BBQdDude Posted April 2, 2021 Report Share Posted April 2, 2021 Ford F-150 XLT gets 28MPG on freeway Add a motorcycle trailer (standard Uhaul motorcycle trailer) and a harley to the mix for 1600 additional pounds. How much would the MPG go down? Going to Florida and trying to calculate gas money for the trip. Don't laugh too hard lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeitgeist57 Posted April 2, 2021 Report Share Posted April 2, 2021 Depending on the route you take, you'll need to accomodate for driving through the Smoky Mountains (I-75) or Appalachian (I-77). Whatever your flat rate of fuel consumption over xxx miles, give yourself a 10-15% buffer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iwashmycar Posted April 2, 2021 Report Share Posted April 2, 2021 Id bank on 18. Wind load, hills, weight, and that extra set of rubber on the road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBQdDude Posted April 2, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 2, 2021 Cool, I will plan accordingly. Thank you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spankis Posted April 2, 2021 Report Share Posted April 2, 2021 What F-150 other than the diesel gets 28mpg on the freeway empty? You hand calculating or going by the lie-o-meter? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stallion Motorsports1647545491 Posted April 3, 2021 Report Share Posted April 3, 2021 You might be surprised, I did a similar trip years ago with two jet skis in my loaded down 4Runner and only lost 1-2 mpg the entire trip. Tom Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mmrmnhrm Posted April 3, 2021 Report Share Posted April 3, 2021 You might be surprised, I did a similar trip years ago with two jet skis in my loaded down 4Runner and only lost 1-2 mpg the entire trip. Sounds about right... dad used to have an F-150 (somewhere in the '00 to '05 model range), and the thing absolutely refused to get anything other than about 15mpg no matter whether it was city, highway, towing the boat, hauling mulch... it always came out 15 when he added up the gas receipts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBQdDude Posted April 5, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 5, 2021 What F-150 other than the diesel gets 28mpg on the freeway empty? You hand calculating or going by the lie-o-meter? I went by the pie-o-meter for the lie-o-meter readings (wifes truck) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AudiOn19s Posted April 5, 2021 Report Share Posted April 5, 2021 Assuming this is open trailer not enclosed...a singe bike on an open trailer isn't going to cause much wind drag behind a full size truck which is the bigger effect to consider than the extra weight. As others have stated I'd guess the drop in MPG is pretty minimal there maybe 3-4 mpg....5 at the worst. Put that same weight in an enclosed trailer and it's a whole other ballgame. Also no way it's getting 28 to begin with but different discussion for a different day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evan9381 Posted April 5, 2021 Report Share Posted April 5, 2021 My old car (2009 Legacy) usually did 27ish on the freeway. I took a trip to PA with 2 bicycles on the roof (super un-aero) and when I filled up I was at 20.2mpg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geeto67 Posted April 5, 2021 Report Share Posted April 5, 2021 what engine in the F150? 2.7L? 3.5L? V8? Those u-haul motorcycle trailers are heavier than they have a right to be. They tow like crap and the sheet metal sides are not aerodynamic. I towed one with my Jeep (4.0L I6) which normally gets 18-20 mpg highway and it got 12mpg. A V8 F150 probably won't feel it but a 2.7L probably will suffer, turbo or not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBQdDude Posted April 6, 2021 Author Report Share Posted April 6, 2021 V-8 I appreciate the responses. I think I have what I need . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojoe Posted April 6, 2021 Report Share Posted April 6, 2021 5.0 F150 getting 28mpg highway is the first issue to address. I mean it really just does not happen without incredible weight reduction and maybe flat ground at 55mph. Real life, real calculation = real answer of 12-15MPG, OH to FL at 70MPH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurboRust Posted April 6, 2021 Report Share Posted April 6, 2021 what engine in the F150? 2.7L? 3.5L? V8? Those u-haul motorcycle trailers are heavier than they have a right to be. They tow like crap and the sheet metal sides are not aerodynamic. I towed one with my Jeep (4.0L I6) which normally gets 18-20 mpg highway and it got 12mpg. A V8 F150 probably won't feel it but a 2.7L probably will suffer, turbo or not. my 18 f150 was a 2.7 turbo ecoboost and hauled 5200 lbs multiple times a week and didnt miss a beat. got 14mpgs towing 22.5/23 freeway unloaded/not towing.. my 3.5 ecoboost 2020 gets about 10.8 towing my 6600 lb meat wagon and around 21.5 unloaded/not towing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geeto67 Posted April 6, 2021 Report Share Posted April 6, 2021 (edited) my 18 f150 was a 2.7 turbo ecoboost and hauled 5200 lbs multiple times a week and didnt miss a beat. got 14mpgs towing 22.5/23 freeway unloaded/not towing.. my 3.5 ecoboost 2020 gets about 10.8 towing my 6600 lb meat wagon and around 21.5 unloaded/not towing suffer as in use more fuel towing than empty, all should be able to tow the weight. Edited April 6, 2021 by Geeto67 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trouble Maker Posted April 6, 2021 Report Share Posted April 6, 2021 Derek, I'm curious about the reason for the truck change, why go to the 3.5L or 2.7L? Just to make it easier to tow? