Re: Tow Vehicle

[adh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (Sandwich Maker)]

" From: "Jim Blair" <carnuck@xxxxxxxxxxx>
" 
" A: Must be something in the air! While I'm not a huge diesel fan, it's 
" taking much longer to build my ultimate AMC (one that will tow, go and crawl 
" a wall plus haul it all) so I have been looking at the new Dodge RV coaches 
" with Mercedes 2.7L turbo diesel. 25 mpg while towing a car trailer seems to 
" be average.

you mean something like
http://www.gulfstreamcoach.com/bvans/index.htm
?  coincidence indeed!  they caught my gf's eye the other day, so i've
been noodling around and found they're all mercedes, based on their
'sprinter' van:
http://www2.mercedes-benz.co.uk/content/unitedkingdom/mpc/mpc_unitedkingdom_website/en/home_mpc/vans/home/products/new_vans/sprinter/panel_van.html

but even with the 'high roof' option short on headroom [6'1"], so i
don't understand why they didn't start with the low floor bus chassis
variant:
http://www2.mercedes-benz.co.uk/content/unitedkingdom/mpc/mpc_unitedkingdom_website/en/home_mpc/buses/home/products/new_buses/sprinter/programs.0005.html
and
http://www2.mercedes-benz.co.uk/content/unitedkingdom/mpc/mpc_unitedkingdom_website/en/home_mpc/buses/home/products/new_buses/sprinter/technical_data/low_floor.html
except it would probably have complicated installing the water tanks,
generator, etc, which are under the floor...

also, this thing weighs 8500 lbs.  that 2.7 is the largest offered in
the sprinter but it still strikes me as tiny.  they could easily have
replaced this 5 with its 6-cyl brother from the e320, but even that is
barely half the size of any american truck diesel.  this bus would not
be a fun drive in traffic and just forget trying left turns.

" From: fljab@xxxxxxxxxxx
" 
" 
" I hear the diesel PU's get 20+ MPG.  The only person I know around here 
" first of is full of BS, and second has a crew cab, lifted, 4WD with auto 
" that I think is getting some 18-20 mpg if I can filter thru his crap 
" correctly.  I know other people "that knows someone" that only gets 14mpg. 
" The combo I stated above should do better than that by a decent margin.
" 
" Jim Boone

my engine friend has had several 4x4 diesel suburbans, all automatics
- one a 3/4t - and he regularly gets mileage in the 20s.
________________________________________________________________________
Andrew Hay                                  the genius nature
internet rambler                            is to see what all have seen

adh@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx                       and think what none thought