Enclosed Trailers....

[Smokey]

Over the years I been getting bigger and bigger and bigger trailers. Started out with a Haulmark which was ok because I didn't know any better.

5 years ago I was short on space and picked up a 32 foot Team Spirit because of its size and it was twice as pretty and the same quality of a std Haulmark.

Since getting that I stepped up and go a decent diesel to pull it and was wondering about a Featherlite. I know some people here on the have them and was wondering since its all alumn and nicer yet on the quality level, do they get better mileage?? Or will I be stuck at going 59 mph if I want to get 15-17mpg??

[njsteve]

15 hauling? I can only dream of that with my 95 6.5 diesel K2500 Suburban and 24 foot Pace trailer. I get more like 9 mpg towing. What are you pulling with?

[Alss]

my 07 Duramax get almost 12 running 60-65..anything over that down to 10.5..pulling a 26 ft Pace, and thats alsmost the same running with the trailer empty. I looked into the featherlites..and went with Pace...the savings in price bought alot of fuel!

[kwhizz]

Duramax Diesels are the best general purpose vehicles ever developed for towing.......IMHO.....

[PxTx]

I've never owned a diesel. When comparing my 2001 Chevy w/ 8100 gas to a co-worker's 2006 Duramax I beleive the gas truck is much less expensive to own. My purchase price was significantly lower too. Talking stock for stock here and I admit that there are some diesel mods which really bring on the power.

I don't seem to see much difference in pulling my 28' enclosed loaded or empty. I would suspect at best that would be a fair comparison to the difference in a FL trailer. I get 13 mpg in my truck and 9-10 mpg pulling the trailer empty or loaded.

For the purpose of talking about economy and the cost to go X amount of miles, it seems diesel fuel is generally more expensive- pretty much making the few extra mpg towing a wash. It also seems like diesel loose mpg in the cold much more than my gas which is pretty consistant.

I also like the fact that I am not searching for diesel fuel when I'm out and about in PA. Now when it comes time to replace my truck, I'm not sure what options I'll have since the 8100 is NLA. I'll probaby end up with a Duramax, but I'm loving my gas truck for now.

Sorry for the rant, I think I did kinda throw my thoughts on the difference in mpg from the weight savings on the FL trailer vs what you have above. Just to repeat, I would expect the FL at best to bring you whatever economy you get when pulling what you have empty. The FL might be able to do the same, but loaded. Is that enough for you? What do you think that is on a 32' trailer?

[njsteve]

I bought the diesel back in 1995 when diesel fuel was around 35 cents cheaper than regular gas. Back then it made sense to pay the extra few grand for the diesel option as you would recover the money in fuel mpg savngs in around a year.

These days it doesnt make any sense, since diesel costs so much more than premium gas and you never recover your costs.

[Chevy454]

We've had a couple 8.1L rigs and 3 generations of Duramax trucks, and here are the general numbers I use when people ask about cost differences...

I've driven the same route to/from work (55mph speed limit, open highway) for 3+ years now, with 3 different 4x4 trucks...and I've kept nearly every fuel receipt I've ever gotten in this time. The 8.1L was a ccsb, and generally got 11-12mpg as a daily driver, and would *occasionally* slip in a 13mpg if I ran over to West Plains (25 miles of 65mph 4-lane)...and this was with an ecm tuned for mileage (Wait4Me). My LB7 Duramax was a cc/drw, and it would see 16-18mpg, but was a chronic injector eater as are all LB7s (unfortunately). My current truck is an LLY ccsb, and sees 15-17mpg, but will slip in an 18mpg if I see the 4-lane...dad's '06 gets nearly identical to my truck. Having said that, here are some numbers I use when people ask about cost to drive...

8.1L = $3.25/gallon, 12mpg = 83.3 gallons per 1,000 miles = $270.72 (regular)
8.1L = $3.55/gallon, 12mpg = 83.3 gallons per 1,000 miles = $295.71 (premium)
LLY = $3.75/gallon, 17mpg = 58.8 gallons per 1,000 miles = $220.50

The higher the fuel prices are, the more savings you'll see from the Dmax...plus, you can easily add a tuner that will gain mileage/power at the push of a button on the Dmax, versus the gas truck which will only see marginal gains. But, aside from the higher initial buy in price (you can really tighten it up if you buy used), you have the additional cost of 2 more quarts of oil at service time plus the price of a fuel filter every 15k miles with the Dmax. I loved my 8.1L, but my Dmax just does pretty much everything better...

