Predicted gas mileage

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JEWRAM

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Going to be getting a 30 foot overall length travel trailer. I have a 16 ram mega cab 2500 w/ 4:10 gears and 6.4L I am towing from Haines Alaska to Portsmouth Virginia. Is there anyone that could even help me guess what I may see for fuel mileage, and any tips would be welcomed as well.
 

mtofell

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Trailer maybe weighs 7K? I'd guess 10-11 average. A lot depends on hills and how fast you drive. Flat driving 60 you could probably see 13-14. Hills and/or driving fast and it will drop quickly. When I had my TT I could see as low as 7 or 8 or as high 15.
Fuel type can also vary it a bit. Around here (Oregon) they put ethanol in the gas during the winter which kills my mileage by about 10%. Octane can also have a small impact. If I were budgeting I'd probably figure 10 and you'll be close. Variations in price as you travel can also make a big difference.

Edit - just looked at your avatar and it looks like you might have over sized tires and possibly a lift. Those will definitely impact mileage downward.
 

Bldrinker

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10-11 towing? **** I barely get 14 empty.

When I had my small trailer it was about 7500lbs.

8-9mpg
 

mtnrider

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~8 mpg give or take. Keeping your speed down is about the only thing you can do.


.
 

dhay13

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8-9 MPG. My son has a 2018 CCSB 6.4 4.10's and towed his 2018 Grand Design Imagine 2670MK from Pittsburgh to Watford City, ND and back (1500 miles each way). He got between 8 and 9 MPG. His dry weight was 6500lbs but he had about 500lbs in the truck and guessing the camper was about 7500-8000 as loaded. You might get 11-12 coasting downhill...lol.

I have the same truck as my son and towing our 9000lb boat I get about 9-9.5 MPG towing it (hand calculated) and it's more aerodynamic than a TT
 

Firetruck41

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I'd estimate 9 mpg. I've only towed a couple short trips with my 2010 2500 Mega Cab 5.7, as I got it toward the end of the summer. But in a couple hundred miles of towing, I got about 9.5 mpg. That was with a 26' trailer at about 4k lbs.
 

Gero

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My guess is 7-8. Those hemi are very thirsty under load. My general rule is you tow double the weight then you divide your epa mpg in half. It applied to my ram, 21mpg unloaded, and 10-11 mpg towing (6000lbs).
 

pacofortacos

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I can't guess but if you use the following map (zoom in for prices) for your route you can save quite a bit of $$ by picking which stations to stop at over the course of your trip. Planning ahead is the easiest but if you have internet access while driving you can do it then. We use a laptop, much easier to see.

http://www.ohiogasprices.com/Price_By_County.aspx
 

68PowerWagon

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It almost seems like once you get to a certain size trailer we all get about the same mpg. Mine is a 5th wheel that weighs 13,500 loaded & I got as low as 8 going through WV Mountains & got as high as 10 around here locally with just some small hills. 5th wheels sit high & have a lot of wind drag so you might average 1mpg better than that. Don't expect much!
 

2003F350

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Same here. I pull a 34' TT with the PW, weighs in about 7500 loaded and I get about 10 in nothing bigger than small hills if I'm running 65. Any faster or any big hills and it drops significantly. I did once get about 12, but that was at 55 on flat lands (state highway with a lot of small towns).
 
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JEWRAM

JEWRAM

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Thanks for all the info. I will expect the worst 7-8 and hope for the best 10-11. And maybe land in the middle. Now getting all the trailer gear is the next step. So
Much stuff to buy, generators and sewage hoses and blah blah blah
 

68PowerWagon

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Thanks for all the info. I will expect the worst 7-8 and hope for the best 10-11. And maybe land in the middle. Now getting all the trailer gear is the next step. So
Much stuff to buy, generators and sewage hoses and blah blah blah

The preparation list seems really daunting but it is a lot of fun once you get to go. We used to go tent camping a couple times a year. Last year we made the big decision to get a 5th wheel. The list of items needed to have a successful trip seemed to get longer & longer. I finally got to the point & said, ya know, we got by all these years with just this much stuff tent camping, so anything above & beyond that is going to be fine. Somehow that message didn't get to my wife! I swear I think we have more comfort items in the camper than we do at home!
 

mtofell

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The best part with RVing is that 98% of the stuff stays in the trailer so packing becomes pretty easy.
 

