Diesel vs Gas Engine? Better MPG When Towing??

[jonnie3]

I agree 100% with mojoe7009. I was pulling a 25 foot with a 2015 tundra. Took it to the scales and discovered I was already at my max payload before I loaded up my dogs and any gear in the back of the truck. Also, I was exceeding my maximum rear axle rating. I replaced the Toyota with a Ram 2500, although I opted for the 6.4 L hemi. Super nice truck! If you have any doubts, ask a tow truck driver what happens to a vehicle exceeding payload when they hit a pothole.

[n2916s]

Larry,
Email sent

Mike

[nickclifford]

Originally Posted by jonnie3

I agree 100% with mojoe7009. I was pulling a 25 foot with a 2015 tundra. Took it to the scales and discovered I was already at my max payload before I loaded up my dogs and any gear in the back of the truck. Also, I was exceeding my maximum rear axle rating. I replaced the Toyota with a Ram 2500, although I opted for the 6.4 L hemi. Super nice truck! If you have any doubts, ask a tow truck driver what happens to a vehicle exceeding payload when they hit a pothole.

Yikes, that's concerning ... I have a 2010 Tundra and pull my 5,000lb dry weight '72 Land Yacht ... thinking that's ok ... I'd better check again.
I'm sure this has been asked many times, but to use a weigh station , just drive the truck onto the weigh pad to see what the overall weight is when hitched up ?

[jonnie3]

Originally Posted by nickclifford

Yikes, that's concerning ... I have a 2010 Tundra and pull my 5,000lb dry weight '72 Land Yacht ... thinking that's ok ... I'd better check again.
I'm sure this has been asked many times, but to use a weigh station , just drive the truck onto the weigh pad to see what the overall weight is when hitched up ?

Here's how I weighed my truck/trailer. Make sure you read the links towards the bottom as it will show you how to use your results.

http://learntorv.com/getting-weighed...he-cat-scales/

[nickclifford]

Originally Posted by jonnie3

Here's how I weighed my truck/trailer. Make sure you read the links towards the bottom as it will show you how to use your results.

http://learntorv.com/getting-weighed...he-cat-scales/

thanks, hard to believe there were vehicles tough enough to pull these trailers in the 1970's !

[carl2591]

While this method works, a better way is to have each tire weighted while loaded and unloaded with separate scales. For like $45bucks you can get weight front to back adn side to side which is sometime more important as well.. and with less hassle than trying to get on and off CAT scales at a busy truck stop.

knowing how much weight is on each axle is nice to know but how is the weight distributed side to side. My friend Stacy used to do portable scale service adn said they saw more side to side issues than front to back.

Guess i might need to talk more with him about going into the portable scale business when we hit the road FT.

Originally Posted by jonnie3

Here's how I weighed my truck/trailer. Make sure you read the links towards the bottom as it will show you how to use your results.

http://learntorv.com/getting-weighed...he-cat-scales/

[tjdonahoe]

Originally Posted by nickclifford

thanks, hard to believe there were vehicles tough enough to pull these trailers in the 1970's !

Late 1960, early 70's f250 ford with a 360 , 390 , they did good, pulled my 66. 28 ft Kenskil all over the country...

[Zybane]

Originally Posted by Toutsi 1957

I own an AS 27FB and my TV is a Denali HD with Duramax/Alison. Empty I do 20 mpg, towing I do 13 both at 60 mph. I select the diesel for safety and acceleration power. The advantages of the diesel engine are:
1. The fuel consumption of a Diesel will be better than a gas engine by 20% in any configurations, towing or not towing.
2. The diesel engine provide much higher engine brake than any gas engine. Saving on brake maintenance if you use it.
3. There are no more bad smell or noise with diesel engines. These are past history.
4. The torque of a diesel engine is double the torque of a gas engine. This make the trips safer because you have much better acceleration than with a gas engine. This is very important when you enter into a highway.
5. If you buy your truck with the diesel you will have no regrets at all while you may have some with a gas engine.
All experience people and mechanics will tell you that having a Diesel engine makes economical logic if you do more than 25,000 miles a year.
If you have more questions let me know. Myself and Jacinthe love our Denali.