[Chevy454]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Smokey</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Over the years I been getting bigger and bigger and bigger trailers. Started out with a Haulmark which was ok because I didn't know any better.

5 years ago I was short on space and picked up a 32 foot Team Spirit because of its size and it was twice as pretty and the same quality of a std Haulmark.

Since getting that I stepped up and go a decent diesel to pull it and was wondering about a Featherlite. I know some people here on the have them and was wondering since its all alumn and nicer yet on the quality level, do they get better mileage?? Or will I be stuck at going 59 mph if I want to get 15-17mpg??

</div></div>
The problem(!) is that's where your torque peak is on a Duramax, which means you'll get your best mileage in that neighborhood...

(all stock Dmax trucks have 3.73 gear and roughly 30.5&quot; diameter tire from factory)
LB7 = .71 5th gear, 1800rpm peak = 62mph
LLY = .71 5th gear, 1600rpm peak = 55mph
LBZ = .61 6th gear, 1600rpm peak = 64mph
LMM = .61 6th gear, 1800rpm peak = 72mph
LML = .61 6th gear, 1600rpm peak = 64mph

[RAIIIT/A]

My '05 GMC Duramax gets 15-16 towing(open car trailer) or empty.... driving like an idiot. The truck has an Edge products programer(which I keep cranked up.. LOL) aftermarket exhaust and an Airaid air intake. I am also running a 285/70R17 tire. The truck turns a mid 14 1/4 mile and pulls like a frieght train...

[kwhizz]

Not pulling the trailer, on the highway I'll get 20+ MPG with the diesel......Pulling the trailer I probably average 13-14 MPG.........The added plus with the diesel is that with the Torque, you basically don't know the trailer is behind you.....so, the driveability of the Diesel is way past that of a Gas engine........I've got a 2006 LBZ, maybe the new ones are better....

[PxTx]

This is a real helpful post. Seems like my gas engine has cost me $2,652 more in fuel to drive the 156k that I have on it now. Maybe I have more confidence and certainly more experience in my oil changes. I've only changed the oil every 10k in my truck, but it uses a quart (since new) about every 4-5k. Seems like my buddy with the 06 D is 2x as many oil changes as I am doing. I'm sure I would like a Duramax if I owned one.

Just to clarify, what kind of milage would you expect out of a Duramax pulling an enclosed trailer?

Are there any confirmed aero mods with measurable gains on mpg? Even if there were, for the few times a year I pull my trailer, I don't know if there would be a positive ROI.


<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Chevy454</div><div class="ubbcode-body">We've had a couple 8.1L rigs and 3 generations of Duramax trucks, and here are the general numbers I use when people ask about cost differences...

I've driven the same route to/from work (55mph speed limit, open highway) for 3+ years now, with 3 different 4x4 trucks...and I've kept nearly every fuel receipt I've ever gotten in this time. The 8.1L was a ccsb, and generally got 11-12mpg as a daily driver, and would *occasionally* slip in a 13mpg if I ran over to West Plains (25 miles of 65mph 4-lane)...and this was with an ecm tuned for mileage (Wait4Me). My LB7 Duramax was a cc/drw, and it would see 16-18mpg, but was a chronic injector eater as are all LB7s (unfortunately). My current truck is an LLY ccsb, and sees 15-17mpg, but will slip in an 18mpg if I see the 4-lane...dad's '06 gets nearly identical to my truck. Having said that, here are some numbers I use when people ask about cost to drive...

8.1L = $3.25/gallon, 12mpg = 83.3 gallons per 1,000 miles = $270.72 (regular)
8.1L = $3.55/gallon, 12mpg = 83.3 gallons per 1,000 miles = $295.71 (premium)
LLY = $3.75/gallon, 17mpg = 58.8 gallons per 1,000 miles = $220.50

The higher the fuel prices are, the more savings you'll see from the Dmax...plus, you can easily add a tuner that will gain mileage/power at the push of a button on the Dmax, versus the gas truck which will only see marginal gains. But, aside from the higher initial buy in price (you can really tighten it up if you buy used), you have the additional cost of 2 more quarts of oil at service time plus the price of a fuel filter every 15k miles with the Dmax. I loved my 8.1L, but my Dmax just does pretty much everything better... </div></div>

[ORIGLS6]

My son has an '02 D'max/allison 4WD Crew cab Dually. He has the tune-on-the-fly programmer, 5&quot; exhaust and an upgraded air box. He runs right at or over 20 mpg on the highway. I hooked my 20' enclosed trailer to it and it pulled the mileage down to 19! <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif He pulled a 40' open gooseneck with two mud trucks (full size 1/2 ton p/u), and still got 15 mpg on the open road.
The DuraMax engine is one of GMs best products, and like Rob said above, you can get pretty good pricing on them if you're looking to buy used.

