Which RV setup gets the best mileage?

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

geobet

Junior Member
Joined
Sep 26, 2019
Posts
1
Reaction score
1
Location
North Central Florida
Ram Year
2017
Engine
6.7 Cummins
I know, loaded question. But, my 2017 3500 dually hauling a 14,000# 5er gets decent mileage - around 11-13 mpg, but curious as to what I could expect with the same truck with my 5th wheel vs hauling a truck camper at roughly 3000#. Anyone with experience feel free to share. Best of the new year to all.
 

Brandon-w

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 2, 2019
Posts
3,256
Reaction score
4,938
Location
Yukon
Ram Year
2015 Ram 1500
Engine
6.4
@RVGuy may be able To clarify this a bit more than I can.
 

RVGuy

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2019
Posts
356
Reaction score
548
Location
Alberta, Canada
Ram Year
2015
Engine
Hemi 5.7
You'd be slightly better on a slide in truck camper mileage wise, but not by much. Our shop truck does about the same with either, it's the wind resistance that burns up fuel and both have about the same frontal area behind your truck. Only benefit to the camper is you're less affected by side winds and there's no rolling resistance.
 

MADDOG

Not RamForum Staff
Supporting Member
Military
Joined
Dec 26, 2011
Posts
14,443
Reaction score
9,877
Location
Arizona
The weight added to your payload for those two options is pretty close so I see no benefit with one over the other in that category.

As @RVGuy said it's all about wind resistance and the trailer is can be a bit more aerodynamically efficient depending on the front cap design.
 

mtofell

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 18, 2014
Posts
2,631
Reaction score
2,269
Ram Year
2014
Engine
Hemi 6.4
I get the wind resistance thing but are you guys saying there is little or no difference with roughly an 11,000# weight "loss"?? I think I may need to go revisit my college physics books because I must have missed something.
 

RVGuy

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2019
Posts
356
Reaction score
548
Location
Alberta, Canada
Ram Year
2015
Engine
Hemi 5.7
I get the wind resistance thing but are you guys saying there is little or no difference with roughly an 11,000# weight "loss"?? I think I may need to go revisit my college physics books because I must have missed something.
You'll use less power to get it moving but once everything is rolling essentially the main thing slowing your momentum is wind resistance, especially with a diesel.
 

huntergreen

Senior Member
Military
Joined
Jan 5, 2011
Posts
12,187
Reaction score
25,933
Ram Year
2016
Engine
hemi 5.7
A pop up would yield,the smallest hit to mpg.
 

mtofell

Senior Member
Joined
Mar 18, 2014
Posts
2,631
Reaction score
2,269
Ram Year
2014
Engine
Hemi 6.4
You'll use less power to get it moving but once everything is rolling essentially the main thing slowing your momentum is wind resistance, especially with a diesel.

The main thing is wind resistance but not the only thing. Can we assume the frontal area and wind resistance is the same? If so, that cancels those out so you are left with the amount of work necessary to move the load over a given terrain. How much easier is it to haul 3000# up and over a 2000' mountain pass than 14,000#? 14,000# takes A LOT more energy, fuel or whatever.

There are almost too many variables to do an accurate calculation so the best we could do is just reports of people's experiences (LOL... I know, that is what OP was asking for :))

I was surprised by the small difference going from a 7500# TT to a 11,000# 5th wheel made (that was roughly 1-2 mpgs). I have to think the 11,000# difference is pretty substantial. With a modern diesel truck I'd guess it at around 3 mpg. Again, there will be a lot of variation depending on speed and terrain.
 

stevenP

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2014
Posts
641
Reaction score
621
Location
northern Indiana
Ram Year
2022 2500 Longhorn
Engine
6.7L Cummins
I have had three different fifith wheels with this same truck. I definitely believe the frontal area is the major factor, at least around here where I live (no mountains). That frontal area is like dragging a brick wall thru the air. My first fiver was around 9K, and now my current is 15K pounds. Honestly the mileage didnt seem to swing hardly at all.

All of my towing is done in the 60-65mph range. Plus when I tow I am not doing jack rabbit starts. The weight is more of a factor I notice during acceleration and braking. I use the DIC boost gauge as my load factor. When towing I am in boost all the time. Not towing...hardly ever see the boost gauge move.
 

