Hauling MPG worse than BAD!
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Joined: Oct 2006
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From: Great State of Georgia
Hauling MPG worse than BAD!
I took a load of 350 square bale to Huntsville, AL (385+- miles from here)
with an average of 5.3 mpg loaded.
Height: 12' +
Width: 96"+-
Length: 40'
Shift points were @ 2200rpm
Keeping a close eye on the speed keeping it around 70 mph
I thought that my K&N was dirty but when I put my paper filter back in there was little difference in power and empty fuel milage was only around 10 mpg
I know wind resistance and weight were a major factor in low fuel milage but I have never had it below 8-10 mpg but 5 is a little too low
What am I doing wrong?
Is my cat that restrictive?
Poor fuel quality?
Driver error?
What's going on ???????????
with an average of 5.3 mpg loaded.
Height: 12' +
Width: 96"+-
Length: 40'
Shift points were @ 2200rpm
Keeping a close eye on the speed keeping it around 70 mph
I thought that my K&N was dirty but when I put my paper filter back in there was little difference in power and empty fuel milage was only around 10 mpg
I know wind resistance and weight were a major factor in low fuel milage but I have never had it below 8-10 mpg but 5 is a little too low
What am I doing wrong?
Is my cat that restrictive?
Poor fuel quality?
Driver error?
What's going on ???????????
Banned
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 854
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From: Manassas, VA
I took a load of 350 square bale to Huntsville, AL (385+- miles from here)
with an average of 5.3 mpg loaded.
Height: 12' +
Width: 96"+-
Length: 40'
Shift points were @ 2200rpm
Keeping a close eye on the speed keeping it around 70 mph
I thought that my K&N was dirty but when I put my paper filter back in there was little difference in power and empty fuel milage was only around 10 mpg
I know wind resistance and weight were a major factor in low fuel milage but I have never had it below 8-10 mpg but 5 is a little too low
What am I doing wrong?
Is my cat that restrictive?
Poor fuel quality?
Driver error?
What's going on ???????????
with an average of 5.3 mpg loaded.
Height: 12' +
Width: 96"+-
Length: 40'
Shift points were @ 2200rpm
Keeping a close eye on the speed keeping it around 70 mph
I thought that my K&N was dirty but when I put my paper filter back in there was little difference in power and empty fuel milage was only around 10 mpg
I know wind resistance and weight were a major factor in low fuel milage but I have never had it below 8-10 mpg but 5 is a little too low
What am I doing wrong?
Is my cat that restrictive?
Poor fuel quality?
Driver error?
What's going on ???????????
1.) Towing capacity for a 3500 is "legally" 16,350lbs...I went ahead and factored each square bail as being approx. 60lbs (most weigh between 50 and 70 depending on how wet the hay was when bailed)...and at 350 bails, that comes to approx 21K...already 4,650lbs over your rating...and 1k pounds over your trailer's 10 ton rating...so no offense, but you're being pretty unsafe traveling 385+/- miles with that much of an overload. Oh yeah, almost forgot that your 10 ton rated, 40' long trailer probably weighs 6k puonds at a minimum, putting your load weight at approx 27k, now 10650lbs over your trucks "legal" rating.
2.) you already factored in wind and weight...but that is where your poor mileage is coming from. Your truck weighs approx 7800lbs, putting your gross weight at nearly 35,000lbs...WAY overloaded man. I get roughly 12-13 miles per gallon with only 7k behind my truck...do you really expect to get 10-11 with 27K behind your heavier truck?
Just my two cents...
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Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 7,707
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From: Birmingham, Alabama
$oC@L CTD, his profile shows a 3500 so that's a plus but it's still allot of weight. I was a little more generous than you on the load, only figured 50# per bail so 17,500 for the load. Another 7k for the trailer and 7k for the truck, so 31,500 total. Trying to push that at 70 mph is going to require allot of fuel. I'm betting he didn't see much interstate time so all-in-all, fuel mileage probably isn't that out of line.
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 294
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From: Great State of Georgia
3500 yes drw10 ton yes
almost all interstate 16,75,20,to 65
not the first time I have made this trip with the same load and got 12-15 mpg
but for some reason this trip ate my lunch on fuel
"Leagally" : I am hauling farm comodities so as long as I don't get rediculous I'm ok as far as DOT goes.
