More fuel efficient TV for 17' Casita

[Betty L.]

Hi,
Just wondering--We currently have a Chevy Silverado 4 door truck, '05. Nice ride, but considered the possibility of trading for something that got better gas mileage when on a trip. We currently get 14 to 16 MPG with this pair. Not too bad, I guess. But gas does keep going up. The truck gets about 20 MPG without the camper.
We have kicked around trading for something that gets better gas mileage. Car or truck. Older or newer. Maybe we should get an older truck, just a king cab, and just tow the camper, and get a car that gets higher mileage. Any one have any thoughts on a vehicle that does both, or an older truck that gets better mileage that just would be used to tow?
We like our 17'. Small enough that way. Does anyone have any suggestions, or would like to share what they pull with and the mileage they get? Or should we just be happy?
Thanks for any input!
Betty L.

[Bigfoot Mike]

Your numbers pretty much match mine; 2006 Dodge, 1 ton, 4WD, turbo diesel pulling my 17’ Casita.

I get slightly less pulling my (new to me) 25B25RQ Bigfoot.

[BobB]

Betty L,

We pulled a Casita 17 SD with a 6 cyl Jeep Grand Cherokee and got 15 mpg. I think you are doing pretty well. If you decide to swap tugs, any gas savings would probably be offset by the cost of the swap. Good luck on your decision.

[Kevin A]

We tow our 16' UHaul VT with a 2003 VW Eurovan. Without the trailer, we get 17 mpg in the city and about 21 on the highway. With the trailer, we average about 14 mpg (better with a tailwind!).

[Pete Dumbleton]

We pulled a Casita 17 SD with a 6 cyl Jeep Grand Cherokee and got 15 mpg. I think you are doing pretty well. If you decide to swap tugs, any gas savings would probably be offset by the cost of the swap. Good luck on your decision.

I totally agree. Take the number of miles you drive w/trailer, compute the number of gallons you would save by trading up to something with less consumption, multiply that by $6 per gallon and see if it's a number worth worrying about...

[Larry&Carrie]

I totally agree. Take the number of miles you drive w/trailer, compute the number of gallons you would save by trading up to something with less consumption, multiply that by $6 per gallon and see if it's a number worth worrying about...

That's about where I am at, too. Get about 19 with my El Camino w/o Scamp, and about 14-15 with. (also depenps how fast I am going... ) But, it's paid for...... Larry

[Frederick L. Simson]

Does anyone have any suggestions, or would like to share what they pull with and the mileage they get? [b]Or should we just be happy?

Our Honda Odyssey gets [b]24 mpg while driving 65 mph on the freeway when not towing.
It gets [b]18 mpg in stop-and-go city driving.

When towing our 16' Fiber Stream with the cruise control set at 55 mph, it gets [b]15-1/2 to 16 mpg.
When towing without cruise control at approximately 75 mph, it gets [b]10-1/2 to 11 mpg.





Don't worry, be Happy!

[Patrick M.]

Here's a compilation from the Casita Club. Although not listed, I think most of these are towing 17 footers. My average after 2,600 miles is now 14.0.

[Dan B]

Here's a compilation from the Casita Club. Although not listed, I think most of these are towing 17 footers. My average after 2,600 miles is now 14.0.

we averaged 14 mpg with a 99 silverado and 16 scamp SD over about 1200 miles last year and i was pleased with that. i doubt you could afford to trqade out of the gas crunch and come out ahead of the game.
on a side note iw would be very hesitant at towing my unit at over 65 mph. those dinky little tires are going awfully fast at even 65 mph.

[Byron Kinnaman]

we averaged 14 mpg with a 99 silverado and 16 scamp SD over about 1200 miles last year and i was pleased with that. i doubt you could afford to trqade out of the gas crunch and come out ahead of the game.
on a side note iw would be very hesitant at towing my unit at over 65 mph. those dinky little tires are going awfully fast at even 65 mph.

Shoot, I tow my 13' with a Dodge Dakota 4.7l and anything over 60 mph is too fast for me, not the truck. 55 mph is just about right, it's really nice to watch the traffic go by. Everybody in a hurry to go someplace, while we sit back and relax no big rush.

As for mileage about 17 to 18 mpg.

[Betty L.]

Hi All,
I do so appreciate all the fine responses! We will factor all this in. Sometimes it just helps to be told you are doing pretty well after all (?!).
Thanks so much!
Betty L.

[Loren G. Hedahl]

I used to get 19 to 20 MPG towing a 16ft Scamp at approx 60 MPH. My tow vehicle is an '84 full size Blazer with a Banks Turbo installed to wake up the 6.2 liter diesel.

Our last trip from Western Washington to Kansas City, then south to Brownsville. Texas. west to Los Angeles and back home our economy was about 2 MPG less. I've heard the new fuel has a few less BTU's per gallon, so maybe that explains it.

[Marv]

I think the secret to better fuel economy is just slow down. On one trip, I spent one entire day cruising at 60 mph instead of my normal 65. Surprisingly, the economy increased by 25 percent (from 13.5-14 to 17)! That saves about $25 per day in fuel costs. Serious money!

Plus, it was fun to sit back and watch the world go by. It only added about 40 minutes of driving time to the day. Very reasonable if you have the time.

Marv