GAS or DIESEL Motorhome? We Compare Class A RVs with
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- čas přidán 3. 08. 2024
- There is a LOT of discussion and debate online about which type of engine is the right choice in a Class A RV, so we met up with Ben and Charity from @GratefulGlamper to compare our gas motorhome with their diesel pusher. We found a nice empty parking lot and walked around (and through) both of our rigs to talk about all the similarities and the differences.
In THIS episode we're taking a close look at the Five2Go 2016 Fleetwood Bounder 36E with the Ford V10 gas engine. Make sure to click on the link below to see the other half of this video - a tour of the Grateful Glamper diesel pusher and a discussion about the pros and cons of a diesel motorhome:
• GAS VS. DIESEL Motorho...
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Wow dorkville!
We have a 2006 Monaco Dynasty. It is a 42' diesel pusher. We have the Air Force One breaking system. All we have to do is connect a quick disconnect air hose and we are done. Well, as far as the breaking system goes. There is no inside breaking module to fool with. We have a side mounted radiator. This eliminates the over heating issues and leaves the whole back open to service the engine. That saves us a lot of money. My wife is handicapped. She has two steel rods and six hooks that hold her spine in place. When we were shopping everyone told us that for her comfort we needed to go diesel for the air ride suspension. As with anything there is different grades of everything. On a diesel pusher you can have anywhere from four to ten airbags in your suspension. Obviously the more air bags the smoother the ride. We are fortunate enough to have ten air bags. We have a Cummins 400hp turbo diesel engine. It has tons of power! We tow a 2018 Lincoln MKX. Lincoln says we have to stay under 70 mph when towing. I have to use the cruise control because it is way to easy to do 80 mph if you are not careful. Lol!!! Going up hills there is no down shifting. The engine pretty much stays at 1700 rpm at 67 mph. Going down hills I use the engine brake and rarely have to use the brakes. We have hydronic heat. This also gives us unlimited hot water on demand. It keeps the coach super warm in the winter. We also have an additional fan on the heating system. This allows us to heat the bays on really cold nights. This way none of our tanks or anything in the bays freeze. We also have a tag axle. With a tag axle we can carry more weight. Also the tag axle helps control sway and gives you a more stable ride. For fueling we can use the truck islands. This way we don't have to worry about finding a gas island we can fit in and get back out or ever have to worry about a car blocking us in. The nozzle on a diesel pump is twice the size of a gas nozzle so we can fill up in a fraction of the time.
That sounds like a pretty loaded rig, I love it!
Is hydronic heat what one seller said he had when he said he”took out the propane and put in a diesel heater under the floor”?
Thanks for having us over! We enjoyed hanging out with you all. We’ll have to do it again sometime.
Absolutely! Maybe we'll see you out east before too long!
I'm in Alabama living that #LakeLife. You're welcome to visit anytime! =) - Bloggin Brandi
I would think a diesel rig would handle much better than the gas rig, easier to drive, less effects from wind or trucks passing. I didn't hear that mentioned. With bigger wheels on that heavy Freightliner chassis it should be much quieter, as you mention. Those are the two major attractions I have to diesels, but I own a gas rig, which we're happy with, mainly due to ROI for our budget. If I won the lotto, I'd go diesel.
Hey, love yer videos. I drive a school bus, with a conventional hood, and that’s loud, but when we recently test drove a gas motorhome i was surprised at how much quieter it was than my bus. I also have driven a rear engine diesel school bus and true it is quieter but for the reasons you shown we are going gas class a. Thank you.
Didn’t know if I wanted an RV or camper. I was gonna live in mine for a few years. Buy one used have it fully checked out, ima truck driver (not OTR) but I’m saving up for something big
For me, it’s all about weight and towing. If you are 36 feet or less, the overall weight of the rig is less and gas is a good option (unless you regularly climb a lot of hills). Anything longer/heavier and the benefits of diesel power and torque really come into play. And if you need towing over 5000lbs, gas can’t begin to compare with diesel. Thanks Brian & Erin!
That's definitely the biggest consideration, literally and figuratively. Since we knew we'd be heading east and staying out that way for a while to be closer to friends and family we knew that gas would suit us power-wise. If we were still roaming all over the country like we did last time, we'd either get a diesel pusher or a truck and fifth wheel. We haven't had trouble with the mountains here yet, but I wouldn't want to tackle them frequently in this rig!