If I keep it under 2k rpm I would be in and out of gears something CRAZY (done tried it)
this is my third 3500 dodge diesel and the poorest fuel milage of any of them\
Heck I could be driving dacab hauling more and getting the same or better milage.
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From: Northern VA
Ten tons huh? With a 20,000 pound trailer, assuming 25% pin weight, you've busted your axle rating by a wide margin, so no - you're not DOT compliant.
All legalities and safety issues aside, headwind was probably the culprit for your last trip if you got better mileage on the same run at other times.
All legalities and safety issues aside, headwind was probably the culprit for your last trip if you got better mileage on the same run at other times.
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,198
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From: Used to be missoula, montana: Now in Sonoma County California
Ok, I am going to go out on a limb here and assume that you are towing with a 3500 and not a 2500...right off the bat, these are my observations:
1.) Towing capacity for a 3500 is "legally" 16,350lbs...I went ahead and factored each square bail as being approx. 60lbs (most weigh between 50 and 70 depending on how wet the hay was when bailed)...and at 350 bails, that comes to approx 21K...already 4,650lbs over your rating...and 1k pounds over your trailer's 10 ton rating...so no offense, but you're being pretty unsafe traveling 385+/- miles with that much of an overload. Oh yeah, almost forgot that your 10 ton rated, 40' long trailer probably weighs 6k puonds at a minimum, putting your load weight at approx 27k, now 10650lbs over your trucks "legal" rating.
2.) you already factored in wind and weight...but that is where your poor mileage is coming from. Your truck weighs approx 7800lbs, putting your gross weight at nearly 35,000lbs...WAY overloaded man. I get roughly 12-13 miles per gallon with only 7k behind my truck...do you really expect to get 10-11 with 27K behind your heavier truck?
Just my two cents...
1.) Towing capacity for a 3500 is "legally" 16,350lbs...I went ahead and factored each square bail as being approx. 60lbs (most weigh between 50 and 70 depending on how wet the hay was when bailed)...and at 350 bails, that comes to approx 21K...already 4,650lbs over your rating...and 1k pounds over your trailer's 10 ton rating...so no offense, but you're being pretty unsafe traveling 385+/- miles with that much of an overload. Oh yeah, almost forgot that your 10 ton rated, 40' long trailer probably weighs 6k puonds at a minimum, putting your load weight at approx 27k, now 10650lbs over your trucks "legal" rating.
2.) you already factored in wind and weight...but that is where your poor mileage is coming from. Your truck weighs approx 7800lbs, putting your gross weight at nearly 35,000lbs...WAY overloaded man. I get roughly 12-13 miles per gallon with only 7k behind my truck...do you really expect to get 10-11 with 27K behind your heavier truck?
Just my two cents...
GCVW from the manufacturer is a guideline not a legal benchmark. This has been proven in the court room as well as on the internet.
My last 4 dodges all hauled between 26000-34000 LEGALLY over Scales regularly inspected and across all of the lower 48 states mostly in the western 12, depending on the states in some there were two trailers hence the higher weight. With 0 Driver fault accidents a hair under 1.3 million combined miles im pretty sure if i was breaking the law someone would have pointed it out to me. And if someone brings up the "if you kill someone" discussion been there at done that, was in passenger seat team driving through utah when the car beside us lost control hit the inside gaurd rail got in front of us and went under the driverside front end at 65mph on I 15. The surviving family of that individual had thier lawyers, insurance company and inspectors all over our truck looking for something to fault us on, because the subject vehicle came under the front end.......truck was in impound for 3 months while they sorted things out. we were at max legal a hair under 34k. not a tire was over wieght and we were under our braking capacity and under our licensed. two years and countless inspections later we were never cited for anything not even a log book violation.
On the note of mileage The worst i ever got was 9mpg out of a 12v cummins in a 40mph head wind with horse trailers stacked up on the deck of my GN turned around so they were working like parachutes.
so 5-6 i definately think something is wrong. my 03 with a 24k lbs load up and over donner summit at 12' high enclosed container got 11.4 mpg and i was flat in it going up that grade frome sea level to the summit at 8000 ft and then up emigrant in Nevada so i definately would be checing fuel pressure, boost levels, comparible to your EGT's. if boost is low when under load check for torn intercooler boots. then id check rail pressure and injectors.
