Hey guys,
I posted a while ago on here about running 89 octane because that's what the manufacturer recommends. I've been doing it consistently and the truck seems to do well giving me an average of 700km's (430mi) per tank, and that's without any aftermarket parts.

My question I have now is what have you guys experienced for fuel economy while hauling trailers? Because of the MDS needing to be turned off to tow I'm going to assume that my mileage will drop to around 450km's (280mi) per tank.

What I'm looking to haul is a 25 foot Trail Lite travel trailer that weighs about 5,000lbs. My main reason to ask this is that the wife and I are planning a road trip and I just calculated out that we'll be driving around 6,300km's so I want to know if the price of gas at about $3.80/gallon is going to bankrupt me.

My specs are:
2008 Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie
5.7L Hemi
Quad Cab
20" rims
3.92 axle ratio

Thanks guys.

 

IDK about you but the last time I did it, it damn sure came close to bankrupting me..... Lol

If helped my mom move and pulled my 18ft open trailer fully loaded. I think I calculated about 8 mpg

 

I average 9 mpg highway while towing about 5500-6k lbs of car & trailer so with the extra wind resistance of the camper, you'll probably see 8 like Weed says.

Having said that, I get 10 mpg in town with my driving so it wasn't much of a hit

 

8MPG? *throw up*
Guess that's the price you pay. Maybe we'll shorten the distance we're going to go, because at 8MPG that means I'll spend around $1,500 for fuel for our trip.

 

which is why when we normally go out of town we dont take my truck......

 

I hear ya, but I don't think my wife's 2006 Pontiac Vibe will tow a 25 foot trailer. I could give a go and post the pics of the result if you wish.

 

That's the down side to having a gasser truck, but you'll be well within the limits of the truck and if you don't pull often, you'll still come out way ahead of the maintenance costs of owning a diesel.

The last full year I fished bass tournaments was the first full year I owned my Hemi and pulling about 3,000 lbs. of bass boat, motor, trailer and gear was barely noticeable, I lost maybe 1-2 mpgs at the most. BUT that is considerably less weight than you'll be towing AND a bass boat is super aerodynamic, unlike a huge, wind catching box. If you can average double digit MPGs, consider yourself way ahead of the game...

 

I average between 9-10MPG on the flat. That is going between 62-65 mph. A smaller very aerodynamic trailer would probably do a little better. You will get worse if driving against the wind because of the drag the trailer creates. I have a 2500 Hemi with the 4.10 axle. The trail lite is smaller than my trailer so I would say you can expect 10 MPG on the highway except for in the mountains.

 

I get around 9 mpg with a 20' travel trailer. I am also in Utah where you can't spit and hit a flat spot and tow between 6000' and 10000' in elevation.

My trip to Yellowstone (400 miles away) in June averaged 9 mpg while I was towing.

 

I tow a 24' 5th behind mine, 5.7 liter and 3.55's
prolly about 7500 pounds when fully grossed, I've seen 4.5 (yes, four point five) mpg's when bucking a off-center 50 km/hour headwind.



without a headwind, I'll usually get 9 - 11 mpg's at 105 km/h
(no, I don't tow my boat behind the 5th)