mpg??

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DTM

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Oct 16, 2015
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Could you please post your mpg and type of fuel and length and type of motor home.......we are looking to purchase an used class A and some of the information I am getting from sellers seems a little inflated....Thanks so much!!!!
 
Just about all motor homes get around 8 mpg. The length has nothing to do with mpg. The front of a motor home presents drag and that is the most important factor besides speed. Weight, length, type of RV, type of fuel don't enter into the discussion. Yep, sellers will lie to sell their motor home.
 
Gas or diesel?

Just about all motor homes get around 8 mpg.
My Beaver got 5-6 (525HP, 50K lbs), My Ventana gets 7-9, depending on conditions, such as wind, hills, traffic speeds. Few will get much over 9, most will do 6.5 or more most of the time. So Tom hit a good average, I'd say. Unless you drive it in town a lot, then the stop and go can kill mileage- the Beaver probably wouldn't do more than 2-3 mpg in stop and go operation.
 
Is this a gas or diesel motorhome, and I'd like to know something about the age, make, and chassis. MPG does vary, with old gas coaches getting 6-6.5 MPG Newer diesels get 8-9 MPG. It also depends on the loaded weight of the coach and if towing something and the towed weight.
 
we were told a 36' gas class gets between 7-13 mpg, with an average of 9 mpg.............
a 38.6 diesel gets 7-7.5 mpg

per sellers



 
2001 Fleetwood Southwind, 35 R(35 feet),  F53 chassis, V10, weight 20500 #, normally drive 60-65, getting about 7mpg.

Previous was a 28 foot 1999 Coachmen Mirada, P-32 chassis, 454, weight usually about 15000 to 15500# (Max was 16500#) ... (ran out of room before running out of weight).  Kept detailed numbers and averaged 9.6 over maybe 30,000 miles or more.  Both are gas engines.

If we're talking about carrying say 100 gallons of water, about 800 pounds, I don't feel it makes much difference and the Mirada actually rode better with a full tank.  I'd rather have the water.  As SeilerBird said it's more a function of that high drag square front end and speed.

Howard
 
38 foot pusher, 7.5.


I'd be amazed if a 36' gas got 9, let alone 13.
 
FWIW our 1985 29 foot gas Pace Arrow on a Chevy chassis got 6.5 MPG solo and 6.0 towing a boat or SUV.

we were told a 36' gas class gets between 7-13 mpg, with an average of 9 mpg.............a 38.6 diesel gets 7-7.5 mpg

Please answer my questions:

"Is this a gas or diesel motorhome, and I'd like to know something about the age, make, and chassis. MPG does vary, with old gas coaches getting 6-6.5 MPG Newer diesels get 8-9 MPG. It also depends on the loaded weight of the coach and if towing something and the towed weight."
 
DTM said:
Could you please post your mpg and type of fuel and length and type of motor home.......we are looking to purchase an used class A and some of the information I am getting from sellers seems a little inflated....Thanks so much!!!!
Lots of good answers so far. As you haven't answered the questions asked I can't give a better answer. Do a search of the forums this is a very common thread.
Bill
 
There are a lot of factors that can make your mileage vary, including how you drive the rig and at what speed. I have a 39' Winnebago Adventurer gasser. When I got it, it averaged 8.0 on flat ground in Florida doing 60 mph and only got worse in city or mountain traffic all the way down to about 6.0. Every mph faster that I drove cost me a tenth of a mpg. I got it tuned up and expected better mileage, but couldn't make a comparison because I began towing my car behind it and was only getting about 6.5 on flat ground.

A few weeks ago, getting the coach ready for the vacation I am presently on, I had to get the entire cab a/c system replaced. As the mechanic charged me $1300 to fix it, he told me ironically that I should think about using the generator and coach a/c instead of the cab a/c because I would get better mileage since the cab a/c takes about 25hp from the engine. I have tried it while on the road this time and have noticed a drastic difference. Averaging 62 mph and using the cruise control every chance I get when not in mountains, I am getting between 7.8 and 8.6 per the coach's computer. Since the generator takes about ? gal per hour, the actual mileage calculated from fill up to fill up is about 7 mpg, where last year running the cab a/c, I averaged about 5.5. And this is with towing my car. I'm quite pleased with the results of my mechanic's suggestion.
 
2010 33' Winnebago Vista 32K on a  2009 Ford F53 V10 gas chassis  and 10,000 miles on the odometer --  Just completed a 2000 mile round trip from Northern NY to NW South Carolina. Mostly Interstate driving at ~62MPH flat towing a 3800 lb. toad.
Average for the trip was 6.7 mpg.  Best was one tank at 6.9 mpg.
Weight, speed and tow will make a difference.  We are planning a couple short outings with no toad - will see the difference.
 
2014 30 ft. Class C, Ford V10, CRV toad.  7.1 was my worst and average about 7.4.  About 1/2 of my miles are interstate between 60 and 65, the other 1/2 of the miles are state roads and the like.
 
Just to provide a little perspective consider that:

a. Aerodynamic drag is, on the open road, 80% plus of total drag.

b. The difference in drag between 55 mph and 70 mph is about 100% higher at 70.

You control the mileage! ;D

Ernie

 
[quote author=Ernie n Tara]The difference in drag between 55 mph and 70 mph is about 100% higher at 70. You control the mileage![/quote]

Right on Ernie. We see a significant difference in mpg when we re-enter California with its 55mph speed limit for a vehicle towing. (We tow a Suburban behind the motorhome).
 
Since the generator takes about ? gal per hour, the actual mileage calculated from fill up to fill up is about 7 mpg, where last year running the cab a/c, I averaged about 5.5. And this is with towing my car. I'm quite pleased with the results of my mechanic's suggestion.

I've always used a gallon an hour as a rule of thumb.


2013 Winnebago Adventurer 37F we avg 7.5 mpg whether towing our Honda Fit or not.
 
Class C in sig, V-10 getting 7.9-8.0 so far. 65 mph max on interstates, hand calculated figures, no guessing gauge on this coach.
 
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