Quote:
Originally Posted by Mike Magee
Toyota Highlander V6. Towing my old Burro I got 14 mpg. Towing my new boxy trailer I get 12.
Floyd, I find it interesting that your Escape does so much better than the Ranger. Do you think it might be simply "luck of the draw" in getting a particular, individual vehicle that gets better fuel economy than most others? Or do you believe that any such Escape should get the same if driven the same?
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The Ranger has a 4.0L-V6
The Escape has a 2.3L-L4
That explains most of the difference.
A 2.0L Escape from pre 2005 might not do as well.
A new one with the 2.5L version of my present engine can be bought with a 6spd automatic or a 5spd manual.It might actually do better.
We have owned two Escapes 2006&2008 with about the same results.
Each was/is more sensitive to acceleration and cruising speed than the more powerful Ranger.
The Ranger is very consistent and has never seen less than 15MPG nor more than 19MPG while towing at any speed on any terrain.
The Escape(s) are about as consistent (22MPG-26MPG) but only if the speed is held below 60MPH. It drops precipitously above that speed, in fact ... I have driven a couple of tanks at 65MPH and have seen it drop below 20MPG.
On our trip to Oregon and Washington State with the trailer, we averaged 22.6 MPG over 5800miles including all the mountains and several days of driving in extreme weather. The average has been 24 on flatter terrain and even higher on individual tanks.
A recent trip to Louisiana with
no trailer, yielded a consistent 29-30MPG at 72-75MPH
The use of A/C will affect the fuel economy on nearly any vehicle, so mileage tends to be better in cooler temps because of that and cooler denser air. proper sized
tires and good air pressure are also factors.
My trailer is a front bath 13deluxe and at last weigh-in was 1950# loaded for a week on the road. I may have to weigh it again sometime since experience teaches that, like people, these things tend to gain
weight if you don't watch it. we have reduced the stuff we carry considerably over the last few years, but we have also made "improvements".
To answer your question more succinctly, yes I would expect a comparably equipped Escape to behave comparably under comparable conditions.
As I said above, I think the new 2.5L Escape might actually be optimized with the twenty extra HP supplied.
One Note; I don't think you can get a Ford supplied towing package on an Escape with a manual transmission.
A Ranger with the same 4CYL and a 5spd manual should get comparable mileage though
.