Gas or diesel? As Shakespeare would say, “…that is the question.” Diesel prices may be more expensive (especially right now), but they are more fuel-efficient. And, as we all know, a Diesel engine, properly maintained, will far outlive a gas engine, further increasing its value to anyone who travels a LOT!
You probably went through a long decision process when deciding which motorhome or tow vehicle to buy, and whether you wanted it to be gas-powered or diesel-powered.
So how is your RV or your RV’s tow vehicle powered? With gas, diesel or other? Electricity? Probably not yet, but one day. . . definitely on manufacturer’s radar! Thanks for voting.
##RVT1046
2016 Duramax Diesel
230 HP Cummins BT5.9 in a 34′ Pusher.
2013 3.5L TT Ecoboost
5.1 Cummins in 31 foot pusher. Marginal MPG improvement over the 8.1 Workhorse gasser we had before. Sure I get around 11 mpg on the freeway but real overall milage (tracked since we purchased the coach) is 8.9 mpg. Our old gasser clocked in at 8.3 mpg. Live and learn.
I started out with a Ford V10 with 4.5 mpg no matter what the driving conditions, and the cruise control didn’t work so it can’t be blamed (34’ Bounder). Went to a 36’ Mountain Aire with the 8.1L V8, mpg went to 8.3 mpg everywhere but FL where it got 10.1 on the cruise control. Now 2018 Nissan Frontier pulling a 23’ TT at 62 mph and getting 9.1 except in FL it gets 10.2. Moral of the story, only drive in FL where they have to build a hill. Lol
According to wife, it is natural gas!
LOL
Thought about a diesel. But with all the DEF issues and electronic issues, glad I went V-10.
Clean and comfy 6.4L gas Ram. No problem on gas mileage. When the truck tank is getting near empty, we need a break too. And it is much easier to find gas in our area.
340 Cummins in the MH. Jeep Patriot, 4 cylinder, millennial theft deterrent 5 speed, hand crank windows.
Love your “theft deterrent”. It’s like our secret writing (cursive).
2019 Silverado 3500HD 6.6LTurbo Diesel.
2017 Chevy 3500 dually diesel long box, 35′ Montana 5th wheel. 55 mph gets me 12.8 mpg. 65 gets 10 mpg. No brainer to drive 55 as I have nothing but time on my hands now!
similar rig setup except Ford but same results, hope some of the speed demons read this THANKS
Cummins X15 18.7
Air Compressor
1,500 watts block heater
Peak horsepower 605hp@1800
Peak torque 1950 lb-ft @ 1150rpm
Allison transmission 4000MH
Diesel pusher
I’m surprised to see diesel my a slight majority over gas. Myself, 6.7 Cummins diesel re-tuned by Cummins to 360HP/800# torque. Average 9 plus MPG.
5.9 Cummins Turbo Pusher
11.8 mpg
2019 ram big dually with 6.7 cummins
Chevy 3500 6.0 gas dually .. 11800# rolling .. 10.5mpg at 57mph. Diesel version cost $8k more and 3 times more than gasser to maintain. And no $1000 upgrades to make it 1/2% more efficient. I travel mainly in the West and don’t see many diesels doing better than me on those long Nevada climbs. But would have liked that sweet Allison trans just the same..
2015 6.7 Ford Superduty. 14.7 not towing, about 11 towing a 38 foot fifth wheel.
2026 Chevy Silverado 3500 HD WT Diesel with an engine brake. No back seat, No carpet. It towes a 30 ft. Fifth wheel easily.
fantasy only folks…hasn’t been designed yet…sorry
Diesel motorhome, gas tow car.
RV is Class A Winnebago Journey diesel pusher. Tow car is gas powered Honda CRV.
Gasoline – 5.7 liter Hemi in a 2021 RAM 1500: 18-19.5 mpg at 55-60 mph, not towing; 14-15 towing; less in hilly country, much less in stop & go traffic.
Workhorse “bigger than Godzilla” 8.1L Gas.
