I'm considering putting a hitch on my FEH to tow my dirt bike trailer (only about 700lbs loaded), but I'm concerned that my MPG will tank.

What mpg should I expect with my 07 FEH AWD? My usual driving (50% highway) yields about 33 mpg if I am careful.

What do you guys get with towing? Does it drop into the teens?

 

Three different individuals (I don't need to name them) have posted about towing with their FEH on this site. Your tow load of around 700lbs should not be an issue. Mileage during towing will vary depending upon a variety of factors. Report back and let us know your results.

 

I towed an 1100 pound trailer (weight loaded, used a certified scale for trucks) to the Florida Keys and back from Chicago. MPG was 27 for the entire trip according to the HEV computer.

Speeds were 65 to 70 the whole way. Could have done 75 easy, but figured MPG would go down. RPMs were about 400 to 500 higher than without towing for the same highway speeds.

Towing this weight was pretty effortless. This trailer is a small cargo trailer I built (enclosed) that is 4x4x9 for the box. So the height and width are within the frontal area of the 2009 MMH - minimizes any drag.

Dave

 

Thanks dzager....that is exactly what I was hoping for. Sounds like towing isnt THAT big of a chore for the FEH.

 

I moved from Florida to Utah carrying about 2700 lbs in the FEH. 2 mountain bikes, a kayak and scuba gear and 3 surfboards, camping gear, all on the roof. inside was packed full with the seats down and pulling a 8X10 trailer loaded. it can handle a few bikes on a trailer. np.

 

Based on my towing a U-Haul I think the MPG will be more dependent on the windage of the trailer than the weight. A U-Haul presents the aerodynamics of a brick. My mpg varied from about 21 to 25 mpg.

There was some discussion on this and some folks tried to posit that a trailer was close enough to the FEH to make the air flow across the gap between vehicles of little difference to wind resistance. Suffice it to say they don't understand gas flow around solid objects. The brick analogy holds.

I suspect that towing a dirt bike will present a smaller brick so I don't expect nearly as big a hit in MPG.

I feel the FEH is under-rated at 1,000 lbs load limit.

My tow bar is a Valley Engineering kit I put on. Nicely put together. Posted some info on it so go take a look.

 

I pull more weight than most... 3200 lbs.

And I can definately attest to the fact that wind resistance is much more of a drag than the weight... Unless you are on a steep grade of course.

On a level highway, there's not much difference in drawbar pull at 55 MPH or 65 MPH ( if not for wind resistance).

However, with my 7'W x 12'L x 9'H "brick" ( I call it a parachute )

55 MPH is basically easy to haul. ( 2500 RPM 19-20 MPG)
60 MPH is difficult, and (15 MPG )
65 MPH is almost impossible ( 12 MPG, 5000 RPM ) ( unless the road is downhill ).

I monitor with a scangauge and nothing gets hot at less than 65 MPH.


HTH,
-John

 

I tow a BBQ smoker (like a 600-lb refrigerator) once a year across GA. Smoker plus gear on trailer probably is in the 1500-lb range, with another 4-500lb in back. Last year I was running late and kept it up to 65-70mph the whole way. And watched the mileage readout drop the whole way. Not a huge deal- I think it dropped to about 24 by the end of the trip. No other problems.

 

I have towed my 4X8 dive trailer with 8 scuba tanks and enough dive equipment for wife and I, plus 2 big coolers filled with ice and such. I drop to about 24MPG doing 75 towing from Gainesville to the Keys.

I just bought a Segway, as I am going back to College to finish my degree. I have a hauler that hooks onto the hitch, so my Hybrid now tows another electric vehicle.

 

I think I win the weight award with what my Mariner pulled -

Jeep Liberty CRD (4300 lbs) by itself after the Liberty ejected it's #1 cylinder all over the road. Pulled it 500 miles, IIRC I think it got in the low 20s at 65mph.

But the BIG haul was the same Jeep with what turned out to be a plugged fuel filter... AND a 6x12 enclosed 3500 lb trailer on the Jeep! Mileage on that one was infinite however - It pulled it for 2 miles in ELECTRIC ONLY mode! Yea, over 11k lbs being moved by the hamsters Ford installed. These things have some capabilities that Ford never bothered to test to their true limits.