CamperMike

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The best part with RVing is that 98% of the stuff stays in the trailer so packing becomes pretty easy.
This is so true. Even with my old popup it dramatically reduced pack time for a trip... get clothes and food together, grab the kids stuff in the back of the van (at the time) and go. With the TT it should be even faster... a few more things will go in the trailer.
 

2003F350

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This is so true. Even with my old popup it dramatically reduced pack time for a trip... get clothes and food together, grab the kids stuff in the back of the van (at the time) and go. With the TT it should be even faster... a few more things will go in the trailer.

It really is true. We have dishes, bedsheets, pillows, and dog crates in the camper 100% of the time. Over the winter we take out bathroom supplies besides towels and washcloths.

Come spring, we buy all new bathroom supplies (toothpaste, brushes, mouthwash, TP, shower stuff) and pack it, check the dishes and wash if necessary (dust/dirt), and then it's clothes and food all summer.
 

kurek

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I can't guess but if you use the following map (zoom in for prices) for your route you can save quite a bit of $$ by picking which stations to stop at over the course of your trip. Planning ahead is the easiest but if you have internet access while driving you can do it then. We use a laptop, much easier to see.

The map work I do before a trip is mostly in finding the flattest route - I find that fuel prices don't vary as much as grades do and a mountain route or dense traffic have a larger impact than price per gallon.

Example doing a Phoenix-Seattle run there are four reliable year round routes a heavy truck can expect and the most fuel efficient one is the flattest one - on our class 6 truck there's better than a $150 difference in fuel receipts compared with the next best. Unfortunately weather plays a role, if it's deep winter the slow boat through California is the only guaranteed open way and that adds hours. Fuel price through CA does play a bigger factor. In theory the 55mph speed limit for trucks should save fuel but in practice it doesn't work because traffic density has you losing and reclaiming speed constantly for at least half of the state, and the grades near the top and bottom of the state eat what's left of what might have been saved.


Going to be getting a 30 foot overall length travel trailer. I have a 16 ram mega cab 2500 w/ 4:10 gears and 6.4L I am towing from Haines Alaska to Portsmouth Virginia. Is there anyone that could even help me guess what I may see for fuel mileage, and any tips would be welcomed as well.

You know this already but just reminder for the audience.. make sure all your tire changing tools, jack, spare, compressor, plugs are all well in order! That can be one of the biggest time wasters on those kind of hauls and there's nothing economical about road service.
 

2003F350

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You know this already but just reminder for the audience.. make sure all your tire changing tools, jack, spare, compressor, plugs are all well in order! That can be one of the biggest time wasters on those kind of hauls and there's nothing economical about road service.

Indeed! People think I'm crazy but I take an almost-full tool kit with me any time I'm on the road. I wouldn't be able to change a major component like an axle or an engine, but if a tire blows or an alternator fails or something, I'm covered.
 

pacofortacos

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I go across a good part of the country every year and find prices vary wildly - even in the same state.
Though this may be more true for gas vs. diesel.
Currently right now, the price for regular gas varies by $0.20 gallon within a distance of 10 miles from my home.

I agree the flattest and least congested routes are best - though I like least congested over all of them haha
 

dexter

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Going to be getting a 30 foot overall length travel trailer. I have a 16 ram mega cab 2500 w/ 4:10 gears and 6.4L I am towing from Haines Alaska to Portsmouth Virginia. Is there anyone that could even help me guess what I may see for fuel mileage, and any tips would be welcomed as well.

I have the same set up with Creekside 23rks.
You will get 9.5 mpg when towing at 60 mph
13 in city
17.5 highway at 65mph

I use Marvel mystery oil and that helps for about a .25 mpg increase.

Tips - 80 psi rear/60 psi front
MPH 60-65 max
Marvel mystery oil

You can't get away from that mpg.

You will get better mpg going west to east due to tail wind.
 
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