Best mileage tow vehicle
- Thread starter astro
- Start date
J
A
OK,
I've had a couple so I'm more apt to type whatI am actually thinking.
(That's a disclaimer in case you didn't pick up on that)
At one end of the scale you have a chitbox eco car that will get close to 50 mpg.
The other end is 8.1 pulling 12 (both empty)
Well you can take your granolla mobile out of the picture.
It isn't gonna tow crap!
Besides, they have the asthetic appeal of a vaginal wart.
Really, we are talking mini pick-ups vs 1/2 tons and so on.
Sure the smaller versions will get better mileage, until their loaded down.
I seriously doubt any of them would get better mileage with a loaded 2 place trailer at 75 mph than their full size counterparts.
But really, the question on my mind is...Who cares?
Truck $30,000
Sled $10,000
Lodging $100/night
Food $50/day
Drink..........?
Really, as much as fuel prices suck azz, they're not that consequential in the grand scheme of things.
For people like me who have to drive 800+ miles to ride, we should really be renting sleds, or keeping sleds out west.
Then we could save some substantial gas money.
I've had a couple so I'm more apt to type whatI am actually thinking.
(That's a disclaimer in case you didn't pick up on that)
At one end of the scale you have a chitbox eco car that will get close to 50 mpg.
The other end is 8.1 pulling 12 (both empty)
Well you can take your granolla mobile out of the picture.
It isn't gonna tow crap!
Besides, they have the asthetic appeal of a vaginal wart.
Really, we are talking mini pick-ups vs 1/2 tons and so on.
Sure the smaller versions will get better mileage, until their loaded down.
I seriously doubt any of them would get better mileage with a loaded 2 place trailer at 75 mph than their full size counterparts.
But really, the question on my mind is...Who cares?
Truck $30,000
Sled $10,000
Lodging $100/night
Food $50/day
Drink..........?
Really, as much as fuel prices suck azz, they're not that consequential in the grand scheme of things.
For people like me who have to drive 800+ miles to ride, we should really be renting sleds, or keeping sleds out west.
Then we could save some substantial gas money.
Looks like the passat wagon, which would be front wheel drive. I know they offered the TDI motor in these for a few years, but they are incredibly difficult to find and really expensive because they are rare... But that would be my ideal set up, a little more stable than the jetta, and alot more room, but still great on the MPGs!!!
A
What do you mean not consequential. Do the math over a 100k lifetime. If you traded your guzzler that got 10 mpg for 30 mpg you could buy 2 brand new sleds. 100000 miles=10000 gals. @4.00 is 40K for gas. If you can double your fuel economy that means you got 20K more in your pocket. Who cares? I do- that would pay for my turbo project.
There isn't a vehicle made that will haul sleds worth a sh!t that gets 30 mpg.
In fact there isn't a vehicle made that gets 30 mpg that could replace any pickup.
With the choices being full size or sub-compact, the sub compact won't get any better mileage pulling a 2 place at 75 mph.
W
That's a great mathmatical formula, but so limiting to the creative mind.
Last year I drove my Duramax 90% of the time. I usually pulled 5 sleds in a 4 place enclosed. After every ride I cleaned out the cubby holes all my buddies stick gas money in and put it in an envelope in my drivers door. At the end of the season I did the math on fuel costs and added in some for maintence and upkeep. My actual cost for fuel including my own came to about $400.00 less then what was put in the pot. So, it cost me 0.00 in fuel to get to and from the mountain last year and I made $400.00. Add that up over a 100K lifetime and see how many dollars you save.
The moral of the story is: Buy a big guzzler that can pull a few sleds and find some friends who pay their way.
Good point!
This one isn't rational, but most of the guys I travel with laugh at & swear at anyone in a Suburu!
This one isn't rational, but most of the guys I travel with laugh at & swear at anyone in a Suburu!
Good point!
