STATS from my recent trip - ND to AZ and back
As I have posted in a couple of other topics I just finished a 4600 mile trip from Minot ND to AZ and back. I thought some might be interested in some Fuel and mileage stats and general observations.
My Rig: 2014 Dodge 4x4 2500 HD Crew Cab 5.7 Liter Hemi
Trailer: 2004 Gulfstream Innsbruck 31 feet 6200 Lbs empty. No sway bars.
Note: I travel with empty water and waste tanks and One full 30lb propane tank.
Passengers and Weight: We put about 400 lbs of stuff in the trailer before departure. We weigh it all as we take it in to the trailer. In the truck I had 4 passengers, two big dogs and my two big tool boxes. Later we added a new generator in the box (200 lbs.)Of course there were two coolers with ice and drinks and misc. stuff. Later we added groceries, wine and all the stuff you collect along the way.
Note: with all of this load my truck squats exactly 1 inch as measured at the top of the wheel wells.
THE ROUTE: Minot south on US 83 to North Platte NE then I 80 to Cheyenne Wyoming, then South to Denver and up and over Loveland Pass (11,000 plus feet)and down hill to Grand Junction, Co and then south into Utah to Arches and Canyonlands Natl Parks. From there it was on to Monument Valley and then a jog over to the Grand Canyon. Southwards again to Flagstaff and Phoenix, Casa Grande and Bisbee (Great Town). On the return we went to Silver City NM then up I25 all the way to Denver again and jogged over on I76 to North Platte and North on US 83 All the way to (sigh) Minot.
We filled up 29 times
Average MPG: 8.54
Best MPG: 10.54
Worst MPG: 6.45
MPG over Loveland Pass: 7.7
My best guess at my most common speed: About 63-65 MPH on the highway.
My trailer which I bought used in Chicago this last September performed perfectly. I love this Gulfstream. It's built well and tows great.
My truck performed very well and I couldnt be happier with it's performance. the 5.7 pulls great up any hill and is a joy to drive.
Some of you may remember my earlier posts that in Cheyenne WY the Spyder Gear Pin in the differential failed and shot through the differential casing about 39 miles from Cheyenne. The dealer was great and did everything they said and on time. An entire new axle assembly had to be ordered from Milwaukee and installed. The truck is new and under warranty so my tow and the repair and a new Dodge Durango was all provided at no cost to me. (I drove the Durango to San Francisco and back to pick up my friends from England we were supposed to meet there. A 2500 mile RT) So for those who think I drove too much in a short period of time please keep in mind that my friends had a schedule to return to England and we were making the best of a difficult situation.
We stayed in several RV parks in 8 states and I had some occasion to talk to many other RV'ers. I saw many many 1/2 ton truck owners pulling trailers of every description up to and including 32 footers, airstreams and even some Toyota Tacomas pulling good sized trailers 18 to 20 feet. I was interested in their experience and it seemed to be pretty consistent. They all said they had no problems pulling their trailers, they all said they didnt race up steep hills but got there anyway. Almost none of them used anti sway bars and claimed they had NO problems with handling. In fact most of the people that I came across pulling trailers didnt use anti sway bars. (neither do I)
I was encouraged by the number of people who had "Downsized" from big Class A's to class C and the newer Euro-Style van Campers. Some had downsized trailers as well from 5th wheels to much smaller units. One of their most common remarks was, just easier all way round and makes more places accessible. (especially National Parks)
My friends best experiences? (short List) San Francisco, Grand Canyon, Arches, the Schaffer Trail Road, our National Park System which they dubbed incredibly well organized and so clean, a Wal Mart Supercenter, The price of almost everything, especially Gasoline almost 3 times cheaper than in England and the 24 ounce T-Bones I grilled for dinner one night.
Hope some of this has been of interest to a few of you. We will leave here again in October for a full time jaunt to Baja and Alaska next year.
My Rig: 2014 Dodge 4x4 2500 HD Crew Cab 5.7 Liter Hemi
Trailer: 2004 Gulfstream Innsbruck 31 feet 6200 Lbs empty. No sway bars.
Note: I travel with empty water and waste tanks and One full 30lb propane tank.
Passengers and Weight: We put about 400 lbs of stuff in the trailer before departure. We weigh it all as we take it in to the trailer. In the truck I had 4 passengers, two big dogs and my two big tool boxes. Later we added a new generator in the box (200 lbs.)Of course there were two coolers with ice and drinks and misc. stuff. Later we added groceries, wine and all the stuff you collect along the way.
Note: with all of this load my truck squats exactly 1 inch as measured at the top of the wheel wells.
THE ROUTE: Minot south on US 83 to North Platte NE then I 80 to Cheyenne Wyoming, then South to Denver and up and over Loveland Pass (11,000 plus feet)and down hill to Grand Junction, Co and then south into Utah to Arches and Canyonlands Natl Parks. From there it was on to Monument Valley and then a jog over to the Grand Canyon. Southwards again to Flagstaff and Phoenix, Casa Grande and Bisbee (Great Town). On the return we went to Silver City NM then up I25 all the way to Denver again and jogged over on I76 to North Platte and North on US 83 All the way to (sigh) Minot.
We filled up 29 times
Average MPG: 8.54
Best MPG: 10.54
Worst MPG: 6.45
MPG over Loveland Pass: 7.7
My best guess at my most common speed: About 63-65 MPH on the highway.
My trailer which I bought used in Chicago this last September performed perfectly. I love this Gulfstream. It's built well and tows great.
My truck performed very well and I couldnt be happier with it's performance. the 5.7 pulls great up any hill and is a joy to drive.
Some of you may remember my earlier posts that in Cheyenne WY the Spyder Gear Pin in the differential failed and shot through the differential casing about 39 miles from Cheyenne. The dealer was great and did everything they said and on time. An entire new axle assembly had to be ordered from Milwaukee and installed. The truck is new and under warranty so my tow and the repair and a new Dodge Durango was all provided at no cost to me. (I drove the Durango to San Francisco and back to pick up my friends from England we were supposed to meet there. A 2500 mile RT) So for those who think I drove too much in a short period of time please keep in mind that my friends had a schedule to return to England and we were making the best of a difficult situation.
We stayed in several RV parks in 8 states and I had some occasion to talk to many other RV'ers. I saw many many 1/2 ton truck owners pulling trailers of every description up to and including 32 footers, airstreams and even some Toyota Tacomas pulling good sized trailers 18 to 20 feet. I was interested in their experience and it seemed to be pretty consistent. They all said they had no problems pulling their trailers, they all said they didnt race up steep hills but got there anyway. Almost none of them used anti sway bars and claimed they had NO problems with handling. In fact most of the people that I came across pulling trailers didnt use anti sway bars. (neither do I)
I was encouraged by the number of people who had "Downsized" from big Class A's to class C and the newer Euro-Style van Campers. Some had downsized trailers as well from 5th wheels to much smaller units. One of their most common remarks was, just easier all way round and makes more places accessible. (especially National Parks)
My friends best experiences? (short List) San Francisco, Grand Canyon, Arches, the Schaffer Trail Road, our National Park System which they dubbed incredibly well organized and so clean, a Wal Mart Supercenter, The price of almost everything, especially Gasoline almost 3 times cheaper than in England and the 24 ounce T-Bones I grilled for dinner one night.
Hope some of this has been of interest to a few of you. We will leave here again in October for a full time jaunt to Baja and Alaska next year.
