Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

I don't see a thread like this other than some specific questions, so let me know if I'm duplicating.

I'm interested to see what different setups are getting for fuel economy. Please share your setup, performance, if you use tow/haul settings, if you have any tips or tricks, and/or anything else that is helpful while towing.

I did a 400 mile round trip from N. Illinois to central Wisconsin this past weekend. Kept it in tow/haul mode the whole way. Did around 65-70 mph on the way up and averaged 7.5 MPG and knocked it down to 60-65 on the way down and averaged 9 MPG.

Setup is a 2011 Silverado and my 26ft. 2008 South Bay 825CLR on a tandem axle Mid-America trailer.

On my Toyota Tundra the tow/haul mode keeps the gearing low to have the motor help break by de-acceleration. But the gas mileage I'm getting is worth. I hardly use it unless I'm going through mountains. I get about 11mpg in normal mode with the 5.7 V8.

Towing mileage in a gas 1/2 ton tow vehicle is what it is. Not something I'm going to fret over. About the only new thing that is going to make a "splash" In 1/2 towing are the new diesels. I have have a friend that has the Dodge eco diesel and gets great mileage (I'm not really a Dodge fan). We will see where it goes from here. About 6-8 years ago all the major mfgs had 1/2 diesel plans then for some reason they were all dropped?

boocat wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 30, 2018 6:19 pm

Towing mileage in a gas 1/2 ton tow vehicle is what it is. Not something I'm going to fret over. About the only new thing that is going to make a "splash" In 1/2 towing are the new diesels. I have have a friend that has the Dodge eco diesel and gets great mileage (I'm not really a Dodge fan). We will see where it goes from here. About 6-8 years ago all the major mfgs had 1/2 diesel plans then for some reason they were all dropped?

Interesting that they were dropped but I think we're all aware of real benefits for us VS what makes money for them. Not being much of a Dodge fan I still have to give credit to them. My neighbor has an ECO diesel and it is quite an impressive truck. They don't make them anymore because they are fighting with the EPA.

My old truck gets gas mileage of around 15 highway driving and around 13 driving with a heavier than needed foot. In my inexperience, the longest and heaviest tow at that time was getting the boat 125 miles away. On a fresh fill pulling the empty trailer at 75 but scaredy cat towing the loaded trailer back at 55 with OD locked out we got 13. I have towed heavier things that probably put it at capacity. Great driving truck, I wouldn't ask it to tow at cap all the time though.

15-16 mpg without boat 8-9 with boat running 70, ford expedition

22 footer on tandem axle, pulled very infrequently with a Hemi. Drinks fuel like a sailor on shore leave, regardless of how fast or slow you go. That Hemi pulls like a freight train as long as you keep her fed. If I had to tow it to use on a regular basis, I wouldn't.

boocat wrote: ↑

Mon Jul 30, 2018 6:19 pm

Towing mileage in a gas 1/2 ton tow vehicle is what it is. Not something I'm going to fret over. About the only new thing that is going to make a "splash" In 1/2 towing are the new diesels. I have have a friend that has the Dodge eco diesel and gets great mileage (I'm not really a Dodge fan). We will see where it goes from here. About 6-8 years ago all the major mfgs had 1/2 diesel plans then for some reason they were all dropped?

Totally agree. It's gonna suck fuel, but it'll take us to the water!

Curious if anyone has a newer Duramax and what the fuel econ is....

2012 F150 Ecoboost here. Never made it to a weigh station. That's on my bucket list, but I'm pretty sure I''m towing in excess of 5000#. In tow mode I'm running 60-65 @ about 8 mpg. Plenty of power, I just set the cruise control.

What's your understanding of the purpose of the Tow/Haul switch? I don't think it's just for engine braking. My owner's manual just says to use it when towing or carrying a lot of weight--no reason why.

I always thought it was to keep the trans cool by keeping the torque convertor locked up sooner/longer, holding in lower gears longer, etc.
Todays engines & transmissions are totally under computer control are there are lots of sensors that tell the computers your speed, rpm, torque, fuel & air flow, trans heat, engine heat, what gear you're in, and maybe whether your windows are open or closed

If Tow/Haul isn't to save my trans or motor I'd rather get the slightly better MPG by leaving it OFF.

guy48065 wrote: ↑

Tue Jul 31, 2018 8:54 am

What's your understanding of the purpose of the Tow/Haul switch? I don't think it's just for engine braking. My owner's manual just says to use it when towing or carrying a lot of weight--no reason why.

I always thought it was to keep the trans cool by keeping the torque convertor locked up sooner/longer, holding in lower gears longer, etc.
Todays engines & transmissions are totally under computer control are there are lots of sensors that tell the computers your speed, rpm, torque, fuel & air flow, trans heat, engine heat, what gear you're in, and maybe whether your windows are open or closed

If Tow/Haul isn't to save my trans or motor I'd rather get the slightly better MPG by leaving it OFF.

My understanding is that it's both for the brakes and transmission. On my Silverado half ton, it turns off 6th gear which prevents the trans from shifting between 5 and 6 all the time on the highway. I don't have a trailer brake controller so the engine braking helps me quite a bit. I'm not really sure why it would be helpful when hauling (not towing). I don't really see any mpg improvement when leaving it off.

In my PU what the tow haul mode does is change the shift points of the transmission. What it does is hold onto a gear a bit longer allowing the RPM's to climb a bit higher so when it shifts the engine is in a better torque range to supply the necessary power needed to obtain reasonable acceleration under load. It actually works great in my PU when under foot controlled throttle. But when utilizing cruse control I've found the shifting far to brutish for my satisfaction and fear potential transmission damage in exchange for my bit of laziness a potential expensive trade IMHO.

I've been towing with a Lexus GX 470 lately since it'll seat 8 if I'm bringing a crowd, It's a 4.7 V8, I get 17MPG without towing and just over 11MPG towing. My boats fairly light. 18' tri-toon weight with trailer is around 3k.

I too have the tow/haul mode with aggressive downshifts, a wise old trucker once said "brake shoes are much cheaper than transmissions"

Other variables to consider are the height of your boat, with a cover on and if the bimini is stored up or down. I tow with a 3/4 ton PowerStroke with a cap and my boat has 27" toons sitting on a bunk trailer with the bunks raised a little and 13" tires. At about 65 MPH it's like I hit a brick wall when towing the pontoon and the brick wall is lower of I am going into a headwind. On a flat road my pontoon boat tows harder at 75 MPH than the 10,000 lb fiberglass cat I used to tow. I get 11-12 MPG running 70 MPH.

We pull our 20 foot toon with a 2010 Toyota 4 Runner SR 5 / 4.0 V6. With the boat in tow we get about 16.5 mpg. Without it about 19 to 20.