There will always be the gas vs diesel conversation with as many different opinions as there are different owners. My personal gas experience was way back in the day with a GMC motorhome. Up front access was very limited to normal things like fluid levels etc. Engine access was thru the doghouse inside. My 2nd motorhome was a Blue Bird Wanderlodge diesel pusher. Much quieter inside, excellent engine access outside, tremendous torque. But if I were in the market for another coach, I wouldn't exclude one engine over the other. There are so many other factors to consider. Great conversation & will look at the other vlog to gate their likes/dislikes. Keep up the good work & look forward to when you guys hit the road.
Ben and Charity had an older Pace Arrow gas RV (2000 or late 90's I think) and had some similar complaints, but the things they dealt with weren't present on our rig so I think manufacturers are making things easier to work on over time. I can get to everything fluid-related through the hood and the only reason to go into the doghouse is for top-end work.
I've owned both throughout my RV journey and while I prefer the gas mileage and efficiency of the diesel, the gas engine hasn't been too bad economically when you factor in the price difference in the two fuels at the pump. Being able to easily work on the gas engine is also a huge plus! Good Diesel techs are hard to find!
- Bloggin Brandi
Thanks Brandi! Our main consideration in gas over diesel is that we really don't need all that extra power and capacity for what we're planning on doing for the next 2-3 years. The upfront price of newer used diesels was just way too much for us.
We appreciate your smart pros & con comparison of gas vs diesel and related Fleetwood features from both a male & female perspective, thank you! You’re reminding folks how to have respectful conversation regarding different approaches. Well done! I follow both your channels now.
Thanks Jeffo! We're just trying to share everything we know while not forcing our opinions on anyone. You don't have to look far to find very anti-gas RV people but we think it's ridiculous to approach the discussion that way because everyone's situation and needs are different.
I actually love the back fill up, to tell where you are to the gas pump try using your side signal camera. Great comparison. It is personal choices and what you want to spend or afford
Another good video!
All things being equal a diesel will cost less in fuel even though diesel fuel is more. Also because of the oil capacity in a diesel you can go 12-15k before a change. So oil changes are a wash between the two.
I am with you due to cost. I wish a gas coach could work for what we want to do, unfortunately it can't. I am glad it works for you because it is a beautiful coach!
I look forward to seeing the steering upgrade, I am sure you will love it.
Thanks Josh! Erin's cousin and I just got done installing it and we're going to try and go for a test drive in the next couple days. I'm excited to check it out!
I enjoy getting the comparison between gas and diesel. Maybe someday that will be my future. Interesting nevertheless! Thanks for the thoughtful side by side.
Thanks Michael!
Great video! I’m having a hard time choosing between a gas or diesel class A or super C. I want to go with a nice gas rig because of the price, but I hear horror stories about the handling and noise. We’re just doing local weekend trips in Southern California and mountains are part of several of the drives. I’ll continue to watch the Five2Go channel before I buy our rig for a family of 4. Thanks for the tips!
The horror stories are absolutely overblown. Are they a bit louder on the road? Sure. But when I'm cruising at highway speeds all I'm really hearing is the wind and other noises up front. The handling can be "fixed" as well with a few upgrades, though it won't get to air ride quality. It really comes down to budget. If you've looked around already you've probably seen that diesels are significantly more expensive. If I were buying a rig for weekend use I would just focus more on floor plans, features, and price and not worry about what type of engine is in there. If you find a diesel rig that fits your criteria, awesome! If not, don't let the gas hate online get to you - both will get you where you want to go.
It all depends on ones needs as to which one fits you. I bought a Class A diesel 40 footer. We are still 10 years from retirement. So long weekends, and 4-6 week camp trips a year is what we do. A gas Class A is what I should have bought. I was an owner operator of 18 wheelers with big diesels all my life. So I was biased to diesels, but the gas is cheaper to maintain and operate. This myth about a diesel running half million miles, somewhat true and false. But there is lots of other components that fail way way before then and are very 💰costly. If your buying new, the diesel will run you 20-40K more than gas. That cost will buy lots of gas and excursions over 10 years.
