towing my new travel trailer
 

Just bought yesterday and had to tow it home from dealer approx. 200 miles away. All interstate driving. Camper weighs in at 4900 unloaded. I have a 3.5 ecoboost in a 2012 lariat, tow package. I only got 8-9 miles to the gallon in tow mode also flat landscape. Is this the norm or should I see better mileage. I pulled a toy hauler popup, before this and averaged 14-15 @ 3500 pounds. Any help is appreciated.

Difference in aerodynamic perhaps

How fast and/ or heavy were you on the gas? Head and/ or cross winds? Bigger trailer, more wind resistance? A lot of factors here. Check the plugs lately in your truck? Air filter? Gas Quality? Narrow it a bit and tow a few more times.

Yep. 8-12 is your mpg range depending on factors

Weight and frontal area. Here's a pic of what I guess is the manufacturers testing using different frontal areas.http://i1263.photobucket.com/albums/...ps09668c2f.jpg

That's about all you can expect, unless you slow it down. Once you step up to a full height TT, doesn't matter if it's 22' or 35', the mileage will be about the same on flat land.

My tall and wide Jay Flight 26BH weighed in from the factory at 5050 lbs. Loaded now, it's about 6500 lbs. Loaded and being pulled by my 5.0 Screw 4WD with 3.73 axle, I consistently get between 10.5 and 11.0 mpg at 60 mph. Nothing less but occasionally more.

My trailer is anything but aerodynamic. In fact it's one of the least aerodynamic campers out there, along with being one of the tallest. Lots of frontal surface area.

Yes, I'm pleased with my towing mileage.

The Ecoboost trucks are known to get lower towing mileage. They normally get between 9 and 10 mpg, so it seems you are right on par.

Pulling a low profile pop up will get you better mileage. Pulling my Starcraft Pop Up with my 08 Sport Trac 4.6L, I got about 14 mpg. Pulling with the same truck, my previous Jay Flight 19BH, I got around 9 mpg.

Pulling that 19BH with my 2010 F150 5.4L SCREW 4WD w/3.55 axle, I got around 10 mph. With the new 2012 26BH and 2010 F150, I got around 10 - 10.5 mpg. 26BH is 6.5' longer and about 1500 lbs heavier, but didn't take any more fuel to pull than the smaller 19BH. Why, because the frontal surface area is what really dictates your fuel economy. Weight and length don't affect mpg nearly as much.

Happy trailering!

2012 Eco with 3.73's. 5,500 lb RV trailer. 11 mpg @ 60 mph. This calculated over a 3,000 mile trip and a 4,000 mile trip. The Eco easily tows faster but that uses a LOT of fuel. Slow down, relax, it's safer, it's more economical.

Cross winds and head winds pull down mileage also. It's even worse if you are in wide-open territory. Only thing to help with that is to slow down.

Towing with cruise control on, in hilly terrain, uses more fuel that with it off. Why? Because it holds the truck back downhill and guns it uphill. In hilly terrain, let the speed build downhill and let it bleed off uphill.

I drive at ~62 mph (100 km/h) or less with the cruise control on.

Getting 10 mpgUS with the current ~7500# trailer with 66 sqft frontal area over 6400 miles.

Got 12.5 mpgUS with the old ~4000# trailer with 56 sqft frontal area over 13500 miles.