I recently bought a 2005 16 ft Scamp with the side bathroom. It costs me 10 mpg at about 65mph towing with a Toyota Sienna which i think is probably more windage related than weight related. I don't expect to spend much time plugged in to shore power so i have been thinking about removing the AC and replacing it with a low profile marine hatch to remove some wind drag. I was wondering if anyone has been able to directly compare the mpg with and without that huge AC on top. These things are not very clean aerodynamically with all the stuff on top. I have owned a VW Passat TDI and was something of a hypermiler and just a pair of Yakima rack bars cost 2-3 mpg.
Wed, 08/21/2024 - 07:11
#1
Fuel economy with and without AC on top.
Don't recall anyone has compared fuel mi with or without, but I doubt you'd see much difference without. Over the years and pulling all kinds of different combinations of TV's and Molded FG trailers, the big differences I've had in MPG is based on the tow vehicle (TV) and wind more so than anything else. If the TV engine/drive train is robust it seems to pull with less mpg loss than a lighter duty engine/drive train.
I'm currently pulling a 19 Escape with a Ford F150 3.5 ecoboost and mpg is pretty good with that setup unless there are strong headwinds. Just my experience, but maybe more will weigh in here.
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