new coach

[GPG52_]

This is a copy of a forum post we did in 2015:
"We just completed a holiday run from Toronto, Cnd to Kissimmee, Fl.
Some of stats from this trip.

TV: 2014 Ford F250 Super Duty, 6.3 gas, 4.30 ratio, 6 spd.
Coach: 2014 Cougar 327 RES, (Mfg. spec's 10,260 lbs., 1,625 lbs. pin)
Have yet to put it on a scale but could likely add 1,700 lbs. for gear and 1/4 tank of fresh water.

US 90, 79, 19, 77, 95, 4.
Return trip: 2,806.7 miles
Moving time: 56.28 hrs
Moving average 50 mph
I tried to hold the speed at 62 - 63 mph and tried to keep the RPM from going above 3,000. This meant slower hill speeds.

South bound April 2,3 & 4th, 2015
Used speed control when not on wet roads.
6.6 mpg (we had heavy rain)
172.141 US gallons, Average $pg $2.27,

North bound April 16,17 & 18th, 2015
Used manual gas pedal especially in mountains to keep the RPM in check.
6.9 mpg
172.338 US gallons, Average $pg $2.38
Tried to fuel at Flying J and Pilot's to take advantage of the Good Same discount and larger rig friendly fueling stations.

NOTE: we did get up to 9.047 mpg in the Southern state flat lands, but the Blue Ridge, Appalachian , Allegheny mountain ranges brought us down to 6-7 mpg area.

YEP... we did see those diesel dually's through Fancy Gap passing us, but for our use the cost/benefit still supports a single axle gaser.
Coach pulled extremely well... very much appreciated especially after some of those longer days behind the wheel. (single driver)

Nice trip, fuel consumption was at the lower end of our expectation but no big surprise.

Happy trails!!!!
GPG "

[4bearhug]

grizz272 wrote:
Just curious what kind of fuel mileage I can expect with a fifth-wheel.
1ton 4x4 duramax srw 36 Ft. 13Klbs fifth-wheel. I realize weather, road conditions whether it is flat or hills or mountains all can make a big difference. Generally speaking flat lands like the whole god forsaken state of Illinois.

I've got almost the exact same set up as you and get 10-12 towing consistently. The biggest factors for me are speed and outside temperature. We travel south in December from Indiana to Florida. Our mileage will gradually improve as we move south into warmer temps. I have even moved up over 12 mpg on occasion. My truck is 2015.