Mile per gallon.....400 Cummins

[rebelsbeach]

One of the most recent times this was discussed (apples to apples) was in the Alpine Owner Forum in 2004 so I thought I'd bring it up again for some "Winnebago" apples to apples comparison.

I'm "primarily" interested in 400 Cummins pushers around 40',but feel free to share....

I'm thinking 8 or 9 MPG would be tops for my coach.

Thoughts?

(Hey John C.,feel FREE to share the true MPG with us from that Jotto mounted laptop!!)

 

[rebelsbeach]

One of the most recent times this was discussed (apples to apples) was in the Alpine Owner Forum in 2004 so I thought I'd bring it up again for some "Winnebago" apples to apples comparison.

I'm "primarily" interested in 400 Cummins pushers around 40',but feel free to share....

I'm thinking 8 or 9 MPG would be tops for my coach.

Thoughts?

(Hey John C.,feel FREE to share the true MPG with us from that Jotto mounted laptop!!)

 

[cwg-WO]

I have a 04 Horizon AD with the 400 Cummins. My guess is that you are overly optimistic in the fuel economy unless you drive very conservatively. Our toad is a Honda Pilot and we get about 7.5 mpg. The Freightliner gauge states that the unit has an overall 7.2 mpg since the build date. It has improved since delivery and at this time has 14,000 miles. This mileage is pretty much consistent with others I speak with.

 

[rebelsbeach]

Thanks for the reply cwg....

I was guessing 8 or 9 as a high,guess I was a little off.

Your Pilot curb weight is around 4500 pounds,my Trailblazer weights 4954....pretty close.

 

[Dougmyers]

I can not speak for your motorhome engines, but I have had several Dodge Diesel trucks and the engines did not break in until around 16K to 20K miles on all of them, with a noticable move up in MPG after break in.
My 1 ton started out at about 11 MPG and is now up to 19.3 with just over 16K miles I have seen up to 27 MPG hiway pulling a 21 foot Bass boat from Dallas to Houston on my last truck.
But you guys are in a different ball park in weight.

 

[MrTransistor]

Hi rebelsbeach,
Ours is an 04 40WD with the CAT C7. We picked it up in Tucson in April of 2004 and have never towed. The last 8 fill-ups are:

Mileage - Miles driven - gallons - MPG
35428 535.4 63.1 8.48
35934 506.3 53.5 9.47
36561 626.2 68.1 9.19
36968 407.4 46.5 8.76
37484 516.0 59.8 8.78
37952 468.2 50.3 9.30
38423 470.8 55.1 8.55
38940 517.2 62.5 8.33

These figures are corrected for generator use. The higher mileage numbers are coming back from the east through the plain states and the lower numbers are bucking N.M. headwinds. When flying, we used to say the net effect of the wind is to slow you down. In a vehicle, the net effect of the wind is to drop your gas mileage (just the luck of the draw). I drive a very consistent 60 MPH everywhere we go, I travel for work but can't see being in too much of a hurry. Early on, I tried 65 and 70 MPH but the sacrifice was much worse mileage as the speed went up. Our numbers now are only slightly less than we got with the 03 Journey DL 36LD (CAT 330)and about 1.5 MPG better then the 37' 01 Adventurer (V10).

I stuck with the CAT engine because I don't think exhaust gas recirculation makes sense, though I think CAT may be planning on a form of EGR on future engines. I'd still like to see Freightliner offer the CAT C11 for motor homes, wow, what an engine. It would be nice even if all that power cost MPG.

The Palm Pilot running Pocket Tech connected to the engine says our overall fuel economy is now at 8.31 and it's been climbing since day one. Shortly after we picked up the coach, it was at 6.9, I guess the transport company must have been pushing it a bit on the way to Tucson.

 

[hogbreth]

2004 Horizon 40AD with a 400 Cummins. 20,000 miles. Honda Odyssey.
7.5 @ 70 mph.

 

[rebelsbeach]

Thanks cwg,MrT and Hogbreth...

Looks like cwg and Hogbreth are toad pullers and thus very much like what I can expect...

 

[rnabors]

I tow a Liberty CRD and set the cruise on 62mph. According to my Road Relay I get between 7.5 and 8.6 depending on terrain.

 

[Lucchese1]

05 Horizon 40KD 400ISL with Jeep Commander in tow, 15000 miles and average around 68-70mph 7.2mpg. On the last trip did not have the toad and set the cruise at 62mph and averaged almost 8.5mpg but it is scary

travling on hwy 40 and having the truckers pass you up like your standing still, so from now on I go with the flow and pay the extra

 

[rebelsbeach]

Thanks Ben.....that's the closest comparison yet to my actual situation as your toad and my toad "weigh in" about the same.

Have to watch out for those truckers....

 

[Bohica-WO]

I've got 04 Vectra 40KD and tow a 26' enclosed trailer weighing close to 10K loaded. On the average, I'm getting 5.9 mpg.

 

[rebelsbeach]

Ed,I'm not "worried" about MPG....Simply of a "range" of travel thing for me....
Would sure like to have an idea of what folks were getting,so I can know what to expect with the trips....
I can afford the diesel,can afford the coach I paid cash for too....

Maybe tomorrow morning you'll try the other side of the bed?

 

[Trek-Cyclist]

OK, I'm on the other side of the bed!

You paid cash for a Motorhome? HUMMM, Good for You

I was just stating that there are just so many factors that contribute to mileage or lack of it, the only mileage that matters is what you get. Your driving habits, weight, wind, climb, decent, speed, towing or not. I find it hard to compare one coach to another especially when it comes to MPG. When the gauge tells me to fill up I do. Like I said it's all a moot point with a computer chip controlling input for fuel, air, transmission and engine rpm's.

 

[rebelsbeach]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Lucchese1:
05 Horizon 40KD 400ISL with Jeep Commander in tow, 15000 miles and average around 68-70mph 7.2mpg. On the last trip did not have the toad and set the cruise at 62mph and averaged almost 8.5mpg but it is scary

travling on hwy 40 and having the truckers pass you up like your standing still, so from now on I go with the flow and pay the extra

</div></BLOCKQUOTE>

OK,I'm on the other side of the bed too...

Ed,if you read this post from Ben,it sort of "mirrors" my exact towing situation,with a 40 foot coach,the 400 Cummins and a 5k toad.

I do understand how driving practices can be different,but when he reports his MPH and such,at least it'd be close....
Coming from the 330 CAT and 39 Journey,I was simply looking for some sort of comparitive data on the use of the 400 Cummins.

Thanks for your opinion.