This one isn't rational, but most of the guys I travel with laugh at & swear at anyone in a Suburu!
thats a fair point but is way off topic of the original post. the original post was for pulling a 2 place open with 2 sleds. so for that some of the vehicles mentioned are useless. who pulls a 2 place with a 2500 diesel? only someone that already has one anyway or someone with a short guy complex. some of the vehicles mentioned like the liberty diesel and the passat diesel would work just fine for what the original question was. not everyone has 4 extra buddies to go with them. maybe its just him and his wife or kid or whatever. I'm just really tired of the you have to have a full sized truck or diesel to haul anything bigger than golf clubs. if you can get 25-30 towing instead of 16-18 why wouldn't you do it. you can laugh at those passats all you want on the rode because they will laugh at you at the gas pump.
I've never done it so i can't comment with any real knowledge on the subject but that passat prob weighs about 3500 lbs and the 2 place with sleds weighs about 1500 lbs. so it probably would handle the load pretty decent. I would guess about the same as say a ford escape or something similar. I'm sure its a very comfortable car to drive. As long as it was safe to do i would probably rather sit in that VW on a long trip than my truck.
S
ummmmmm......... ford never made a "5.7 diesel"
and i'm pretty sure using the words "Best" and "Diesel ford" dont even complete a sentence. as said above, what are you smokin? share it with the rest of us....
I have a VW TDI Golf, that I have setup to tow. You can pull up to 2k lbs, but the problem is the tongue rating is only 200 lbs. So you have to be careful. I have towed a 2 place trailer with 1 sled without any problems. Winter roads, slick, uphill, no problems. I do have a dedicated set of snow tires. You do have to take it easy coming downhill, but you should really do that with any vehicle when the roads are that slick.
There is no need for chains if you have good tires on these cars.
The biggest disadvantage is ground clearance.
honestly, are you gonna sacrafice saftey for gas money?? i would love to tow with a VW passat wagon, my mom has one with the turbo 1.8L, with studded tires, it rips in the snow, but i would not feel safe going up the road to the parking lot, 6 inched icy ruts, with deepper plowed snow on the edges to go around people coming the other way, the thing just wont cut it. and when theres fresh snow on the roads, the lighter vehicles are already working harder to stay in control. give me a 4 door longbox with a diesel in it. it may cost more, but saftey comes at a cost.
M
There's some really good posts here. Luckily there's a different tow vehicle / setup available for every person. For me, I don't have room for a trailer in my garage, and although I'd love to pay the fuel bill in a jetta, I wouldn't have wanted to be on the highway in one last winter for any of my 3 trips to Revy. Also not sure you could make it up some of the trails up to the staging.
I think the only solution that would fit all sledders would be having the mountain in the back yard......but then I wouldn't need the Duramax to get my one machine to the hill
I think the only solution that would fit all sledders would be having the mountain in the back yard......but then I wouldn't need the Duramax to get my one machine to the hill
A
It's funny how everyone is so rah rah on the big trucks. Trucks suck in the snow-there's no weight over the rear wheels. I drive a 4x4 full length van(sportsmobile) that handles great in the snow and is comfortable to camp and hang out in, but it is a bit overkill for lots of the close to home riding. So the original question still stands- what are the high MPG tow rigs for a light trailer? Heck I could just take one sled most of the time to be able to use a small car. If it gets stuck I'll just pull it out with the turbo sled. Think about spring riding, you don't even need 4wd most of the time
SO IF YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT YOUR FULL SIZE TRUCK, START YOUR OWN THREAD!!!!!
. Think about spring riding, you don't even need 4wd most of the timeSO IF YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT YOUR FULL SIZE TRUCK, START YOUR OWN THREAD!!!!!
As long as you are not an idiot about it, I don't think you are sacrificing safety. My Golf pulled the trailer great. I only had 1 sled on it. If I were going to go up a rough road or a really long way, I wouldn't do it. In the Spring when many roads soften up, I would think twice as well. I guess it really depend on where you are going. If they maintain the road in and the parking lot properly it shouldn't be an issue.
I hear there should be a large diesel 1/2 ton market coming our way soon. Probably in the next year. I don't see why we won't have 30 MPG 1/2 ton trucks that can still get 20-24 mpg pulling moderately sized trailers.
T
Because they will still weigh a crap load.... My diesel liberty gets 28 MPG on the highway and 22 MPG going up the pass with one sled at about 80 MPH...
I can't wait for diesel half tons either, but 30 MPG seems like a little much... though time will tell...
