Amping vehicle

[mistyreiny]

I only do tent camping on all of my camping trips, however my sister recently totaled our original camping vehicle, she ran into a fast moving tree. Not joshing you either, that oak tree had to be growing at a pace of about 1 inch per year. We had been using a 2005 toyota sienna minivan, plenty of room for all of us and our gear, but now I am looking to buy the camping vehcil, used of course. I finally decided on what camping vehicle to look due to its high mpg, a honda civic diesel. 'does anybody on here have any experience driving diesel cars? if so, How much does weight hurt a diesel car engine? I know that for every 100lbs on a gas engine, you drop the mpg by about 2%. But is a diesel in the same ballgame as the gas engine under these circumstances? I want personal experience, hence why am I on this site. The diesel civic is around 45-50mpg, gas civic is high 20's, low 30's, those numbers are without extra people nor gear in the car. I want the rough numbers for a diesel civic with weight. If not, your recommendation would be quite helpful to verify or reject my conclusion. My conclusion is as follows:
Yes, weighing down a car does hurt its mpg, but how much it hurts is a factor of its curb rating and how high its mpg is unloaded. Now the civic is a light car, so its mpg should be hurt a lot by additional weight, but it is a diesel, not a gasoline engine.Therefore due to the type of fuel it burns, it should absorb and overcome the additional weight without affecting mpg. Could somebody verify or reject this conclusion?

[mhampton]

Re: Amping vehicle

I wish I could help you. I'd be interested in seeing this information, too.

[bluestar99]

Re: Amping vehicle

Well, right now you have to decide if you are a gambling man or not. Diesel cost much more gas right now. If it stays that way you are losing a big part of the advantage diesel offers. Plus diesel repairs tend to cost more then gas engine repairs. Buying a used diesel would be a bigger concern for me then a gas engine. I have a friend that has a diesel VW wagon he travels with. He tows a small teardrop trailer with it. When gas and diesel were close in price he always talked about his great MPG. Once gas prices dropped he stopped mentioning it. I'm not sure about used prices but a new car with a diesel engine costs several thousand dollars more then the same model with a gas engine. Personally unless I was going to be traveling all the time with this vehicle, I'm not sure there is any real advantage to a diesel.

[MacGyver]

Re: Amping vehicle

One great advantage of a diesel engine, definitely applicable here, is for towing and hauling heavy loads. They have more low end torque than gas engines, so they don't have to be revved up to get going. That translates to less of a loss in miles per gallon versus gas. While it's true that repairs are more expensive than with gas engines, they're infinitely more reliable to begin with. It's not unheard of for a vehicle to rust out before the engine goes belly up.

[Shadow]

Re: Amping vehicle

I just came here because I was curious what an "Amping" vehicle was. Thought maybe it was an electric car.

[tplife]

Re: Amping vehicle

Diesels have higher per/mile costs vs. a gasoline engine. A Civic is no larger than my hatchback Prius, which has the lowest /mile cost of any tested vehicle by Consumer Reports for fuel and maintenance. With 2" receiver hitch, Coil Rite air suspension and a Curt lighting harness, I can haul three people, 3-nights hardwood, water food and gear. I like diesels, but I'd avoid one unless I needed it for Towing Capacity. I'm not seeing you mention any use for towing for your car.

[Bigdog57]

Re: Amping vehicle

I can replace the gas engine in my E150 for what a moderate repair would cost on a diesel, and still have money for gas. I have no desire for diesel. I also think that "2% loss of MPG per 100lbs weight" is highly dependent upon the vehicle type. My minivan gets 20MPG average whether it is empty or packed with gear.
A buddy's Ford F350 4X4 Diesel gets 17MPG whether empty or towing a fair sized trailer.
Small cars will show the most difference. That high mileage comes with limitations. Loaded it will still do better than my vans, but I can carry a heck of a lot more. Just different preferences.

[Mike]

Re: Amping vehicle

Look at a Honda fit. Even with a gas engine, they get around 38 mpg. The back seats fold down flat so you can get a lot of gear inside. I can get a passenger, a BIG dog, and tons of gear in ours. I also put a canoe on top. Being loaded down like that usually reduces mileage by about 3 to 4 mpg, but I still get over 30 mpg.

Small diesel engines can be temperamental especially in cold weather or as they get older. The last thing you want is to be in the middle of nowhere on a cold wet day and not be able to start your vehicle.