eco Diesel Jeep Grand Cherokee 20.8 MPG at 55MPH

[bell]

Towing 24 foot ELKMONT 55MPH the new Eco Diesel will get 20.8MPG

[mecicon]

What are the HP and torque ratings of the beast?

[bell]

tow rated at 7400lb,8 speed electic shift,no tow mode,can be driven as 8 speed straight drive on steering wheel.

[Padgett]

Pretty sure it is 240 hp @ 3600 and 420 lb-ft @2000. It is a nice design but for what I do, my Pentastar suits me. 20.8 with an Elkmont (barn door) is impressive.

[Stone859]

Just curious, was this a one-time high time reading (of course head-wind makes a difference) or is it an average. Also, what kind of milage does your Jeep get if you drive at the same 55mph with NO trailer? We're towing a 24' Elkmont with a 2000 Suburban 2WD and a 5.3L, and at 55-60mph we'll get 14mpg...and that's an average. If there's a pretty good wind at our back we'll get close 16mpg.

Conrad

[Padgett]

Must admit wind drag is the reason I did not consider an Elkmont, I run at 65 when towing and get 17-18 mpg of 87 PON, 21-22 at 70 when not. Both with AC on. Or 4.5 gal/100 mi at 22 & 5.9gal/100 mi at 17.

That is in Florida flatlands where the highest point is a ride at Disney.

[hillbillyhotel]

just a fyi , that was a post from 2002. ,, if I was getting 14 mpg towing an elkmont, I would be ok with that, did not get that towing a tt ,

[Padgett]

Which ? The Jeep eco diesel/8 speed just became available in the US this year.

[mecicon]

just a fyi , that was a post from 2002. ,, if I was getting 14 mpg towing an elkmont, I would be ok with that, did not get that towing a tt ,

I think you may be confusing his "join date" (upper right hand corner) with the date of the post. :confused:

[hillbillyhotel]

yup :confused:
tks , what was I thinking? sorry folks

[bell]

I drove round trip from Carolina Beach NC to Myrtle beach SC 180 miles 33mpg with out the trailer.

[Stone859]

The milage calculations are interesting and being able to get that kind of milage towing a travel trailer has got to make you feel good. Years ago we had a Coleman pop-up trailer and towed it behind a Toyota pick-up truck and it did a great job...we could hardly tell it was back there. Not to hi-jack this thread, but: has anyone tried to put one of those "wind deflectors" on there tow vehicle...you know the ones you mount on the roof to help push the wind over the trailer? We have one and tried it on our Jayco trailer years ago and it didn't seem to make much difference. However, on our Elkmont we can really see where the bugs and dirt hit just the top 20% of the trailer (on our Jayco it was not that way...maybe because it was further back from the Suburban or the front of the trailer had more of an angle). Maybe this would help with wind resistance...the wind can make such a huge difference...but not nearly as much difference on our Elkmont as the trailer we had before this one. That one was an "extra tall" (took like five steps to climb up into it) 2011 Outback. Now that trailer was a nightmare to tow!

Conrad

[Padgett]

NP. Now if that was the worst of my brane fades I'd be happy.

BTW I really like diesels particularly turbo diesels like the new GC. But the $6-$10k premium plus diesel being about 20-25% more than 87 PON around here and it does not make sense for me. My TV is flex-fuel so if things go bust all I need is a still in the back yard...

[mecicon]

My TV is flex-fuel so if things go bust all I need is a still in the back yard...

Come on Padgett, you sure you don't have an active still already? :new_all_c

All in good fun. ;)

[funpilot]

NP. Now if that was the worst of my brane fades I'd be happy.

BTW I really like diesels particularly turbo diesels like the new GC. But the $6-$10k premium plus diesel being about 20-25% more than 87 PON around here and it does not make sense for me. My TV is flex-fuel so if things go bust all I need is a still in the back yard...

If you get the Ram Ecodiesel the premium is under 2K list last I looked.

[LoveToCamp]

Also, when pricing a GC Limited (lowest model one can get a diesel in), going from a 5.7 Hemi w/8-spd tranny, the price increase for the diesel is only $1,300. I like to compare comparable situations, and not extreme low-end to high-end. Someone looking for a diesel would not likely be considering a 6-cyl GC,

Also, the differential between diesel and Regular gasoline in the Denver area is much less than 25%. Much of the time I pay 20 cents a gallon more for diesel, which at today's $2.89 Regular price is 7%. Put the difference at 50 cents, which is rare around here, and the differential is 17%.

Then, throw into the mix that I get 30+ mpg on the hwy at 75 mph (not towing), while my wife's GC 5.7 Hemi gets 18 mpg, the diesel makes more sense. Put the TM behind each vehicle, and my diesel gets 20+ mpg, while the wife's 5.7 Hemi gets 15.

I will take my diesel GC over any version of GC gas engine any day, for my uses.

