Teardrops n Tiny Travel Trailers

Last weekend I helped my Dad bring a big camper back from West Texas. It ended up a little over 1100 miles round-trip. On the way back I found myself uh, taking advantage of the 80MPH speed limit on I-10. So, what's your comfortable towing speed. Yes, if I had the time I would have driven much slower to conserve fuel and not incur $300 in gas on my credit card. But my "comfort-zone" was at home and that's where I wanted to be...

I usually run at 70 mph, but where legal run 75 plus.
Trailer (with brakes) and tow vehicle are well matched and balanced...very important for high speed towing!:shock:


Rob

Last week, I had the time to do an experiment. My kids live in Eugene, Oregon which is about 200 miles from where we live. I was driving our '02 Nissan Xterra, 6 cyl, automatic transmission. I used regular gas. There are five mountain passes between us and our sons. We were towing our Camp-Inn 550 Ultra SUV that was loaded to 1900 pounds total. On the way there, using the cruise control set at 70mph we got 12.9 mpg. On the way home, same load, cruise control set at 55mph, we got 18.1 mpg! I've always been a 'fast' driver. Going 55 drives me crazy. It seems like it takes forever to get anywhere. BUT, after this experiment, I am a reformed driver. I've seen the light! Besides, going 55 gives you more time to enjoy the scenery. Doesn't it?

I know what you mean about the 80mph speed limit. What I ended up doing was going the truck speed limit and staying with the trucks. There was a huge gain in slowing down that little bit. Plus, whenever I came on a DPS trooper I didn't have to worry about having to slow down.

I have taken my tear up to 90mph but I usually tow at 65-70 with either vehicle.

I got those iddy biddy tires and have to stay slow. 65 would be pushing it I think. At least for me.

I drive a lot slower with the TD and it SAVES $ The other weekend I went camping, it was 100 miles round trip, and I got better mileage in that 100 miles that I had before in my 93 Explorer. 17 mpg with the TD, not to shabby.

Mk

Ummmmm, whatever I can get away with.

I tend to drive to get where I am going and am totally comfortable pulling any trailer so whatever the traffic is doing, so am I.

The aero of the teardrop has a great effect. The typical teardrop design is a wing and acts as such. Our 500/550 Camp-Inns start getting breaking into turbulent lift around 63 mpg or so. Beyond that speed you will see a noticable loss in mileage.

Ron's trip to Eugene is a perfect example of that. Going a steady 55-60mph with that trailer pays off big in mileage. When you start sneaking up on 62 or so you are still taking the air clean off the back but cutting it close. Above that and you can actually feel it pull on you some.

With the 560 series having a longer cord it has a higher speed number for the aero. Don't know what it is. I do know that if I go 75mph it doesn't have much effect on mileage for me personally. Need to determine that one some time.

Cary

Ours is taller than the truck and we really see a drop in mileage above 60mph. Also need to drop the hitch because it sits slightly high and will do a little dance if a fast truck goes by or the wind gusts too hard.

As one that has recently been cited by the Calif HP....stick with the trucks at least in this state. The several hundred dollar fine in total, hassle and traffic school wasn't worth it. I was cited for 65 while pulling a trailer. Doug

I can't generally feel my TD behind me at highway speed, but I'm sure I pay a price in fuel economy as I go faster.

With or without the TD, I tend to "go with the flow" of traffic, and on long stretches of Interstate highways, try to find a speed where I can set the cruise-control and not have to mess with it.

I also keep my TD tires at about 25PSI to keep the TD from bouncing as much. The tires stay cool, so I know they are safe at that pressure, but I probably hurt my gas milage just a bit.

Here is a paragraph from a Road & Track article that explains how the amount of power (energy) needed to move a car through air increases as speed increases. This example talks about what it takes for a car to go 200 MPH, but you can still see the pattern at lower speeds.

... it takes gobs of power to reach 200 mph. The air resistance grows with the square of speed. Stick your hand out the side window of your car at 60 mph and feel the resistance. At 180, that force will be nine times stronger, should you be foolish enough to give it a try. Don't. And at 200, it will have more than 11 times the force! What's more, because the power requirement of a car grows with the cube of speed, this means it will need 37 times more power to go 200 mph than to maintain 60. It boggles the mind.

I'm not a speed demon any more. Around here the top speed limit is very seldom above 65 and with that I run about 67-68, just so I don't get lumped in with the Old Geezers.

But for the most part I run at 55.

The big thing though is that I try to run with my Tachometer at 22-2500 RPM's at what ever speed that is.

Thats where my truck gets the best MPG's.

Happy Trails

Len

I do have Z rated tires on my tear, they came off my 69 Camaro when I put bigger breaks on it.

My 2002 Camaro has a 6 speed double overdrive trany, it runs at about 1200 rpm at 65, so that is about as slow as I can go in high gear with the trailer in tow. On the trips that I have done it has gotten a little over 20 mpg.

len19070 wrote:The big thing though is that I try to run with my Tachometer at 22-25000 RPM's .......

Happy Trails

Len

Damn Len!!! What kinda motor you got in that thing??????

Why is everyone going so fast?. We're supposed to be on Teardrop Time.

Nitetimes wrote:

len19070 wrote:The big thing though is that I try to run with my Tachometer at 22-25000 RPM's .......

Happy Trails

Len

Damn Len!!! What kinda motor you got in that thing??????

I'm thinking he got one of the Ferrari formula-1 leftovers, but I don't think even those can do 25000 RPMs.

CD