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I am quite sure they work for reducing the effect of a truck passing and blowing our MH right toward the side of the road. I am also quite sure our MH no longer downshifts when going up modest inclines as frequently as it did before applying the Airtabs.
Whether they increase gas mileage or not I don't know as the discussion about Airtabs has caused me to question our test conditions.
It's entirely possible the apparent 1 mpg increase is not real. There may have been less head wind, or more tail wind, or we spent more time in the slipstream of a truck, or any number of other possibilities.
To try to better gauge the effects on gas mileage, since I have a long upcoming trip and since I've been meaning to do so anyway, I decided to buy an EEZ Tire Pressure Monitor, model T515 with 10 sensors (6 for the MH and 4 for the toad).
Setup was straight forward, but I did have one sensor not register, no matter what I did. A call to the factory suggested I disassemble the sensor and test the battery. It's supposed to be 3.1V or 3.2V with a minimum of 2.9V. That sensor was 2.8V. Once replaced, it worked fine.
I bought the ones with the anti-theft covers, but they were such a pain to put on and take off, I removed the outer shell and just used the sensor "as is". This means, of course, they will be subject to theft, but that's a risk I'll just have to take.
Upon firing up the system, I discovered that the pressure in all 4 rear MH tires was quite a bit lower than expected. They were about 74 psi, with one as low as 70 psi. I'm pretty sure they weren't that low when running "before and after" tests with the Airtabs, but now I can't say for sure.
So the test I plan is to fill up as full as I can get the MH, drive 300 miles or so, towing our Scion toad, on an interstate using the cruise control and monitoring tire pressure which is presently set to the Thor recommended 85 psi. I'll record the gas used and miles driven. Then, after a short stay overnight, take the same route back home, again noting gas used and miles driven. I plan to stay out of the slipstream of trucks as much as possible and go a steady 65 mph (where allowed). Head and tail wind will be variables I can't control for. Driving will be during the day, hopefully without rain. If I have to run the generator or use the AC, I'll try to do so for the same amount of time both ways. Feel free to chime in with other conditions to try to control for.
By the way, this isn't being done just to try to answer the Airtabs question. I have to make this initial test run anyway on account of all the new gear we've installed. We have to make sure everything is in good working order before heading off for trade shows later this summer, which is our primary use of the MH, i.e. for business travel.
I'll let you know what I find.
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