Fuel saving driving techniques

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an RV or an interest in RVing!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

Chet18013

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 5, 2005
Posts
1,861
Location
Full time in RV. Home is where we are parked
A while back Leo posted this link.

https://ohe.cat.com/cda/files/287140/7/LEGT5364.pdf

We have a 40 Beaver Marquis which weighs in at 33,200lbs and is powered by a CAT 3176, 350 hp diesel engine. We tow a 4300lb Jeep Libery diesel . We just returned from a 1356 mile trip. I fiilled up at the start and finish of the trip. The generator was run the entire time we were on the road, as well as when parked and not hooked up to power. There was a total 37 hours on the generator runtime meter at the finish.

I followed the recommendations of the CAT publication as closely as possible. I held the maximum speed to 61-62 mph, as determinded by our GPS. This speed was only exceeded when passing on about 6 occasions.  Based on past experience, I allowed 0.5 gph for generator use. The trip had sereral climbs on it and the elevtion twice ranged from 400 ft to 2100 over the route.

Our fuel use for the trip worked out to 9.62 mpg. 

I have always keep track of fuel consumption and generator hours. We did average 8.48 mpg on our 13,120 mile trip to Alaska in 2003.

This is the first trip that I have made a effort to follow the the CAT recommendations to the letter.  I think my results which were an improvement of ~1.2 mpg in fuel ecomomy have demonstrated--to my satisfaction-- that the recommendations of this publication are worth following.

Chet18013
 
Chet

Our Damon had a CAT 3126 engine with 275hp pushing a 22,000# coach. Respectible numbers but it had problems getting up our western mountains. Discussions with the Freightliner and CAT techs  develope my driving technique to improve hill climbing while running the engine cooler. It was mostly using cruise control on the climb with agressive manipulation of the gear shift selector. From that I expanded my use of the cruise control until I basically did all my driving with my foot off the pedal. I averaged 9.77 mpg over 60,000 miles.

Now with the TS; 400hp engine, 1200#/ft torque and 30,000# driving weight plus 4,200# toad, I leave the cruise control on all the time and do not do any shifting while climbing, letting the transmission do it's thing. After hearing the Cummins rep discussing fuel economy at FMCA-Minot, I drove from Minot, ND to Western Washington State in cruise and the economy mode ON, including all the mountain climbing thru the Rockies. On this coach  I have averaged 8.77 mpg over 65,000 miles and today really did good. Driving conditions were ideal, Interstate roads nearly door to door, no wind, mostly downhill, etc. I have a Silver Leaf VMpcs with reads the engine ECU and it says I averaged 10.6 mpg for the 330 miles I drove today.

I'll take that ;D ;D ;D
 
Bernie,

Interesting that our 3126 in our 28,850# GCVWR rig has averaged 9.78 MPG over 89,600 miles.
 
Ned said:
Bernie,

Interesting that our 3126 in our 28,850# GCVWR rig has averaged 9.78 MPG over 89,600 miles.

Ned

Our coaches have/had nearly identical chasses. We must drive very similar ;)

 

Forum statistics

Threads
131,749
Posts
1,384,219
Members
137,520
Latest member
jeep3501
Back
Top Bottom