[Chevy454]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: pxtx</div><div class="ubbcode-body">This is a real helpful post. <span style="font-weight: bold">Seems like my gas engine has cost me $2,652 more in fuel to drive the 156k that I have on it now. </span> Maybe I have more confidence and certainly more experience in my oil changes. I've only changed the oil every 10k in my truck, but it uses a quart (since new) about every 4-5k. Seems like my buddy with the 06 D is 2x as many oil changes as I am doing. I'm sure I would like a Duramax if I owned one.

Just to clarify, what kind of milage would you expect out of a Duramax pulling an enclosed trailer?

Are there any confirmed aero mods with measurable gains on mpg? Even if there were, for the few times a year I pull my trailer, I don't know if there would be a positive ROI.</div></div>
Oil changes are up to the owner's discretion, but my manual says every 3,000 miles for gas engines and every 10,000 miles for the Duramax. There seems to be the same mpg gap between the gas &amp; Dmax when loaded vs. empty (~5mpg) assuming the driving habits are the same...the problem I've noticed with our trucks, at least, is that our Dmax powered trucks pull the trailers so effortlessly that we tend to speed more often, which really seems to hurt the mileage because the turbo is moving so much more air.

And like Cumby stated, the newer diesels respond so well to such simple mods as an airbox and/or exhaust...many guys are getting their trucks tuned with EFI-live and seeing low-mid 20s empty. I tried and tried with my 8.1L, and while I loved that truck and it was a *great* truck, it never responded mileage-wise...taking the torque management off was worth the tune, though.

Aero mods...I've heard a camper shell helps, as does a wing to get the air over the nose of the trailer, or even switching to an &quot;aero&quot; trailer...but I've never tried any of the above.

I'm not sure I understand the part in bold...

[RAIIIT/A]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ORIGLS6</div><div class="ubbcode-body">My son has an '02 D'max/allison 4WD Crew cab Dually. He has the tune-on-the-fly programmer, 5&quot; exhaust and an upgraded air box. He runs right at or over 20 mpg on the highway. I hooked my 20' enclosed trailer to it and it pulled the mileage down to 19! <<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif He pulled a 40' open gooseneck with two mud trucks (full size 1/2 ton p/u), and still got 15 mpg on the open road.
The DuraMax engine is one of GMs best products, and like Rob said above, you can get pretty good pricing on them if you're looking to buy used. </div></div>

The Duramax engine is technically an Isuzu product..

[PxTx]

I was just doing some back of the envelope math factoring the aditional fuel cost per tank and roughly correcting for cost of fuel etc. Seems I've paid a couple grand more to get to the 150k milage in my truck than the costs to get there if it was a diesel.

Yeah, I get it the diesel make more torque, gets better economy and out perfoms my 8100. The more we compared the old 8100 to the newer Duramax the wider the gap becomes between the two.

The same way I cannot justify the purchase of a diesel for better fuel economy, from a ROI standpoint I think Chad is probably not going to be able to justify the FL trailer purchase using an increase in fuel economy- though I'm sure he could come up with several other good reasons to purchase a Featherlite.

[Born30YrsLate]

What if a guys want to buy a truck and enclosed trailer to haul his car around...think entry level, nothing fancy here.

-What is the minimum size motor you would want? Is a mid-2000s 6.0L vortec enough, this truck will also be the daily driver most likely. Towing will typically be within a 30-mile radius with one or two trips out of state.

-What is the minimum size trailer a guy would want to tow if transporting a typical musclecar, 20-footer?

[RAIIIT/A]

A 6.0 will be just fine. Prior to my Duramax.... I used an '03 Avalanche(5.3) to tow my Texas Rollback open trailer(which isn't light).... The avalance did just fine... with the exception of the rear squatting which could've been corrected.