RVGuy

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2019
Posts
356
Reaction score
548
Location
Alberta, Canada
Ram Year
2015
Engine
Hemi 5.7
The main thing is wind resistance but not the only thing. Can we assume the frontal area and wind resistance is the same? If so, that cancels those out so you are left with the amount of work necessary to move the load over a given terrain. How much easier is it to haul 3000# up and over a 2000' mountain pass than 14,000#? 14,000# takes A LOT more energy, fuel or whatever.

There are almost too many variables to do an accurate calculation so the best we could do is just reports of people's experiences (LOL... I know, that is what OP was asking for :))

I was surprised by the small difference going from a 7500# TT to a 11,000# 5th wheel made (that was roughly 1-2 mpgs). I have to think the 11,000# difference is pretty substantial. With a modern diesel truck I'd guess it at around 3 mpg. Again, there will be a lot of variation depending on speed and terrain.
Yup, and like I said I don't see a huge difference between towing 5th wheels at work compared to truck campers. I work for an RV dealership and have towed a variety of travel trailers, 5th wheels, and truck campers with the same Ram 3500. By far the biggest factor in mileage seems to be the frontal area behind the truck. We have some trailers that are barely taller and are more narrow than the truck, so they add no frontal area and the mileage is very similar to riding empty, these trailers weigh around 3500lbs. We have bumper pulls that are wider and taller than the truck, but shorter than a 5th wheel obviously, and weigh 12,000lbs but see better mileage than the 8000lbs 5th wheels because they have way less frontal area. Mileage between the 8000lbs and 12000lbs 5th wheels doesn't change much, and is very similar to all our truck campers regardless of weight.
But this is all flat land towing, I think you'd see a much larger difference in mileage once hills and mountains are thrown into the equation.
 

crash68

ACME product engineer
Staff member
Administrator
Supporting Member
Joined
Mar 20, 2016
Posts
10,703
Reaction score
16,709
Ram Year
2015
Engine
3.0 EcoDiesel
I get the wind resistance thing but are you guys saying there is little or no difference with roughly an 11,000# weight "loss"?? I think I may need to go revisit my college physics books because I must have missed something.
The wind really plays havoc wreck compared to weight. I have three trailers that I tow, a 28' enclosed that's a good 8K loaded I'll get somewhere in the 14-15 mpg range. A 24' enclosed car hauler which is slightly taller than the 28, with that empty weighing about 3k lbs I get in the 15-16 mpg range. Coming home from up in the Thumb on an awfully windy day with the 24' the logs dropped to about 12. Now with the boat which is about 3200 lbs I get about 20 mpg. I tow the same speed with all of them, about 65 and the roads are about the same.
 

Random_Walk

...what's this bolt do? *plink* ...oh.
Military
Joined
Jul 5, 2018
Posts
1,168
Reaction score
2,062
Location
Out
Ram Year
2017 QC 4WD SLT
Engine
Pentastar 3.6
I drive a six-banger with 3.21 gearing... what's this mpg when towing thing you keep talking about? ;)
 

RamClassic LI

Member
Joined
Apr 28, 2019
Posts
30
Reaction score
43
Location
Long Island
Ram Year
2019
Engine
3.6
I drive a six-banger with 3.21 gearing... what's this mpg when towing thing you keep talking about? ;)
I towed my trailer with the Pentastar v6, 4500lb travel trailer and averaged almost 11mpg. The v6 is a very efficient motor at high rpm’s. It does very well in the mpg department when towing.

1979A307-EFF0-46D4-92C1-CC61DC7EAE18.jpeg
 

Random_Walk

...what's this bolt do? *plink* ...oh.
Military
Joined
Jul 5, 2018
Posts
1,168
Reaction score
2,062
Location
Out
Ram Year
2017 QC 4WD SLT
Engine
Pentastar 3.6
I towed my trailer with the Pentastar v6, 4500lb travel trailer and averaged almost 11mpg. The v6 is a very efficient motor at high rpm’s. It does very well in the mpg department when towing.