Great interesting things to think about. Thanks for sharing. Also, I really enjoy how you meet up and have videos with other rv folks, very cool and helpful for us subscribers!
Thanks Cathy! We've got a few more collaborations coming up once we start heading east!
Luv this...great great info...thank you
Thanks! 😍
You can get the same suspension in gas or diesel engines.
Really enjoyed the comparison. And found it quite helpful 👍🏻
Thanks David!
Steer safe? You won't be happy, doing that alone. If you want to significantly improve the Ford F53 chassis handling, install Road Master heavy duty anti sway bars on the front and rear. It turns the rig a different vehicle, way more resistant to wind from weather and passing trucks, etc. It also eliminates waffeling from uneven roads, which also helps tremendously to track straighter, mitigating the constant correction needed to go straight. The cost is about $2K for both bars installed, but it's the best $2K you can spend on a Ford F53 chassis to improve handling. The front bar gets replaced, but the rear bar is a second bar that helps the stock bar that remains left in place. I suggest you install the HD bars before steer safe. You won't need to do anything else, you'll be happy.
I installed the SteerSafe yesterday but haven't had a chance to drive it yet. We're heading down the road a bit this weekend so I'll see how it goes then. Everyone that I've talked with over the last two months has said that a steering stabilizer is #1 with a bullet which is why I opted to do that before anything else. Once we're out east we're not going to be moving very far or very frequently so I'm not trying to spend a ton on handling upgrades, so I may do the CHF because it's free and leave it at that.
@@Five2Go Yes, I've seen good comments online about Steer Safe, but I believe it's because it's a cheaper opton. Every story I see on YT after using the SS, is they want more, so the next step is usually investing in the next cheapest solution, HD shocks. This does nothing but increase the harsh ride. The CHF helps, I tried that initiallty, but my estimate is that's about 20% as effective as the Road Master bars, which make a big difference.
Very good video.
Thank you very much!
I missed your video discussing all this ... but would you mind explaining why you feel the kids are safer in a vehicle versus the rig? I know I am probably missing something ... but my assumptions say the opposite ~ bigger means safer as long as restraints are used ??? I personally would worry more about my kids in something smaller ! Example ... That is why I love our truck I feel more secure like a tank versus closer to the road , smaller, less protections on impact , closer to doors with encroachment etc... in my smaller suv. 😊😊
Motorhomes aren't built with any safety standards like vehicles are - the NHTSA doesn't test them or require anything other than seatbelts in the two front seats. They do commonly have seatbelts in dinettes or under couches, but they're only going to help so much if a table comes loose or cabinets start flying open and emptying out. Any car or truck on the road is safer than a motorhome in a crash.
Hi Brian and Erin.. great points both of your channels brought up! Thank you!
Thanks!
With the F53 chassis, if you add Sumo springs front and rear along with Koni FSD shocks the ride will get you close to the ride of a DP! and when you add front and rear sway bars these things handle pretty damn good!!
Amen to that brother,2 thumbs up to all of y'all👍👍❤❤
Thanks! 👍👍
Great video and love Grateful Glampers as well.
Thanks!!!
The reason diesel pumps are dirty is because diesel is an oil and it doesn't evaporate like gas does. So it collects the dirt.
I feel like more often than not the diesel pumps wouldn't auto shutoff when I was filling my truck so if you weren't there with your hand on it (I always am) you'd get it all over the pump handle. They're so grimy 😂
Great video once again
Thanks Zachary!
Five2Go YW
Brian you need to buy you an air horn , so you have a cool honk too. 🤣🤣 Great video of comparisons, if I went with a class A, it would be gas. A whole lot cheaper and I hear the new V8s are going to be awesome. Have a blessed day!
Haha! My horn is loud... ish 😂
Great video. We are looking at class c. It’s just the two of us.
We would definitely have a Class C if it was just Erin and I! Maybe once we start sending kids off to college we'll be able to go smaller and more nimble 😜
once you driven a Diesel Pusher, you can never go back to Gas RV
everything, i mean everything is better in the DP
How often are you going to change the oil in the rig and what did you do to the car to be able to flat tow it and now damage the transmission
We made sure to buy a car that can be safely flat towed. If you google Dinghy Guides you'll find some great PDF's full of information about every car model by year and whether they can be flat towed or not.
