Do Camper shells give you better or worse gas milage?

Wondering what they do to your gas milage. looking to buy one.

 

i never noticed a difference.if so nothing major. bed cover maybe cuz its lighter than a cap????

 

I see you're in socal. You have a 2nd gen long bed? I have been considering one myself, just don't know where abouts to get them and the $. Gas mileage, I would imagine, would be nothing major. The weight would likely cancel out the lessened air resistance

 

ya i got a tonneau cover on it right now and i still want some bed coverage but just a little more space. i want to trade the cover for a camper shell, and probly pay some difference. i cant afford a new shell, looking for used ones.

 

try craigslist

 

If you're looking to benefit from increased air flow across the vehicle, go for a LIGHT weight tonneau cover. From what I've experienced, the weight of a canopy pretty much negates any increased air flow.

 

I've noticed little or no change +/- with my cap on or off.

 

On my 1996 Gen 1 (lost it to rusted frame), the cap cost me 2-4 mpg. I also figured out that the tailgate cost me 2-4 mpg. In the summer with no cap and no tailgate, I often got 26 mpg on the 4WD access cab.

 

Didnt notice a difference when I put mine on...

 

Definitely no dif here on or off, highway or otherwise...

 

no difference here, just a better ride IMHO.

 

I just put a Leer XR on my truck a couple of weeks ago and have not noticed a change in my mpg. But, I did notice a difference in the way the truck rides, as it added weight.

 

I think that the added weight of a canopy negates the wind resistance advantage. My 2007 with no canopy got worse gas mileage than my 2009 with canopy, but I think it is due to the automatic transmission verses standard. The automatic seems to rev lower in most situations.

 

didnt mythbuster do this test?

 

they tested tailgate down or up

 

On my first gen, I noticed a drop of about 1MPG. I routinely take it off and put it back on depending on what Im moving and the change is evident.

 

Yes they did, and the truck has it's best fuel economy with NO topper, or cover of any sort. The aerodynamics of the open box provided the best fuel efficiency for the test vehicle.

I have a fiberglass camper shell on my Taco, and I really don't notice much difference in terms of fuel economy v.s. no topper. I do notice slightly better acceleration without it though.

 

I went from a soft tonneau to a ARE MX Series, the model with the 3" rise above the cab, and noticed no change in highway MPG's but a slight drop in city MPG's. I chaulk it up to the added weight since I added the shell and a plywood shelf the entire area of the bed. The plywood and supports are probably another 75 lbs +/-.

 

Same for me. Maybe a slightly lower gas mileage. I went from a Tonneau to a shell. However, I did get my highest mileage recently right after I put the shell on (19.1 on Oct 30).

 

No difference in fuel mileage noticed with mine.