I was half-joking more than anything else, but I am curious - what gear ratio do you have? My ghetto 3.21 (not 3.55, but 3.21) gearing limits me to 4400 lbs max tow, which is okay since I don't drag anything heavier than 4000 lbs, but I'm lucky to get 8 mpg when I do it (compared to 22 mpg unladen nowadays). Certainly part of that is the fairly mountainous terrain I live in, and it's way better than trucks I've owned in the past under similar conditions, but I still find it a bit of a surprise.



Speaking of trailers, the missus was bugging me about getting a TT this year, but likely something 16-22' long, maybe 2500-3500 dry weight? Anyrate, I noticed that yours has a tip-out up front... does that hold up okay warmth-wise when the temperatures get cold out?
 

RamClassic LI

Member
Joined
Apr 28, 2019
Posts
30
Reaction score
43
Location
Long Island
Ram Year
2019
Engine
3.6
I was half-joking more than anything else, but I am curious - what gear ratio do you have? My ghetto 3.21 (not 3.55, but 3.21) gearing limits me to 4400 lbs max tow, which is okay since I don't drag anything heavier than 4000 lbs, but I'm lucky to get 8 mpg when I do it (compared to 22 mpg unladen nowadays). Certainly part of that is the fairly mountainous terrain I live in, and it's way better than trucks I've owned in the past under similar conditions, but I still find it a bit of a surprise.



Speaking of trailers, the missus was bugging me about getting a TT this year, but likely something 16-22' long, maybe 2500-3500 dry weight? Anyrate, I noticed that yours has a tip-out up front... does that hold up okay warmth-wise when the temperatures get cold out?

we recently just upgraded to that trailer in the picture. Our previous trailer was also a hybrid but much smaller and lighter. When deciding on the trailer pictured our Towing Vehicle specs came up multiple times to ensure we had a safe setup. My Ram is a lease and it indeed has the 3.21 gear ratio so yes we are a couple hundred pounds above the tow rating. I consulted with my dealer and other towing precessional and they all mentioned that as long as I stay under my gvwr and front and rear axle ratings that I will be fine. I fined tuned my wdh and it tows very well with no issues going up or down hills with my current gear setup. We did upgrade my wife’s Jeep to a Durango RT which looks like to be our primary tow vehicle now since it accommodates my family and dog much better then the Ram.

the trailer is a hybrid, both front and rear come out to tent ends. No issues with the heat, we usually leave a ceramic heater and that’s more than enough heat for us. We do not need to utilize our camper heater at all. But during heavy rain storms the tent ends get veryyyy loud lol.
Overall we love the hybrid!
 

sleboom

Junior Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2017
Posts
25
Reaction score
23
Location
Idaho
Ram Year
2009
Engine
5.7 Hemi
When towing a 4000# pontoon boat (wt is for boat, motor & trailer) on level ground my mileage goes from 19 to 8-9 mpg. The highest part of the boat is maybe 1' higher than the truck. Truck is a 2009 1500 with the Hemi.

Wind resistance is a BIG deal but weight also brings down your mileage. If I towed more I would get a diesel. And for RVing I would definitely get one.
 

Frank4711

Junior Member
Supporting Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2019
Posts
18
Reaction score
8
Location
North Port Fl
Ram Year
2019
Engine
6.7 Cummins
when towing I never mention efficiency and mpg at same time ...
 

PNW-Ram

Member
Joined
Jan 6, 2018
Posts
91
Reaction score
52
Location
SouthWestern Oregon
Ram Year
2017
Engine
CTD 6.7
I know, loaded question. But, my 2017 3500 dually hauling a 14,000# 5er gets decent mileage - around 11-13 mpg, but curious as to what I could expect with the same truck with my 5th wheel vs hauling a truck camper at roughly 3000#. Anyone with experience feel free to share. Best of the new year to all.

I've got a 10 slide in cabover I put in my 4x4 3500 SRW CTD. I have 3.73s (or whatever the standard rear end is) not 4.10s

When I'm on the freeway, trying to keep it around 70-75, I'll get 13-15. If there's a headwind, it'll drop to 13 and I'll drop my speed. The best I ever did was 17 (I also checked my mileage with a calculator), while on the coast in Northern California, on slower roads. I was going 45-50 at a fairly constant throttle most of the time. I was shocked.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
194,925
Posts
2,864,171
Members
155,296
Latest member
VLG6963
Top