Is there such a thing as good fuel mileage on an RV?  With gas prices climbing as they are, it seems like the worst time to buy an RV.  Maybe even the worse time to own an RV, sadly.

What's the best fuel mileage you've ever been able to eek out of your RV?  Is a joke to even think about such a thing?

We have an '04 diesel pusher and get 8.7 mpg, but we do use our generator often while on the road between our destinations (sometimes 2 or 3 nights in a row at Wal-Marts).  We're full-timers with no other home, so fuel is just part of our living expenses.  We put about 6,000 to 8,000 miles a year on the rig.

I get fantastic mileage. That is, if you compare a Tahoe or Suburban type vehicle that weighs only 6,000 odd pounds and gets only 10mpg while my 48,000 pound 45foot complete house on wheels behemoth towing yet another vehicle gets 7mpg. Wow! So, what's in your driveway???

Yep, on a relative basis that is fantastic mileage. And, I don't have a lawn to mow or a garage to stuff with truly needless stuff that I buy just because I can. Yep, I am a firm believer in the late George Carlin's "Stuff" monologue. Have a listen and think about it!

There are Class B campers that get 10-15mpg+ and Class C models that get  8-10mpg and Class A models that get 6-8mpg. Like cars, they are all different but all within a few mpg's of each other. Is a couple of mpg's really going to make any difference? Probably not in the big scheme of things.

Frankly, as a buyer, it is the positively BEST time to buy. So many folks have the same thoughts as you and are dumping rigs left and right. They really have not looked at the bigger picture. The "what you don't spend money on as an RV'er vs a homeowner" picture. That's all right, it's our gain, their loss.

Read through this forum and you'll find plenty of discussion about what the "real" impact of higher fuel prices is. Generally, it means we spend more time smelling the roses than in the past!

Now, how can that be anything but great?

Also look at cost of heating a home. Here in the northeast, most of us use fuel oil. My 12 month budget jumped from $225. a month to $393. OUCH! I would rather spend that $393 on diesel and travel than heating this house.

Recently on this forum or another, one of the fulltimers put gas mileage into the proper perspective for me.

He said if you think in terms of cents per miles it's not so bad. Here's the calculation he used for an RV that gets 8 miles per gallon.

Divide $5.07 (current price per gallon of diesel in town) by 8 MPG and you get 63 cents per mile.

A vehicle getting 10 MPG works out to about 51 cents per mile. Even better.

Compare that to the cost to fly which averages about 65 cents per mile with an overnight stay in a hotel plus a one day car rental.

I'd much rather travel in the RV.

63 cents per mile doesn't seem as bad as 8 MPG at $5.07. It's a mental thing, an optical illusion for my mind.

  My brain is full can I go home now ?

-- Edited by thebearII at 12:43, 2008-07-09

We don't need to set at home and wring our hands over this. Life is too short for that. You know most of us or on the down hill side of that roller coaster...enjoy the ride while you can. So you pay more to get from point A to point B. Stay longer save some Diesel $ and move on. As one of our family members said..."that gives you more time to smell the roses". and more time to spend with Ol Speedy..God knows I wont have the money to jump all over the country side... but I bet I have more fun than the people setting at home worring about the price of Diesel! See ya at the gas pump Speedy