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coltboostin Posted April 6, 2021 Report Share Posted April 6, 2021 You might be surprised, I did a similar trip years ago with two jet skis in my loaded down 4Runner and only lost 1-2 mpg the entire trip. Tom Don't 4 Runners get shit fuel mileage anyways? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stallion Motorsports1647545491 Posted April 6, 2021 Report Share Posted April 6, 2021 Don't 4 Runners get shit fuel mileage anyways? Yep, pretty much. The funny thing is there isn’t much difference in the V6 vs. V8 in the years that it was offered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AudiOn19s Posted April 6, 2021 Report Share Posted April 6, 2021 Ever since buying a diesel truck I’m completely entertained by everyone’s towing claims. “I got 30 mpg towing the other day...don’t mind the fact I was locked in top gear and going 37mph on the freeway.” My 3.0 duramax gets 13-14 max in real world conditions..that means going 80-82mph and not trying to draft semi’s and shit. Best my old 6.0l LS truck did was maybe 8 so this is a great improvement but it’s not the 17-20 that everyone claims they get. Life’s too short to tow at 70mph. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyM3rC Posted April 7, 2021 Report Share Posted April 7, 2021 Life’s too short to tow at 70mph. AMEN unless I'm way overloaded and sneaking along country roads, I'm moving with traffic between 70-80mph. Towing a motorcycle and trailer costs a sportwagen about 4ish mpg. I just made that up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurboRust Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 Derek, I'm curious about the reason for the truck change, why go to the 3.5L or 2.7L? Just to make it easier to tow? my 2.7 truck just had a $95 hitch option no support pkgs. 7200 limit and was going out of warranty. 3.5 towing pkg (not max tow) is rated for 10,500 daily not towing.. i feel little difference between the 2.7tt and 3.5tt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeitgeist57 Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 Life’s too short to tow at 70mph. You're not going to want to be behind my RV this summer when I'm towing a CJ-5 then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trouble Maker Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 my 2.7 truck just had a $95 hitch option no support pkgs. 7200 limit and was going out of warranty. 3.5 towing pkg (not max tow) is rated for 10,500 daily not towing.. i feel little difference between the 2.7tt and 3.5tt Makes sense. RE my towing thread, we'll all use the Jeep for now. My parents are still talking about getting a 3-5 year used truck, especially when/if they do a multi-month trip out west. It's great to hear real world experiences, especially since the weight you quoted on your new trailer is pretty close to what their camper should be loaded. They are still stuck in a mindset of needing V6's over L4's from when V6's had less power than most 4 cylinders do now. My dad was convinced he wants a 3/4 ton, but I think it's too much capability with no real benefit for them over a 1/2 ton but with downsides; rougher ride, higher cost, higher fuel consumption all of the time. So I'm trying to steer him towards a half ton since they are so capable now. But, I'm still torn about steering him towards something in the capability/towing range of the 2.7L ecoboost or more towards the 3.5L ecoboost level trucks. I think after they tow with the Jeep some they might want more margin, but I think he'll realize a mid-level capacity 1/2 ton will be enough. I've got some experience with the 2.7L w/5k#s towing and I think the capability there is awesome. But that wasn't through the mountains, and their camper will probably be closer to 6-6.5k#s loaded. So I can't decide if the 2.7L with a good towing/payload package behind it will be enough/easy enough for them to tow with or if the 3.5L is 'necessary' there; worth the price and fuel economy hit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TurboRust Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 Makes sense. RE my towing thread, we'll all use the Jeep for now. My parents are still talking about getting a 3-5 year used truck, especially when/if they do a multi-month trip out west. It's great to hear real world experiences, especially since the weight you quoted on your new trailer is pretty close to what their camper should be loaded. They are still stuck in a mindset of needing V6's over L4's from when V6's had less power than most 4 cylinders do now. My dad was convinced he wants a 3/4 ton, but I think it's too much capability with no real benefit for them over a 1/2 ton but with downsides; rougher ride, higher cost, higher fuel consumption all of the time. So I'm trying to steer him towards a half ton since they are so capable now. But, I'm still torn about steering him towards something in the capability/towing range of the 2.7L ecoboost or more towards the 3.5L ecoboost level trucks. I think after they tow with the Jeep some they might want more margin, but I think he'll realize a mid-level capacity 1/2 ton will be enough. you can get a 2.7 with a towing pkg and payload pkg thats rated for like 9600. a 3.5 is 2k more than a 2.7 on a new build truck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robochan Posted April 8, 2021 Report Share Posted April 8, 2021 Not once towing between 5000-7000 did I feel like my 2.7 was the limiting factor. Having a trailer over 1.5 times the weight of the truck is what makes me nervous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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