Towing mpg

dave_benn · October 14, 2012

I have a 28' jayco jay flight weighing 7200# when full. My tuck is a 2010 Sierra 1500 w/ 5.3 and 3.42 gears, I usually get 17 mpg on the highway and 12 mpg in town empty. Towing I get 9-10 mpg on the flatlands of south jersey. I just went to lake placid, ny and on the way here I averaged 7.5-8.5 mpg, all highway and minimal traffic. I drove 60-70 mph the whole way here. Do these mpg numbers sound right, anyone else getting this bad while towing?

latreille89 · October 14, 2012

Sounds alright at 70mph. Keep it at 60 the whole time and you'll see an improvement.

dave_benn · October 14, 2012

I'll try to keep it around 60 on the ride home, we leave in the am. Also I live in the northeast were the minimum speed it +10 what the sign says.

Blue2500CC · October 15, 2012

Sounds alright at 70mph. Keep it at 60 the whole time and you'll see an improvement.

+1!!!

We have a 25' Yellowstone weighing about 6300+lbs (depends on where/ how long we are going) and get anywhere from 8-10mpg (65-70mph). Best I got was when I knew we were about 45 minutes ahead of some friends so I dropped in behind a semi (at a safe distance, but close enough to see a difference!) for a while. Got about 10.5mpg that trip out.

Have a safe trip back!

Chris

502ci · October 15, 2012

2006 5.3 with a 3.42 gears towing 8,000 lbs. on level ground I get 10.5. Traveled through the mountains and got between 9 and 10. I thought it would get much worse but was quite happy with it.

dave_benn · October 15, 2012

My dad has a '99 1 ton duelly with a 454 and 4.10 gears and he sees 7-8 towing a 10,000# 5th wheel. I thought I would be getting better than that. At this point I really regret not getting the 3/4 ton, atleast I would expect the horrible mileage.

travis73 · October 15, 2012

I get around 12-13mpg towing my camper but it only weighs about 5ooo lbs,sounds about right going 70mph,at 55-60mph you should do much better.

dave_benn · October 16, 2012

I did the actual calculations when i got home, I got 7.1 mpg there and 8.7 on the way home. I drove 60-65 home but i was also driving out of the mountains. One thing me and the wife thought of was my tires are probably killing the milage, I have 295 nitto a/t's. I would assume if i had stock tires it would be about 2 mpg's better.

latreille89 · October 16, 2012

Yeah there's your problem...

Capt.D · October 16, 2012

Isn't 3:42's a bit of a high gear for a 5.3.....i'd think 3:73 at a minimum if your pulling......

Sent from my Motorola Xyboard

music · October 16, 2012

~10 to 11 mpg is typical w/ a 5.3 @ 60 to 65 mph w/ that size camper. I've towed our 7k lb camper (loaded weight) over many miles, and that's the range I see. Those 295 tires certainly don't help, and I'd also make sure the camper tires are *fully* inflated.

dave_benn · October 16, 2012

The trailer tires were inflated to 45 #'s. I was thinking that 3.73's would be much better too, if i did a gears swap do you think it would be worth it, maybe it would hold 5th gear better. It seems to like to run in 4th alot in the hills, if its flat it will run in 5th till you get any kind of a hill.

music · October 16, 2012

I personally wouldn't spend money on gears, but I don't tow the camper often enough to worry about that small a difference (4th vs 5th). If I were planning another tow trip out west, then steeper gears may be worth the cost, but I made it over 10,000 feet w/ what I have, and really didn't have issues except in 40 to 60 mph head/cross winds of Texas (bad wind storms). Average for that trip was ~10.7 mpg, with the average for towing estimated at 10 mpg. We had *very* little tail wind, and lots of head wind. I kept it to 60/65, except in those crazy TX winds. I dropped to 50 mph for a day, and was dropping to 2nd gear on flat ground to hold that speed sometimes. Crazy!

As for the tires, put them at the full 50 psi, or even a few lbs over. Trailer tires tend to not hold up well, so you want all the pressure it allows. At 7200 lbs, you're pushing the tire rating at full 50 psi (assuming load range C).

dave_benn · October 17, 2012

Ill try inflating them for the next trip, we wont be doing anymore trips until next year but i will keep it in mind.

CKNSLS · October 25, 2012

MPG while towing varies greatly depending on speed, terrain, wind direction, etc. The best you can hope for while towing is 10 to 11. There is no minimum one can guess.....there are too many variables, but 7 mpg depending on factors is not out of the question. A gear change will be of very little benefit from a mpg stand point.

The last time I looked the minimum inflation for trailer tires was 50 pounds. BTW-if they are ST tires THEY ARE NOT RATED FOR 65 MPH FOR PROLONGED PERIODS.

ALSO, THE HIGHER THE SPEEDS WHEN TOWING WILL DECREASE YOUR MPG. IF YOU KEEP YOUR TRAILER AT the LEGAL SPEED FOR TOWING IT WILL GET BETTER MPG.