So to wrap up the report part of this thread, here’s the skinny on fuel economy and other observations from towing the camper on a road trip that required multiple refuelings.
Load
I’ve not seen verbiage in the manual that satisfies the following question for me: “Is the capacity of the truck specified payload plus the specified tow capacity, or does the specified tow capacity of the truck include payload within that stated figure?
Not knowing that answer for certain, but aware of the litigious nature of the lunatics on the roadways, I choose to err towards caution. For my purposes in towing the camper I include payload (stuff loaded in the truck proper) within the amount specified as tow capacity of the truck. There is another subtle safety aspect to this: I value my own life but I cherish my wife and grandkids. I’m not going to overload the rig and create an additional level of risk for them.
With that noted, and give or take a few pounds for stuff I’ve not weighed (e.g., the snack bag, the grands tablet devices and such), the thumbnail below is what I’m moving along the highway:
Fuel & Fuel Consumption
Previous tows with the truck have been within 60 miles of home, so this was my first multi-day, multi-fill-ups experience with the Titan while towing. Nearly all of the towing miles were on 4-lane and interstate highways.
Over prior months I’ve experimented with the three grades of commonly available gasoline, including one month running ethanol-free regular. The difference in fuel economy numbers is minimal, but in terms of engine sound and general “ambience” this truck seems to like premium better than the other grades. Knowing this trip was coming up, at the first of the month I switched from regular in February to premium for March. All fill-ups for this trip were with premium grade gasoline. I expected the mpg’s to take a hit and they did, to the tune of 6 mpg less than my weekly average of 15 mpg.
Total miles 777.9
Consumption average: 9.65 mpg
Tank 1 was departure and thru B’ham at 55 to 60 mph.
Tank 2 was interstate at 60 - 62 mph.
Tank 3 was about 75% towing and 25% driving around Pigeon Forge w/out the camper.
Tanks 4 & 5 were the trip home at 63 to 65 mph, and or course with the camper in tow.
Whenever refueling I try to always park on a level apron. After the pump shuts off, I then “top off” twice. I do the top-off routine because pumps vary in flow rate, which affects suds-ing and the volume of fuel in the tank at shut-off.
Refill number 4 (which reflects mpgs for tank 3) was unavoidably filled on a sloped apron. Additionally, some 30 miles of driving on tank 3 was around Pigeon Forge without the trailer. So the uptick in mpg’s I consider to be a result of that those factors.
