erasedhammer
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In physical size it's a good comparison to a 4 door Wrangler. But weight capacity is a huge difference. You could load a Wrangler into the back of a Humvee and go off roading.F350 is generally quite a bit heavier than a hmmwv.
My Ram 3500 crosses the scales at just short of 9k empty.
Although the military calls these things a 1 1/4 ton truck, the more realistic comparison is a civvy half ton. Or a Jeep Wrangler JKU.
A quick search yields the following weights -
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Back on the topic of fuel economy, I'm seeing 12-15 out of my plain vanilla M998. State highways at 55mph, some in town, and always a 3min idle before shutdown.
I am still of the opinion that the most valid comparison for the hmmwv is the 4 door wrangler. Similar use profile, similar passenger and cargo room/capacity, virtually identical towing capacity, offroad capabilities, and very similar fuel consumption.
I try not to get hung up on fuel costs. I know guys who shut their turbodiesel equipment off the moment they stop, in order to save a few tablespoons of diesel. The cost of the increased wear on the equipment is far more than the fuel saved....
You guys spending $ to improve fuel efficiency may want to do some math - let's say there's a mod to improve by 2.5mpg, which for simplicity's sake we'll call 20%. Call it a cost of $2k to make this modification. The break even point for the cost of the mod is when you've spent $10k in fuel, which is going to be somewhere around 50,000miles. Now factor in that most mods are a tradeoff of performance somewhere else, and it becomes evident that .......
While I'm rambling on the topic of fuel efficiency, it of course often comes up regarding 5ton trucks. My answer - "I get about 6mpg empty." They usually reply with something close to 20mpg... and then I say something along the lines of " but I get about 6mpg loaded 75,000lbs too. What do you get at that weight?" At which point they don't. Different tools for different jobs.
Most of these things are toys. The appropriate measurement isn't how any miles per gallon of fuel. The appropriate measurement is how much enjoyment per $. Using that metric, any of the MVs are hard to beat.
I assert again that the appropriate comparison is a 4 door wrangler. They're also a lot of fun to drive, occasionally have someone eying it up in the parking lot etc. But the hmmwv is more fun to drive, at similar operating costs, and 1/4 the acquisition cost.
Especially when you get to soft top m1123, good mileaeg, good speed, decent towing, and can carry 2.5 tons.
I always like to call it a cross between a truck and a Jeep. But really it's in a class of its own