Cheers
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Posts: 854
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From: Manassas, VA
GCVW from the manufacturer is a guideline not a legal benchmark. This has been proven in the court room as well as on the internet.
My last 4 dodges all hauled between 26000-34000 LEGALLY over Scales regularly inspected and across all of the lower 48 states mostly in the western 12, depending on the states in some there were two trailers hence the higher weight. With 0 Driver fault accidents a hair under 1.3 million combined miles im pretty sure if i was breaking the law someone would have pointed it out to me. And if someone brings up the "if you kill someone" discussion been there at done that, was in passenger seat team driving through utah when the car beside us lost control hit the inside gaurd rail got in front of us and went under the driverside front end at 65mph on I 15. The surviving family of that individual had thier lawyers, insurance company and inspectors all over our truck looking for something to fault us on, because the subject vehicle came under the front end.......truck was in impound for 3 months while they sorted things out. we were at max legal a hair under 34k. not a tire was over wieght and we were under our braking capacity and under our licensed. two years and countless inspections later we were never cited for anything not even a log book violation.
On the note of mileage The worst i ever got was 9mpg out of a 12v cummins in a 40mph head wind with horse trailers stacked up on the deck of my GN turned around so they were working like parachutes.
so 5-6 i definately think something is wrong. my 03 with a 24k lbs load up and over donner summit at 12' high enclosed container got 11.4 mpg and i was flat in it going up that grade frome sea level to the summit at 8000 ft and then up emigrant in Nevada so i definately would be checing fuel pressure, boost levels, comparible to your EGT's. if boost is low when under load check for torn intercooler boots. then id check rail pressure and injectors.
Cheers
My last 4 dodges all hauled between 26000-34000 LEGALLY over Scales regularly inspected and across all of the lower 48 states mostly in the western 12, depending on the states in some there were two trailers hence the higher weight. With 0 Driver fault accidents a hair under 1.3 million combined miles im pretty sure if i was breaking the law someone would have pointed it out to me. And if someone brings up the "if you kill someone" discussion been there at done that, was in passenger seat team driving through utah when the car beside us lost control hit the inside gaurd rail got in front of us and went under the driverside front end at 65mph on I 15. The surviving family of that individual had thier lawyers, insurance company and inspectors all over our truck looking for something to fault us on, because the subject vehicle came under the front end.......truck was in impound for 3 months while they sorted things out. we were at max legal a hair under 34k. not a tire was over wieght and we were under our braking capacity and under our licensed. two years and countless inspections later we were never cited for anything not even a log book violation.
On the note of mileage The worst i ever got was 9mpg out of a 12v cummins in a 40mph head wind with horse trailers stacked up on the deck of my GN turned around so they were working like parachutes.
so 5-6 i definately think something is wrong. my 03 with a 24k lbs load up and over donner summit at 12' high enclosed container got 11.4 mpg and i was flat in it going up that grade frome sea level to the summit at 8000 ft and then up emigrant in Nevada so i definately would be checing fuel pressure, boost levels, comparible to your EGT's. if boost is low when under load check for torn intercooler boots. then id check rail pressure and injectors.
Cheers
I am glad that everything worked out for you in the courthouse, but don't you think that things would have been MUCH easier on you (i.e. shorter or maybe NO court time, no 3 month inspection of your tow vehicle and load) had you been driving a medium duty truck with that kind of load behind it? It would have been a "well, the driver of the car lost control and is at fault" rather than losing your work truck for a quarter of a year...
I'm really not trying to argue, just trying to figure out how folks justify pulling 25-35K with a pickup truck?