1+2 agree with.
3. Did a back to back with a modern diesel and V8 gas truck of same model. The diesel was noticeably louder both inside and outside. Modern gas trucks are extremely quiet.
4. Diesel trucks do not have better acceleration than gas trucks with similar horsepower. The gas truck just has to rev higher.
5. Well I guess if you count an extra $10K at purchase and much higher maintenance costs over the life of the vehicle as "no regrets".

I love diesel trucks but let's keep things in perspective here.

Originally Posted by dasams

Why are they in the right lane at 30 mph with their flashers on when climbing up a hill?

Because semi trucks have relatively little horsepower. It's horsepower that gets a vehicle to the top of a hill over a certain amount of time.

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by Zybane

1+2 agree with.
3. Did a back to back with a modern diesel and V8 gas truck of same model. The diesel was noticeably louder both inside and outside. Modern gas trucks are extremely quiet.
4. Diesel trucks do not have better acceleration than gas trucks with similar horsepower. The gas truck just has to rev higher.
5. Well I guess if you count an extra $10K at purchase and much higher maintenance costs over the life of the vehicle as "no regrets".

I love diesel trucks but let's keep things in perspective here.



Because semi trucks have relatively little horsepower. It's horsepower that gets a vehicle to the top of a hill over a certain amount of time.

Wow, out of everyone on here someone finally understands horsepower and torque.

[dcasr]

Originally Posted by tjdonahoe

Late 1960, early 70's f250 ford with a 360 , 390 , they did good, pulled my 66. 28 ft Kenskil all over the country...

__________________

With the older vehicles the problems that surfaced often had to do with cooling.

Many vehicles had unsmogged motors that did fine, but the guts got pulled out of the auto transmission in a few years. Also overheating pulling a grade in the summer. With blue roads you could pull it in second or even first and keep the water moving faster and less stress on everything, but once we got to the interstates and it was 70 mph folks got mad when we pulled the AS in the slow lane at 40 mph, unless it was really steep, then we could just fit in between two semis going 15 to 25 mph. I added a tranny cooler to my 1970 Ford Van, but it had a dinky C4 tranny and I went through 3 of them in 3 years in the Rockies. Ford should have put the pickup C6 tranny in it but they knew better.

Manual trans often had the clutch as the weak point, and remember back then we only had three forward gears, manual or auto. Been there, done that, auto and manual, and I like today better.

[leje]

Originally Posted by Zybane

1+2 agree with.
3. Did a back to back with a modern diesel and V8 gas truck of same model. The diesel was noticeably louder both inside and outside. Modern gas trucks are extremely quiet.
4. Diesel trucks do not have better acceleration than gas trucks with similar horsepower. The gas truck just has to rev higher.
5. Well I guess if you count an extra $10K at purchase and much higher maintenance costs over the life of the vehicle as "no regrets".

I love diesel trucks but let's keep things in perspective here.



Because semi trucks have relatively little horsepower. It's horsepower that gets a vehicle to the top of a hill over a certain amount of time.

To get to 10k, you must first, be paying full price with no discounts, and second be looking at a Ram with the HO Cummins and Aisin transmission. Also, with the kind of revs you need out of a gas truck to accelerate at the equivalent rate of a diesel, you won't be quieter, inside or outside the truck.

[leje]

Originally Posted by Countryboy59

Wow, out of everyone on here someone finally understands horsepower and torque.

That the true measure of power is torque, and that horsepower is simply a calulcation using torque and RPM as inputs?

[leje]

Originally Posted by nickclifford

Yikes, that's concerning ... I have a 2010 Tundra and pull my 5,000lb dry weight '72 Land Yacht ... thinking that's ok ... I'd better check again.
I'm sure this has been asked many times, but to use a weigh station , just drive the truck onto the weigh pad to see what the overall weight is when hitched up ?

