# 2015 Chevrolet 1500 gets poor gas mileage when towing **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** chevrolet, 1500\ **Created:** [September 8, 2020, 6:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720 "2020-09-08T18:31:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![bobkaren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@bobkaren](https://community.cartalk.com/u/bobkaren)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 6:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/1 "2020-09-08T18:31:54Z")
rated towing is 9200 lp. my trailer is5444lp. bad gas mileage ---
**Author:** ![VOLVO-V70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8e8cbc/32.png) [@VOLVO-V70](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VOLVO-V70)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 7:07pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/2 "2020-09-08T19:07:37Z")
Poor gas mileage while towing a 5000 pound trailer . No surprise there . ---
**Author:** ![Cavell](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/cavell/32/43396_2.png) [@Cavell](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Cavell)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 7:09pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/3 "2020-09-08T19:09:22Z")
How far are you towing? 50miles? 800 miles? Is this a route you normally drive? Unloaded? No trailer point A to B is xx mileage. Pulling trailer on same route and mileage is what? If you tow rarely then it might not be an issue? ---
**Author:** ![It\_s-Me](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/it_s-me/32/12660_2.png) [@It\_s-Me](https://community.cartalk.com/u/It_s-Me)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 7:15pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/4 "2020-09-08T19:15:01Z")
What kind of trailer ? 5th wheel travel trailer ? ---
**Author:** ![Purebred](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/purebred/32/46796_2.png) [@Purebred](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Purebred)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 8:40pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/5 "2020-09-08T20:40:37Z")
Define “bad gas mileage”. Has the MPG changed in the past five years? ---
**Author:** ![davepsinbox\_157004](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@davepsinbox\_157004](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davepsinbox_157004)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2020, 9:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/6 "2020-09-08T21:31:25Z")
The EPA says a 5.3 liter with 2wd should get 17mpg combined _without a trailer._ [https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymodel/2015\_Chevrolet\_Silverado.shtml](https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/bymodel/2015_Chevrolet_Silverado.shtml) What engine/drivetrain do you have and what mileage are you actually getting? ---
**Author:** ![FoDaddy](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/fodaddy/32/717_2.png) [@FoDaddy](https://community.cartalk.com/u/FoDaddy)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2020, 5:45pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/7 "2020-09-09T17:45:15Z")
Due to the laws of physics, vehicles tend to get worse fuel economy when towing. I know, I had to sit down for a moment when I learned this secret of the universe as well. ---
**Author:** ![MikeInNH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a587f6/32.png) [@MikeInNH](https://community.cartalk.com/u/MikeInNH)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2020, 5:51pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/8 "2020-09-09T17:51:23Z")
The big decrement to towing is besides the weight, but wind resistance. 5,444lbs is a good size trailer. I suspect you gas mileage could easily drop in half or more. ---
**Author:** ![SteveCBT](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/stevecbt/32/3192_2.png) [@SteveCBT](https://community.cartalk.com/u/SteveCBT)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2020, 6:31pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/9 "2020-09-09T18:31:21Z")
The trailer weighs about as much as the truck. So doubling the weight that is being pulled could cut the gas mileage in half. ---
**Author:** ![gmallan55\_149168](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@gmallan55\_149168](https://community.cartalk.com/u/gmallan55_149168)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2020, 11:44pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/10 "2020-09-09T23:44:48Z")
I would expect 8 to 10 MPG in that vehicle while towing that trailer. ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 2:09am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/11 "2020-09-10T02:09:32Z")
Even on a good day I would not expect good mileage with a 2.5+ ton trailer being lugged along. A YouTube test of a 2015 1500 with a loaded trailer showed 7.55 MPG as compared to 19 sans trailer. The dashboard display showed 8 MPG. So if you’re in the 7-8 range I’d say things are normal. ---
**Author:** ![Kennedy1963](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f17d59/32.png) [@Kennedy1963](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Kennedy1963)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2020, 2:17am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/2015-chevrolet-1500-gets-poor-gas-mileage-when-towing/169720/12 "2020-09-10T02:17:49Z")
I’ve got an f150 with v8. 17mpg on the interstate at 70mph. Pulling a 16 ft v nose utility trailer weighing about 3700lbs loaded at 70mph equals 9.5 mpg. Cutting back to 60mph on 2 lane roads gets you about 11 mpg. Wind is a big factor. Turning off the cruise control feels like you’ve deployed a parachute.