I wouldn't want anything less than a 22' enclosed.... a 20 footer would be pretty tight IMO.

[PxTx]

I agree, the 6.0 would be fine and the 5.3 would be the minimum I would want. I did have a friend tow a 20' for 2 years with the 4.8 but he always talking about stepping up to a 6.0 which he did with an Escalade.

Although the 5.3 and a 20' is the minimum, I would say you stand a good chance of finding more for the same money spent if you are looking used.

I was looking for a 24' trailer when I found my 28' (locally but on ebay!). I now bring a golf cart and a scooter as well as all of the tools and a generator with me.

I'll bang the 8100 drum one more time in your case. It seems the 6.0 isn't really that great on fuel. Basically about 1 mpg better than the 8.1. The up side of the 8.1 truck is you get the Allison trans which will spoil you. With the price of fuel, people are afraid of big motors and you stand a good chance of getting a better price on an 8.1 than a 6.0 so for no real more money, you'll have something that is above the minimum and better suited for the task.

[olredalert]

-----Just remember that the easiest trailer to re-sell is a 24ft. white trailer. Theres always a landscaper around that will buy a 4 or 5 year old enclosed trailer. One piece roof is good and usually one model up from the cheapest. Featherlights and other premium trailers are great if you tow every or every other week but if you are a once a month or longer guy, I dont see the need to spend the extra money.......Bill S

[ORIGLS6]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Born30YrsLate</div><div class="ubbcode-body">What if a guys want to buy a truck and enclosed trailer to haul his car around...think entry level, nothing fancy here.

-What is the minimum size motor you would want? Is a mid-2000s 6.0L vortec enough, this truck will also be the daily driver most likely. Towing will typically be within a 30-mile radius with one or two trips out of state.

-What is the minimum size trailer a guy would want to tow if transporting a typical musclecar, 20-footer?
</div></div>

I'm pulling a 20' enclosed with an '04 Silverado 5.3. Although I can't rave about the performance, for the few trips I make each year it's doing the job. My previous '97 with the 5.7 handled the trailer better, but I have to admit I think it was a better truck overall, including daily fuel mileage.
Unless you're doing the race thing where you need all the tool boxes, tires, compressors,etc., a 20' will work. My Chevelle and Nova each fit fine with the rear tires just at the break of the dovetail, and I still have 4-5' at the front for luggage, coolers, whatever.
I'm using the load-leveler/weight transfer hitch and with just a little tension on the bars the truck and trailer both ride level.
(On a side note; if you go with the load leveler bars, .... DO NOT take too much weight off the tongue. Than can be disasterous.)

[SmallHurst]

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Born30YrsLate</div><div class="ubbcode-body">What if a guys want to buy a truck and enclosed trailer to haul his car around...think entry level, nothing fancy here.

-What is the minimum size motor you would want? Is a mid-2000s 6.0L vortec enough, this truck will also be the daily driver most likely. Towing will typically be within a 30-mile radius with one or two trips out of state.

-What is the minimum size trailer a guy would want to tow if transporting a typical musclecar, 20-footer?
</div></div>
24' trailer is most frequent and gives you enough room to put stuff in and stay dry and safe in the box.

As for the truck, that depends on the terrain and if you are going to be long hauls or shorter pulls.

I know of several guys that have older Vortec 5.7 liter Chevys, but they are not pulling big hills. 6.0 gassers do okay but, I have heard many really complain the unloaded mileage.

I have complained about mine, but the price and the ability that I can use it as a secondary/ dedicated tow vehicle. I was able to pick up a 1984 Ford F-350 460 gasser dually for a song and a dance. I have to keep adding little things to it and feed it plenty of gas, but the truck has plenty of power and is a lot cheaper that new truck payments.

[YENKO DEUCE REGISTRY]

Mid 2000's Chevy/GMC 2500HD with the 6.0 gas and 4L80E will pull a 8-9000 pound 24' box trailer all day long! Good, all 'round, efficient setup.

<<GRAEMLIN_URL>>/biggthumpup.gif

BTW, it can double as comfortable sleeping quarters with a queen sized air mattress - and camp out at Maple Grove Park campground for the multi day races!

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h68/aacorp/PaChampionshipCamping2.jpg

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h68/aacorp/PaChampionshipCamping1.jpg