I traded my 2014 Tundra Platinum (loved that truck) for a 2015 Denali HD with a Duramax strictly because it didn't have the payload to tow something that is properly balanced on the trailer north of about 6500 lbs. that truck had a "towing capacity" of 9800 lbs.

Manufacturers do an excellent job of obscuring the truth. Ford is the absolute worst in this respect (I probably just started a war, bring the Ford fanboys). You'll never touch their tow numbers without exceeding any of the other more important measures such as payload or GAWR in practical use cases. That's even if you can figure out what your true payload number is through the contradictions the manufacturer is likely to stick on the inside of your drivers door jamb.

[dcasr]

Quote:"Originally Posted by dasams View Post
Why are they in the right lane at 30 mph with their flashers on when climbing up a hill?"Quote
___________

Well, they are pulling a cargo tonnage that far exceeds even a 5th wheel weight, and they are geared down so their maximum torque curve is matched to the rpm of the engine and to the torque demands of the load/grade. Gearing down to a lower gear does multiply the torque but because diesels aren't high rpm engines, the final speed has to take into account the upper limit of the torque curve and the engine red line.

I well remember pulling the Wheeling WV to Washington PA I-70 hill in the 1970s when I had to choose near red line in 2nd or stalling out in 3rd on my manual gas TV. I don't have any hill problems with my new Duramax/Allison.

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by leje

That the true measure of power is torque, and that horsepower is simply a calulcation using torque and RPM as inputs?

Horsepower is the measure of the rate of doing work. Torque is not a measure of power. You can multiply torque with gearing. Can't multiply horsepower...

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by leje

I traded my 2014 Tundra Platinum (loved that truck) for a 2015 Denali HD with a Duramax strictly because it didn't have the payload to tow something that is properly balanced on the trailer north of about 6500 lbs. that truck had a "towing capacity" of 9800 lbs.

Manufacturers do an excellent job of obscuring the truth. Ford is the absolute worst in this respect (I probably just started a war, bring the Ford fanboys). You'll never touch their tow numbers without exceeding any of the other more important measures such as payload or GAWR in practical use cases. That's even if you can figure out what your true payload number is through the contradictions the manufacturer is likely to stick on the inside of your drivers door jamb.

Hmmm...since buying my F350 I don't think I've had to look at the sticker...

[Countryboy59]

Originally Posted by leje

To get to 10k, you must first, be paying full price with no discounts, and second be looking at a Ram with the HO Cummins and Aisin transmission. Also, with the kind of revs you need out of a gas truck to accelerate at the equivalent rate of a diesel, you won't be quieter, inside or outside the truck.

"My truck is too loud" said no man ever

[tjdonahoe]

You never seen my trucks going up a hill with the flashers on, the ones that do are small liter engines, company trucks...at the race track here ,they race the diesel pickups, like 10-12 second quarter miles, a Chevy work pickup does it in 12 seconds...big gas engine trucks went away in the 1960's and early 70's, the diesel engine is more economical more power ,and they last longer...

[pappy19]

You forgot to mention that diesel engines require much more maintenance, are very expensive especially after the warranty runs out, and may not last any longer than any modern gas engine.

[tjdonahoe]

Originally Posted by pappy19

You forgot to mention that diesel engines require much more maintenance, are very expensive especially after the warranty runs out, and may not last any longer than any modern gas engine.

Well sir my last kw with a 500 cat has 1.4 million miles, head never been off, original turbo and injectors, it was grossing 95 - 101,000 lbs all the time , my ford 7.3 190,00, no problems, my 07 ram with 6.7 , 6 speed auto, 110,000 miles never any problems, it got 12.5 mpg coast to coast.... my 17 2500 ram with 6.7 and 6 speed auto with 3.42 gears, pulls 1300 rpm at 63 mph, I bought the lifetime oil changes for $850 for synthetic oil...there is no such thing as too much money or too much horsepower......