Lowest MPG???

[ranger97]

Has anyone noticed in the Viking advertisement on the home page of PUT the they say "Lowest towing MPG in the industry"???  Seems like it's kind of an ad for the competition.

[AustinBoston]

Yes, they say it backwards from what they mean.  It's been discussed before.  My opinion is, that is just sales speak.

Austin

[flyfisherman]

Ah, yes ... the MPG sales jargon (to put it mildly). I doubt if the Viking models the same size as my Starcraft would be any different aerodynamically; and I bet they have about the same Dexter axles, wheels and bearings.

Now, my Starcraft, empty, is light and real easy to pull around (even by hand!), but by the time I load all the junk I take with me aboard and strap the canoe on top of it (added wind resistance to boot), well ... a ton is a ton. And it takes a certain amount of enery to get it into motion, keep it in motion;  then the  additional energy required to climb those hills, not to mention the mountains!

My tow vehicle, a GMC small V-8 pick'em up, don't do too bad on gas as far as a pick-up truck goes ... providing ... one does all the maintenance requirements, watches the tire pressures and then drives accordingly.  Since gas prices started going through the roof I've been most diligent finding out at just what speeds the truck is the most efficient and just where that efficiency departs. The sweet spot for good gas mileage going down the highway towing the popup is 62 mph; and at 65 that good mileage starts to drop, especially towing.  On level highway around these parts, which is not too far from sea level, at 65 mph, I'll get an honest 19 1/2 mpg towing. Getting inland to the rolling hills, it'll drop a mile per gallon; then into the mountains at least another two, so that I can expect around 16 to 16 1/2 pulling through the Smokes. Going faster means the miles per gallon drops from there ... simple as that.



Fly