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fuel filter? nasty headwind.
i agree when your running farm plates, they usually wont mess with you if you keep it reasonable. i grossed 36k with my 97 K3500 chevy 454...triple axle stock trailer without any brakes in the winter with ice on the road and was able to run 50ish...empty trailer 5 mpg, loaded 5.5 mpg. figure that one out!
i dont think 5 mpg in a cummins is acceptable. maybe try slowing to 60 next time and see if you have much improvment. im not the weight police so i really dont care how heavy you were, just dont pull out in front of me and slow me down.
brett
i agree when your running farm plates, they usually wont mess with you if you keep it reasonable. i grossed 36k with my 97 K3500 chevy 454...triple axle stock trailer without any brakes in the winter with ice on the road and was able to run 50ish...empty trailer 5 mpg, loaded 5.5 mpg. figure that one out!
i dont think 5 mpg in a cummins is acceptable. maybe try slowing to 60 next time and see if you have much improvment. im not the weight police so i really dont care how heavy you were, just dont pull out in front of me and slow me down.
brett
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From: Knoxville, TN
not a tire was over wieght and we were under our braking capacity and under our licensed.
Thanks! Eric
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GCVW from the manufacturer is a guideline not a legal benchmark. This has been proven in the court room as well as on the internet.
My last 4 dodges all hauled between 26000-34000 LEGALLY over Scales regularly inspected and across all of the lower 48 states mostly in the western 12, depending on the states in some there were two trailers hence the higher weight. With 0 Driver fault accidents a hair under 1.3 million combined miles im pretty sure if i was breaking the law someone would have pointed it out to me. And if someone brings up the "if you kill someone" discussion been there at done that, was in passenger seat team driving through utah when the car beside us lost control hit the inside gaurd rail got in front of us and went under the driverside front end at 65mph on I 15. The surviving family of that individual had thier lawyers, insurance company and inspectors all over our truck looking for something to fault us on, because the subject vehicle came under the front end.......truck was in impound for 3 months while they sorted things out. we were at max legal a hair under 34k. not a tire was over wieght and we were under our braking capacity and under our licensed. two years and countless inspections later we were never cited for anything not even a log book violation.
On the note of mileage The worst i ever got was 9mpg out of a 12v cummins in a 40mph head wind with horse trailers stacked up on the deck of my GN turned around so they were working like parachutes.
so 5-6 i definately think something is wrong. my 03 with a 24k lbs load up and over donner summit at 12' high enclosed container got 11.4 mpg and i was flat in it going up that grade frome sea level to the summit at 8000 ft and then up emigrant in Nevada so i definately would be checing fuel pressure, boost levels, comparible to your EGT's. if boost is low when under load check for torn intercooler boots. then id check rail pressure and injectors.
Cheers
My last 4 dodges all hauled between 26000-34000 LEGALLY over Scales regularly inspected and across all of the lower 48 states mostly in the western 12, depending on the states in some there were two trailers hence the higher weight. With 0 Driver fault accidents a hair under 1.3 million combined miles im pretty sure if i was breaking the law someone would have pointed it out to me. And if someone brings up the "if you kill someone" discussion been there at done that, was in passenger seat team driving through utah when the car beside us lost control hit the inside gaurd rail got in front of us and went under the driverside front end at 65mph on I 15. The surviving family of that individual had thier lawyers, insurance company and inspectors all over our truck looking for something to fault us on, because the subject vehicle came under the front end.......truck was in impound for 3 months while they sorted things out. we were at max legal a hair under 34k. not a tire was over wieght and we were under our braking capacity and under our licensed. two years and countless inspections later we were never cited for anything not even a log book violation.
On the note of mileage The worst i ever got was 9mpg out of a 12v cummins in a 40mph head wind with horse trailers stacked up on the deck of my GN turned around so they were working like parachutes.
so 5-6 i definately think something is wrong. my 03 with a 24k lbs load up and over donner summit at 12' high enclosed container got 11.4 mpg and i was flat in it going up that grade frome sea level to the summit at 8000 ft and then up emigrant in Nevada so i definately would be checing fuel pressure, boost levels, comparible to your EGT's. if boost is low when under load check for torn intercooler boots. then id check rail pressure and injectors.
Cheers
Glad the court thing worked out for you. I love how lawyers ALWAYS try and put the blame on the other person/company no matter what happened in the accident..But that's another topic....I just got 9.9 coming back from Glamis with my 23' toyhauler, 10k loaded at 70mph. The weight of my trailer isn't what is hurting my mileage its the height of it. So 5-6mpg pulling another 20-25k doesn't seem to far off to me.
