Duramax van mileage

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Steve Peterson - 07 Oct 2006 16:33 GMT

I am looking at buying a Chev 3500 2wd van with a Duramax diesel in it for
my business. I will be hauling about a 1500 lb load and towing a V nose
tandem axle cargo trailer with trailer and cargo weighing about 6000 lbs.
The other van I am considering is the Sprinter although with the lower HP
rating and towing capacity (5000 lbs) I am having second thoughts about the
Dodge. My question is what fuel milege can I expect with the Chevy without
the trailer in tow? The Dodge information lists MPG loaded and unloaded,
City and Freeway at 55 and 70. Does GM list any of the mileage specs?

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Steve

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Ron Recer - 07 Oct 2006 17:25 GMT

>I am looking at buying a Chev 3500 2wd van with a Duramax diesel in it for
>my business. I will be hauling about a 1500 lb load and towing a V nose
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
>the trailer in tow? The Dodge information lists MPG loaded and unloaded,
>City and Freeway at 55 and 70. Does GM list any of the mileage specs?

I can't help with the van mileage, but I can tell you what my mileage on 2
Chevy Crew Cab Long Bed Duramax Dually with Allison transmissions and 3.73
rear ends has been.

'01 2 wheel drive (5 speed Allison)
17.58 mpg for 59,038 solo miles (most highway driving at 65 mph)
9.65 mpg for 36,592 towing miles (most highway driving at 65 mph) with a 5th
wheel weighing about 14,000 pounds.

'06 4 wheel drive (6 speed Allison)
17.50 mpg for 13,219 solo miles (most highway driving 60-65 mph)
10.19 mpg for 3,831 towing miles (most highway driving at 65 mph) with a 5th
wheel weighing about 14,000 pounds.
8.97 mpg for 3,019 towing miles (most highway driving at 65 mph) with a 5th
wheel weighing about 15,700 pounds.

The '06 isn't really broken in yet and the mileage is still going up. We
just returned from 2 months in Montana where I drove 6,654 solo miles and
averaged 19.05 mpg.

Hope this helps.

Ron

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Kevin - 07 Oct 2006 21:10 GMT

> I can't help with the van mileage, but I can tell you what my mileage on 2
> Chevy Crew Cab Long Bed Duramax Dually with Allison transmissions and 3.73
[quoted text clipped - 19 lines]
>
> Ron

Your mileage while towing seems very low for oil burners! I get between 8
MPG and 9.5 MPG towing our 32' fifth-wheel w/ slideout using an '02 2500HD
crew cab long box 4WD 4.10 w/ the 8.1L gas and Allison!

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Ron Recer - 08 Oct 2006 00:04 GMT

>> I can't help with the van mileage, but I can tell you what my mileage on
>> 2 Chevy Crew Cab Long Bed Duramax Dually with Allison transmissions and
[quoted text clipped - 23 lines]
> MPG and 9.5 MPG towing our 32' fifth-wheel w/ slideout using an '02 2500HD
> crew cab long box 4WD 4.10 w/ the 8.1L gas and Allison!

Your truck is a lot lighter than my 3500 and your trailer is a lot
smaller/lighter. To pharase it the way you did, I get between 7.00 and
11.52 mpg. All depends if I am mostly going up hill, down hill, with the
wind or against it. It takes about 25,000 miles to 'break in' a diesel and
I don't have that many miles on it yet.

Ron

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Steve W. - 08 Oct 2006 14:30 GMT

> I am looking at buying a Chev 3500 2wd van with a Duramax diesel in it for
> my business. I will be hauling about a 1500 lb load and towing a V nose
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> the trailer in tow? The Dodge information lists MPG loaded and unloaded,
> City and Freeway at 55 and 70. Does GM list any of the mileage specs?

Personally I would drop the Sprinter off any list. They have been so bad
with the front brakes and front hub assemblies failing I wouldn't even
look at one.

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Steve W.

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Steve Peterson - 08 Oct 2006 17:36 GMT

>> I am looking at buying a Chev 3500 2wd van with a Duramax diesel in it
>> for my business. I will be hauling about a 1500 lb load and towing a V
[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]
>> MPG loaded and unloaded, City and Freeway at 55 and 70. Does GM list any
>> of the mileage specs?

I am presently running a 2000 Chev HD 2500 old style body 2WD pickup with
5.7, 4L80E, 3.73 gears and I get 17.5 unloaded, 12 mpg with the tandem axle
cargo trailer and topper and 9-10 mpg with pop up camper and the trailer.
What got me thinking about a van is the mileage the Dodge literature is
claiming, anywhere from 21 to 30 depending on configuration. Also the fact
that once my camper is set up it takes 20 min to tear down for a trip to get
supplies.
I have heard about other problems with the Sprinter from my FedEx driver
including complaints about the rear door hinges failing and rattles on rough
roads.
With the Chevy I would have to opt for a cargo box installed by the
aftermarket in order to get the height to be able to stand up in the van. I
find it curious that option isn't offered by GM.

Thanks for the info guys!
Steve

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greek_philosophizer@hotmail.com - 14 Oct 2006 21:22 GMT

> >> I am looking at buying a Chev 3500 2wd van with a Duramax diesel in it
> >> for my business. I will be hauling about a 1500 lb load and towing a V
[quoted text clipped - 22 lines]
> Thanks for the info guys!
> Steve

2007 Dodge Sprinter is completely redesigned.

Been on sale in UK since May 2006.

We get them in January.

3 liter v6 diesel.

Ih has an adaptive stability program, url below should get many links

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=mercedes+sprinter+adaptive

Looks much better.

.

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