I dont know what i was expecting. I pulled my boat down to Marathon in the Florida keys last week. Its about 500 miles both ways. My boat is not all that big but it catches alot of wind. It has always given most gas trucks a hard time for some reason. It just pulls heavy. I dont think the whole boat motor and trailer would weigh more than 4,000 pounds. I got about 10.5 hand calculated with it, pulling around 70mph. I will say it had no problem keeping its speed with the cruise on even up our moderate little hills. The truck did great i just thought i might get around 13mpg with it. here is the boat.[IMG][/IMG]

 

how many miles? and get an xzt for a little more mpgs

brett

 

My truck only gets 11mpg pulling my 30' enclosed trailer empty (4500lb). It drops to 9.5 - 10 mpg when it's loaded(10-12,000lb). It sure pulls it easily though. I think if I could slow down to 55 mph it would jump way up but when I have hundreds of miles to drive it's just not an option for me.....

 

I drove from Wilmington NC to Albany NY last week to pick up a 29’ 5200 lb travel trailer. I got 19.15 hand calculated on the 1064-mile trip up empty and 11.21 hand calculated on the 1017-mile return trip towing. I was a little surprised at such a big drop in mileage towing.

 

Well how hard do you mash the throttle to get rolling? Pulling my 48' flatbed car hauler 7300lbs empty grabbing all kinds of wind I can still get about 13-14 hand calculated. I pulled a new crownline boat double axle trailer from texas to Northern Cali it was around 7,000lbs and I got 16 almost the whole way. I didnt drop till I got in the mountains.

 

I just did a 700 mile trip with my 9000lb fiver. Got 10.5 going and 10.7 back. I am running the xzt too. First time I checked it in a few months. Last time I checked the mpg was a trip in similar terain. Got 12.5-13.5. These figures were hand calculated also. I change my fuel filter with oil every 5000 miles and keep air filter clean also. Anyway, I was sort of disappointed also.
Wayne

 

Seems kinda low for such a light boat. I think the T-top and bow are big wind restrictions though.

For comparisons sake, I get about 14-15mpg towing a 6k load which consists of a rockcrawler on an open-deck trailer. Has some wind restriction, but nothing like a boat with a T-top. This is towing through the mountains on Rt. 6 though.

 

MPG is all about load, which increases dramatically when you're pulling a barn door behind you.

It's like trying to ride a bicycle with a parachute on

The best way to get good towing MPG is to keep the speed under 60 MPH - that's the speed at which aerodynamic forces really begin to take their toll.

 

I get 14mpg pulling a 4500 pound travel trailer.

 

Do you always tow with the sun shade on?
I am shocked you did not tear it up.
That thing has to be acting as a parachute.

 

Seems a little low not real bad considering the drag. Look at miles on truck, should have 15k minimum. Also look at fuel filter and air filter. Probably a combination of them all. I use my EGT to help me keep my foot lighter on the pedal.

 

Those T-tops are exactly removable. It's a big job to redo the canvas too. If they don't fly off at 60mph on the water I think you're good on the highway.

It does act as a parachute though. One thing you can try is setting the tongue lower next time you tow it. The difference in angle might be enough to deflect the air over the T-top instead of under it.

 

I just pulled a 6000 box trailer, double axle about 500 miles. Some pretty good grades mixed in too. I got 12.7 hand calculated. No trouble @ 70. I think if I would have done 60 I could have gotten better mileage but I would have went crazy with screaming kids and nagging wife.

 

x2-- At about 40 mph, you've overcome most inertial and mechanical resistance and that is when air resistance comes into play and also when the tires' rolling resistance and tread friction starts to matter a lot too. (a tire will wear out nearly 40% faster at 70 mph than at 55 mph [source: national highway safety and transportaton] think about it) As your speed increases that wind resistance increases exponentially and becomes a much bigger force than just weight. Slow down some and you will see better results.

 

FWIW -- I get 12-13 on flat hwy, 60 mph towing my 8-9k TT.