bigtiki Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 I see mileage claims from 15 to almost 30 mpg. 4 cylinder with a stick? I'd like some real numbers! My 6cylinder 1985 model Sunrader so far has got only 15, but the front brakes were dragging so it may improve. Mine is on the rack, getting new brake components, a new fender, and other deferred maintainence. I am going to sell it when all is repaired. I want to know what units get the best mileage as I intend on going overland all the way to Panama. I am traveling solo and may even buy a Vanagon or other vehicle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mulwyk Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 I see mileage claims from 15 to almost 30 mpg. 4 cylinder with a stick? I'd like some real numbers! My 6cylinder 1985 model Sunrader so far has got only 15, but the front brakes were dragging so it may improve. Mine is on the rack, getting new brake components, a new fender, and other deferred maintainence. I am going to sell it when all is repaired. I want to know what units get the best mileage as I intend on going overland all the way to Panama. I am traveling solo and may even buy a Vanagon or other vehicle. Well, we used to own a '80 Odyssey 20' with 4 cyl, 4 speed. Heavy old thing...we got a consistant 15mpg over the 10 years and 50,000miles that we owned it. A year ago we bought a '84 Sunrader 18' with 4cyl, 4 speed. It's lighter than the old Odyssey, but we were only getting 14mpg. Then this summer we undertook a mpg-improvement project...we gave the old girl a tune-up, and a set of Hankook tires. Then we removed 200lbs. of excess weight and cleaned up her aerodynamic drag by removing a couple of Maxxair vent hoods. The result of all this was a 30% increase in mpg. On a 3000 miles trip to the coast in August (over the Rocky mountains, down the west coast, then back over the mountains again) we were getting 18 to 20 mpg. Best run: 21mpg, Average 18.7mpg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xtioga Posted November 5, 2011 Share Posted November 5, 2011 milage vs power is always a good topic of debate...my experiences with toyota 4cyl vs 6...iv'e had 4's in trucks, 4runners, and my 21' sunrader that is currently dieting..ie loosing weight thru a remodel diet, i liked the 4runner i had with the 6, much better power but very crowded in the engine bay when it came time for tune ups and other maintenance. i always was impressed how tough the little 4, 22r or 22re, was, i put 350xxx mi on one that never caused me grief. so for me i'll go a little slower and get there without trouble..another idea for a solo central america journey might check out the 84-89 toy vans, i just found one with a 5spd and 2spd transfer case and locking hubs, powered by a forklift type motor they are also known for reliability, the one i got was less than 2K and will need some interior camper modifacations but for solo travel the only thing better is my BMW motorcycle....when the sun is out.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bajadulce Posted November 7, 2011 Share Posted November 7, 2011 My original 18' 20r 4spd Sunrader averaged just under 22 mpg over a 4,500 mile trip. Most of the speeds under 55 mph btw and as low as 45 mph for extended periods. Like mulwyk describes, it had very very little weight. No grey/black water tanks, nor oven, water heater, blah blah blah. My shell is now even shorter by 16", but is on the 3.0 V6 4x4 with bigger 15" rims/tires etc. I have no idea what kind of gas mileage I will get now, but a wild guess would be around 16ish maybe a tad more if I drive super conservative. Time and calculator will tell. If you're planning on doing some South American travel, you might just buy your vehicle there? You could get a hold of some nice diesel trucks that aren't available to us here in the U.S. You'd have to sell the car in the end (can't bring it back to states) OR leave it stored there for future trips maybe? I like the van idea as mentioned. I had several VW buses as a kid and they were great campers. Had a Toyota van too, but it lacked the headroom needed for a camping vehicle without some modification. The modern european van nowadays however is tall and really popular van camper such as the sprinter etc. Pricey tho. I guess one of the best options for us in the U.S. might be to do a diesel swap in our toys until future more efficient products become available to us. Pretty sad situation regarding fuel economy domestic trucks fit for RV/campers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob C Posted November 8, 2011 Share Posted November 8, 2011 My 20 ft Escaper (1988) 4 cyl/auto get right about 15 mpg. My high has been 17 but average is right about 15. This thing is fully loaded and heavy so I don't expect much better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giant in a Shoebox Posted November 11, 2011 Share Posted November 11, 2011 When shopping, I too saw claims of mileage between 15 and 22 mpg. These were all 20 and 22 r's. The claims didn't seem to depend on auto vs. manual transmissions at all. I've only taken one trip, but kept my foot out of it, driving with mileage testing in mind. The vehicle is a 21ft New Horizon, stick construction, not fiberglass body, 22re, auto trans w/OD. Driving a hilly course both directions with quite a bit of wind, much more head and side wind than tailwinds, 45-55 mph, full water tank one way only, it got 16.6mpg. That was about what I'd hoped it could do. I suspect that on an ideal trip over flat ground with no wind it could get near 19mpg, maybe 20 on it's best day. Having driven an older model with the 20r, the power difference is very noticeable, so much so that I doubt the smaller motor would gain anything in mileage as it's just working harder. I doubt a manual transmission would boost the numbers much either, unless you drove like a hyper-miler nursing the gas pedal to match gears and avoiding shifting as much as possible. I suspect that to exceed 20mpg you'd need a rig like bajadulce described, short and ultra light. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob C Posted November 11, 2011 Share Posted November 11, 2011 1000 miles so far and about 15.5 mpg. 20 ft Escaper which is alum framed 4 cyl auto with OD. I think that the AC unit on the roof hurts mpg a bit. My high mileage was 17 mpg over 150 miles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
85mirage Posted November 12, 2011 Share Posted November 12, 2011 my 85 22re 140k? automatic fiberglass Mirage with no bathroom gets 17-18mpg and i drive it hard have hit 85mph downhill. we should start a "fastest speed attained" thread! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mulwyk Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 my 85 22re 140k? automatic fiberglass Mirage with no bathroom gets 17-18mpg and i drive it hard have hit 85mph downhill. we should start a "fastest speed attained" thread! I hit 80 mph one time in a '80 Odyssey coming down out of Lookout Pass. I had my foot hard on the brake all the way down, sweat on my brow. The wife was gripping the dash and making some sort of squeeling noise. I think she was trying to tell me to slow down, but it just came out as SLO....EEEEEEE! We were passing everything... trucks, sports cars, motorcycles. The trees on the side were passing by so fast they were just a green blurr. I'll never do that again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bajadulce Posted November 14, 2011 Share Posted November 14, 2011 my 85 22re 140k? automatic fiberglass Mirage with no bathroom gets 17-18mpgNice! Gjob on the mpg for an automatic!I hit 80 mph one time in a '80 Odyssey ... The wife was gripping the dash... the trees on the side were passing by so fast they were just a green blurr. I'm getting jitters just thinking about this. You're crazy! Did you have to sleep outside that night when you got to your campground? My 16' fiberglass V6 5speed is so old and tired (175k?) would probably throw a rod or blow a headgasket if I tried to floor it on the open highway. I don't even want to tempt to see what it could do. 60ish mph feels about as fast as I want to go. Tho it will be funny when you 2 pass me in your larger rigs and blow me a kiss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
90toydolphin Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 maybe at the toy gatherings we need to have toy drag races. 100 foot dash???? ). matched engines???? all out v8 conversion 1/4 mile followed with old fashion barn raising to put them back together? maybe that could be a sitcom. mmmmmm i need a new profession. toys used as get a way vehicles? maybe a reality show where the toys are filmed sitting at repair facilities while the owners get in trouble at the local pub? maybe a horror flick called the Saws-all killings???? maybe 20-20 episode about marriages being destroyed by toys??? how about "life at a walmart" to the topic, the last three weeks i've gotten unreal mileage, it's been parked Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bajadulce Posted November 15, 2011 Share Posted November 15, 2011 I see you like all those cute smilies too! Nice sitcom ideas. The barn raising to put them back together is probably more like it in my case.. tho what harm could 100' of pedal to the metal do? I read you also have the V6 and are redoin a timing belt? Could I borrow some of your motivation for a day or 2? @ mpg being parked: We gotta do something about that. Mine's been parked (the camper at least) for probably 2 years (probably more like 3.5). Last camp trip I remember in old rig (1979 20r 2wd 5lug lowrider) was buying a 9ft custom hand built longboard from an oldtimer in baja (he must be close to 75 and still surfing!). I remember reassuring the guy that he wasn't just selling his handcrafted art to anyone never to see it again. "Don't worry you'll be seeing me riding this thing again next year and the year after that!" Well I'd hate for him to think of me as a liar. Parked RV = bad RV. gotta get this thing on the road...err offroad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
90toydolphin Posted November 16, 2011 Share Posted November 16, 2011 i'm actually not in need of the timing belt replace, for awhile yet, been done 30,000 miles ago, but looking ahead. therefore you can have all the excess enthusiasm i have. somewhere in my looking around on line i ran across some postings defending the v6 as a pretty good engine. as tough as the 22re? probably not. anyway, i did run across some listings for rebuilt units that might be worth looking into. wouldn't need as much enthusiasm, just a little more money. and the extra money may not be that much if you could pick up the engine where is it rebuilt. better get that board down to baja while he is still around chasing sharks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.