[Stone859]

Not to beat a dead horse but: One more consideration would be the increased resale value of a diesel powered vehicle over a gas powered one. I'll bet once you figured in this increase it would make the diesel not seem to cost that much more.

[mecicon]

Not to beat a dead horse but: One more consideration would be the increased resale value of a diesel powered vehicle over a gas powered one. I'll bet once you figured in this increase it would make the diesel not seem to cost that much more.

Well of course you paid more for the diesel, if it depreciates at the same rate the diesel will always retain more resale value (as long as the diesel is not a 1970's-1980's GM diesel). ;)

In most cases the model with a higher original MSRP will always cost more. :eek:

[Padgett]

Don't get me wrong, if I were in the market today, a turbo diesel will be a big plus (and we will see more diesels as the new MPG requirements go in place.

However, when I bought my GC in '12 there was no diesel available. Further when I buy a new car that I like it tends to be kept for decades (why I have a lifetime warrenty) and the V6 has proven to be fine for pulling the TM. The only downside was that after 20k miles the OEM tires began felling a touch squirrely in the rain so I replaced with Michelins.

BTW the mix may change dramatically in the next decade as new CAFE requirements (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_Average_Fuel_Economy#Agreed_standards_by _model_year.2C_2011-2025) take effect.

[Stone859]

It is not just the initial higher cost of the diesel that gives it a higher resale value, but vehicles with diesel engines depreciate at a lower "rate". You can read this in the attached article where the University of Michigan's Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI) spells this out in the attached article:

http://autos.aol.com/article/diesel-cheaper-gasoline/

In summary they say that the vehicles they tested saved between 10 - 39% in depreciation costs alone over there gas powered counterparts.

[Padgett]

Since the value of my '12 is a bit less than $2k less than when I bought it that would be hard to top. The issue with the GC is that the diesel is not avaliable on the lower lines in this country yet so you have to add a few high depreciation options to get it.

A Ram with a supercab would be the most efficient way to get the ecto-diesel but I have never had a pick-em-up truck & like my 50-50 weight distro.. For long items I can fold both the rear and the passenger seat down.

[Redtail Cruiser]

Since the value of my '12 is a bit less than $2k less than when I bought it that would be hard to top. The issue with the GC is that the diesel is not avaliable on the lower lines in this country yet so you have to add a few high depreciation options to get it..

Car values are a very subjective thing. A lot of wiggle room with interpretation. :rolleyes:

[Padgett]

Agree, why TrueCar (https://www.truecar.com/#/) is very handy for buying a new car/truck and NADA (http://www.nadaguides.com) is usually pretty good or a bit low about current real values.

Key is to buy right in the first place and in my case with the right timing & rebates I was able to buy a new GC with the V6 and towing package and 15 miles for just a few hundred than a 2011 with 10K miles. Then GCs became popular so the plant added more workers.

ps Have been towing with 6s since a '92 MiniVan replaced a V-8 stationwagon. My RV had a BMW turbo diesel and they are really nice but expensive in Florida & VVTi&e requires DOHC (or some really creative clockwork).

pps with direct injection & boost you can get close to diesel efficiency with 87 PON. That may be the next big thing.

[mecicon]

pps with direct injection & boost you can get close to diesel efficiency with 87 PON. That may be the next big thing.

The next big thing will be Hydrogen: Honda Clarity, Kia Muira even Toyota has a hydrogen model. The former remnants of the Big Three all have hydrogen powered models in the works.

If you want to eliminate carbon emissions you have to get cars (electric) off the grid and a hybrid is just a carbon-producing-small-gas-motor charging batteries.

Cars will be hydrogen, trucks will be diesel and soon only BMW, Ferrari, MB etc will be gas powered and even they will have a KERS like the F1 cars had this year.

[Bill]

... a hybrid is just a carbon-producing-small-gas-motor charging batteries.Agreed. Many folks don't realize that.

Cars will be hydrogenOf course, you have to ask where the hydrogen will come from, since all sources are energy-intensive. People say "We'll use solar and wind generators!", and in many ways it's not a bad solution except that it displaces solar and wind power from other uses. If carbon-fueled sources are used to make up the shortfall, little has been gained.

Bill

[mecicon]

Agreed. Many folks don't realize that.

Of course, you have to ask where the hydrogen will come from, since all sources are energy-intensive. People say "We'll use solar and wind generators!", and in many ways it's not a bad solution except that it displaces solar and wind power from other uses. If carbon-fueled sources are used to make up the shortfall, little has been gained.

Bill

You are correct, so let's go with methane. :eek:

If Nat Gas is utilized your carbon emissions are similar to hybrid vehicles.

http://qz.com/186432/why-hydrogen-powered-cars-will-drive-elon-musk-crazy/

Hydrogen is the most abundant element on the planet even though there are only 13 hydrogen fuel stations. So far.