Since fords advertising geeks chose to name their 7.3L Godzilla I’ve wondered what they would call their 7.5L 460 or Chevys 7.4L 454 much less the 8.1L 498 engines. Oh that’s right the engineers are to young to remember.
Triton V10 in my F53 Class A, and a 3.7L V6 in my Liberty.
Next towed will definitely be electric, but it’ll be a while since my Jeep has the Limited Lifetime Powertrain Warranty and I’m going to drive it into the ground!
Electric? Dream on. Never happen. No new power plants. No new power lines. No charging stations in rv parks let alone Intestate.
Keep your current rv. We will go back to. US oil and gas in 2024.
No current or planned electric can be flat towed.
The Mercedes diesel Sprinter is a popular Class C platform. Mine is under a Winnebago Navion. Wonderful full-time home for my wife and me. 15 mpg, even when towing our Smart car.
2006 Tiffin Phaeton pusher with Cat C7- no DEF issues with 2016 Jeep Sahara Unlimited Wrangler-6 banger as a Toad.
Every campground “oh you have to have a diesel” and “oh you have to have a one ton truck”. “You cannot tow a 25′ trailer with a dinky F-150 V-6”. I towed it here from Texas.
“where ?”
For how long, that’s the question in my mind, how durable are these small engines when they are worked hard? I’m from a time warp of the 50s where you needed a big engine if you were going to really “work” an engine. So far I’ve yet to see any manufacturers touting how durable their “small V6” is. Just curious!
2015 Dynamax DX3-37RB. A true Super-C diesel puller featuring a 9.0 liter Cummins 350HP motor providing 1,000 foot pounds of torque. With the motor up front, the Super-C platform is one of the SAFEST RV platforms available. It also offers incredible towing capacity. It has a GVWR of 33,000#, a GCWR of 54,000 and a tow rating of 20,000#. As long as I don’t start an anvil collection, I’ll never be overweight. 😉
It’s a Duramax diesel, but it runs mostly on propane.
What? No electric vehicles?
I appreciated Emily’s article. I was able to return to the Grand Canyon last year, and YNP, 3 years ago, for the first time in 50+ years. I well remember them being very busy in the late 60s. That was even more true recently, but facilities have grown as well. Reservations were needed back then, too. I’m glad so many can enjoy our national treasures today.
PETROLEUM! Proud! : )
09 Ford Expedition former law enforcement vehicle, looked a long time for one that was in good condition. Heavy duty everything pulls our mobile retirement home with eaze. Former vehicle was a Jeep GC 07, did the job to YNP,GTNP and Badlands. Just needed a heavy duty vehicle with a few more horses.Yours in RVing,Ray and Joy.
Our tow vehicle is powered by annihilating matter (in the form of deuterium, a kind of hydrogen gas) and antimatter in a fusion reaction mediated by dilithium crystals. This produces the enormous power required to pull our big a-s toy hauler down the road. 🙂
Warp core?
Exactly!
Electric is pure bs. Never happen in ANY of our lifetimes. No new power plants. Solar and batteries require massive pollution to mine. Windmill’s cause give environmental damage and blades wear out and are not recycled. Natural gas is the globes most environmentally sound energy source today.
Don’t forget windmill cancer.
I’ve offered up my RV to any congress person who wants to live in it for a few months in their northern states. It has 1000w of solar panels, 2 100ah LI batteries and 2000w inverter. They will have no propane and shore power in their cold snowy climates. They will have to figure out how to get the RV up there from NV without using fossil fuel. If it snows, they will have to climb up and sweep the snow off. Let’s see how long they last with no electricity.
What ever happened to those diesels that used cooking oil and grease ?
I think those engines were from way back before the EPA almost killed the diesel engine with ‘requirements’.
It also started getting difficult to find establishments that would let you have their old fry oil. Most have contracts with collection companies and they don’t want the liability of giving it away.
Interesting. I never thought of that. I also never thought of trying to get the stuff for my old 97 F-350 with the 7.3 diesel.
Bullet proof for sure!