Larger Tow Question

[Las Vegas Rambler]

Hi

I have been all over the forum and cannot find an answer, so thought I'd post the question and hope someone has some ideas. Driving a 2007 Diplomat with a 2006 Jeep Wrangler. Towing the Jeep, the mileage is around 6 - 7 mpg on the RV. Love the off road capabilities. hate the road ride. We are done with the Jeep. We would "like" to buy an f-150, Avalanche, etc or something similar with more creature comfort that can still tackle the off road runs. The question is how much impact on mileage / RV stress will an over 4500 pound tow have? Any feedback from those that pull larger tows will be appreciated. Regards, John

[Diplomat Don]

Rambler....I tow a 2007, 4 door, 4 wheel drive, Dodge Dakota that weighs in at 4500 pounds behind my Diplomat. This summer we towed it on a 2500 mile trip. We purposely slowed down (55-58) because of the summer fuel prices and averaged 8.3 mpg. The trip included big grades in California and Oregon.

Accelerating was obviously a little slower, but once the MH is rolling I hardly know it's there.

The Dakota itself gets moderate to poor mileage, but is designed to be towed.

[beaverjim]

got to throw in a thumbs up on the dakota. this is our second one. the first was a 00 4 dr, we liked it so much we bought a new 05 dakota laramie edition,lots of creature comforts with good off road capabilities. jim

[moisheh]

We tow a 2005 Tacoma that weighs almost 4500 lbs. Be very carefull using the published weights of vehicles. I bet that Avalanche will be close to 6000 lbs.

[motojavaphil]

We use an 07 H3 Hummer. Easy use, 4700lbs and needless to say it is very good off-road. Very comfortable, drives out well and costs about what a Jeep costs. Fuel economy is about what the Wrangler/Liberty delivers. It has the 5 cylinder engine that is close to the Jeep six and has given us 20 mpg although I normally see 17 mpg. Our MH gets 8.9 mpg towing it at 60 mph.
Phil

[RVRon]

Rambler,
I think your mileage is a ton lower than most of us are reporting while towing. Mostly I see 8 to 8.5 mpg here on the Monaco forum. Personally, towing an '08 LTZ Tahoe (5600 pounds, maybe more?) I'm averaging 8.0 mpg here in the East. I typically roll at around 65mph. If I cut back to 60, I get around 8.5. Unless you're running 75mph, you might want to get your diesel checked out.

[psc907]

I also pull a 4 door 4 wheel drive Dakota. It has been a very versatile vehicle. I put a topper on the bed and carry some gear there and don't have to worry about it getting wet. It weighs about 4800 lbs. I have driven the truck over many of the 4wd passes in Colorado: Black Bear, Mosquito, Hancock, Hagerman,Imogene, Hurricane, California, etc.

Like Diplomat Don said though, the V8 mileage is not good. I don't think that you would notice much difference in pulling a heavier truck over what you see with the jeep.

[SacsTC]

We also tow large..As in my sig, we tow a 2006 4-wheel Chevy Crew Cab with all amenities. Probably right at 5500 lbs. No problem. Of course, it does slow you down some on grades, but that happens no matter what you are towing. And I agree with RVRon, we also get 8-8.5 towing.

[nutensteve]

I also tow a large vehicle on occaision. I try to tow the mariner but sometimes need the pick up. I really do not see much difference in mileage but as Don mentioned earlier I feel the pick up weight going up hills. You also have to be aware of the added length when making tight turns.

[GaryKD]

I tow a 5.1K lb GMC ENVOY. For me, I notice no difference in mileage when towing or not towing (a non-mountain statement, remember I live in Florida). The GMC has all the creature comforts and rides as well as my wife's Caddy Deville.

The difference, if any, in fuel mileage between the Jeep and whatever you choose might be so small as not to be measurable.

[GatorDog]

You can take my Jeep over my dead cold body.

[Las Vegas Rambler]

THANK YOU! As I awaited responses, I was afraid that I would hear all the negatives of towing large and instead I hear good news.

I can't tell you how relieved and excited we are to know that larger vehicles won't have significant impact on RV mileage.

I will get the Cummings looked at - thank you for that feedback as well.

Next step - save the nickles and start researching.

Thanks again to everyone that has responded - I appreciate it! John

[UPS 34]

We have the Jeep 4 door. Nice ride and great for off road. Ours is an 07. If you like your jeep you will love the new 4 door jeep. We have a Honda and a Jeep and get the same mileage towing.

[WayneLee]

Ditto motojavaphil's comments about the H3. I've been towing mine for 3 years now. With my old gasser, I knew I was towing a heavy vehicle. But, with my Endeavor, I don't even know it's there!

Regarding mileage, since I have a somewhat "heavy" foot, I average in the 6's and that's going up and down California's mountains and going 70+ on interstates, 75 in Arizona.