You can't flat tow a fwd car with an automatic transmission....thr only way the internals are lived is with the engine running the front pump of the transmission and in the rv you should be changing the engine oil no later than 4k miles do to narrow oil passages to the cam phasers and rocker arms that needle bearings that don't like old engine oil
Great video . U kind of directed me to Diesel because I’m planning on pulling a significant trailer. I really like the color of your RV. Where did u get it ? R u happy with their service center ,sales
Diesel is having a terrible time in Europe so I would stick with gas until fully electric are viable in the future price wise.
Full electric really is the dream, but batteries are going to be the bottleneck there for quite a while. It's perfect for RVs though - every campground you go to is already capable of recharging your rig!
There is a reason that the same year model with a diesel was more expensive, diesel holds its value, full stop. Can a gas rig get the job done, yes, but that is like asking a 12 year old to make dinner, will you have something to eat, yes, but not (in most cases) to the same level. You have to pay for that ability both in the short term as well as for the knowledge that in 5-10 years, that ability (with proper maintenance) will still be there.
As far as the maintenance cost issue that is virtually always brought up, it is a red herring. No one buys a diesel for the short term, it is bought because people understand amortization and the fact that every time you fuel, you're saving money. The fact that long after your gas engine has gone to the scrap yard, that diesel will still be chugging down the road.
If you are going to be a weekend warrior, only going 2 hours down the road to the lake on Memorial Day and 4th of July weekends and parked the rest of the year, no a diesel isn't right for you, but if you are going to USE your rig, do the math. If you are going to keep your rig for more than 5 years, do the math.
💯 agree.
Thanks Will! You make some really good points, but there are a lot of factors that everyone needs to consider when spending this kind of money on something. We don't think there's a hard and fast rule for any type of RV - we see fulltimers in everything from pop-ups to $500k diesel pushers. We're just happy that people are out there living the way they want to!
It’s so funny how things have changed over the years. Years ago when I first found out about Snowbirds, they all bought diesel rigs because diesel was way cheaper fuel.. Duelly trucks were also big as they ran on diesel. ❤️🇺🇸🦠😷
It definitely used to be cheaper! Things have definitely changed though.
I wanted to throw something out there about gas prices. You typically get enough better mileage with diesel that it more than makes up for the increase in price. Long term fuel prices end up cheaper with diesel, until you factor in maintenance.
Gas prices are so fluid though. Last month I was seeing diesel as 50-75% more expensive than gas, but things have closed a little bit over the last few weeks I think. I've seen blog posts about DP's getting 12-14mpg but I've never heard from an actual person that is seeing those numbers. Maybe those articles are about the shorter DP's with no toad?
Glow plugs ??? Ha, try turbo , air compressor, high pressure fuel pump, injectors. 💰💰💰
You can buy a class A Diesel with a mid door setup. So I don’t see why you would mention that as a difference between gas and diesel motor homes.
Gasser Pro : Financial savings. Ex: Lower cost for engine maintnance (mechanic hours/more options for repair means more competative prices), regular upkeep (oil changes etc), & the coaches themselves retail for less.
Diesel Pushers Pro: All around weight advantages . Ex: Better weight distribution. Greater towing capacity. Can store more stuff. More square footage bc the engine can handle a longer rig.
Playing devils advocate:
Yes, Gassers are the inexpensive option all around but Diesel Rvs hold thier value better bc the engines are hardworking & built to last.
Sure, Diesel's can haul massive amounts of weight but your paying for that hardworking engine continously for the length of your trip.
Rvs are depreciating assets truth is you'll pay for the privilege either way. The money you save may add to the places you can afford to visit. Or the resale value can help when you decide it's time to permanently stop the road trip or just trade up/down etc.
IMO Ultimately where & how long you plan to travel makes a big diffrence on what coaches will work best. The best RV isn't about Gassers &/or Diesel Pushers , the determining factors are personal prefrence & the type of adventure have/plan.
Gas is cheaper up front, but not down the road. If you are full time, Diesel is the way to go. Better mileage, reliability, and last a lot longer!
They definitely last longer, and that was a consideration when we were shopping. We're not planning to put near as many miles on this rig as we did the last RV so gas is going to be cheaper for us in the long run.
Seriously a 17 minute video on gas or diesel. ......