Horrible Gas Mileage

My 2010 Double Cab Trd Sport has a Fiberglass cover on it and has 12,000 miles but is getting horrible gas mileage. Can someone please tell me why. I ran 93 octane gas and drove on the high way for 98% of the tank. And did a great job at keeping it under 2000 rpm's(minus the few times I had to get to speed fast) and still only got 17 to the gallon. I was expecting a lot better, especially with my cover, am I wrong? Please tell me if this is normal or its something I need to look at!

 

I have the same truck, long bed, no cover. Getting 18mph, mostly HWY.
have 4000 miles on it....

 

i wonder what the deal is?

 

the cover isnt really going to give you that much better MPG, im sure as you break in your motor you should see some improvements --> my 2009 corolla struggled to get over 32mpg untill i hit about 20,000 and started seeing 33-35mpg

http://trucks.about.com/od/2007toyotatrucks/a/10-tacoma-gas.htm

 

wish I got 17mpg.

 

What's the benefit of running 93 octane in our trucks?

 

My 2010 DC LB Prerunner has about 5000 miles on it...and I am getting about 19ish as long as a don't go over 2000rpm for the full tank...that is after experimenting...

I had 285/70 duratracs on it for a few hundred miles and was only getting 13-14ish which I just couldn't see maintaining...so I sold the tires...

 

Keeping it under 2000 rpm is a misnomer, don't bother. Accelerate smoothly and smartly up to the desired speed. Don't be afraid to manually shift down to 4th if the engine is lugging, it really can struggle when it's hot outside.

I travel the same 600 miles on the PA Turnpike every week and I've noticed a few things. The best speed is 70 mph, doing 75 will cost you an extra mpg. When it's 90f the cruise will shift down going up a hill, when it's 80f it won't (and these are the same hills week in, week out)

Running 87 I'll get 20 mpg on the highway with the cruise set to 70. Driving around town during the week it'll only do 17 mpg, if there's a tank of gas I used for both the mileage can be anywhere in between depending on the ratio of highway to stop-start driving.

 

Good info BritMike...that is exactly what I should have said...I take many seconds to get up to traveling speed...whether its 60-70...I just take it slow in the right hand lane!

 

Great info...rep your way! But is it true you get better mileage as the truck gets broke in more?

 

bump

 

there was an A.R.E. tonneau cover when i bought it. i really didnt like it, but when i was contemplating getting rid of it, a lot of ppl said not to bc it helped with gas. so i went to A.R.E.'s site and they had a calculator to see how much you save on gas with it. you added in your mileage a month, what octane, avg. price of gas, type of truck and a few other things i think. and the outcome was around $10 a month. also, that was when gas was like 3.50 here, now it's like 2.40, so it's probably under $8 a month. that was not enough to convince me to keep it. i'd rather not have my truck look like a grandpa truck, no offense to tonneau cover owners, than save a measly few dollars.

 

I've been getting 22-23 on my 4.0 Prerunner after I got my oil changed, and that's with mid grade (89) keeping it at 2K on takeoffs. When I switched to Amsoil fully synthetic and noticed a 2-3 mileage increase. Worth it for me!

 

I personally don't think tonneau cover are worth in $$ what they save on gas. If you want one to hide your staff, than yes, but even thought, without lock, you will have to add a lock to the bed gait $$
The savings in gas vs what you pay for it, it will be at the least 4 years before you recover your expenses... in gas save.
Now I am about to have my first oil change, I got 4500 miles. I can't wait to change to Synt to see the difference.
PS: There are a couple of Gas tracks Apps for iphone and others that make it very easy for you to keep track of how much you are spending on gas, MPG and other stats. Most of them are FREE APPS. I am using GasBag.
Cheers
David

 

Wow, not sure about that gas mileage. Might want to take her back to the dealer for a talk. My 2010 mileage around town has been pretty reasonable at 17 mpg. This is strictly around town with -0- highway. The few short trips that I have taken with combined 70% highway/ 30% city have seen 18.5 up to 19.5 mpg with typical highway speeds around 60-70mph. Truck is pretty much stock with exception of a canopy and BFG A/T's.

 

Actually, when closed, the Undercover cups over the top of the tailgate preventing it from being opened (unless someone forces the shit out of it of course).

I've had mine for five so I guess it's all gravy for me at this point.

 

Man this sucks! I think next oil change(2000 more miles) I will be having a talk with them!

 

I got my cover because it came on the truck when I bought it. But now that I have it, I never plan to get rid of it! Its like having a trunk. I can not wait to take it to the beach, now people want steal anything when I stop and eat!

 

there isn't an advantage as far as I know. You should run what is reccomended by the manufacturer. The difference in octane just burns the fuel at different temps. I called the "Car-Guy" talk show in Houston once on this topic and his answer was you do not get a benefit from running higher than recommended octane, but you can do damage to your pistons if you run a lower than recommended octane.

 

Hey Tarheel
I feel your pain! I have 2002 Taco Double Cab TRD Supercharged 4x4 Leer Topper. I just did a long trip over the mountains in Colorado - watching the tach 2000RPM, gradually accelerating
And the best average was 18.5 mpg and I have 88 600 miles on the odometer! BTW I was using premium gasoline!

One thing to consider is that you added anywhere from 100-250 pounds of weight (it varies Leer (FG)Fiberglass vs Snugtop FG (heavier) for the mile you increase per gallon is negated. Then you put a couple of fatboys like my brother and I and another 400 pounds is being carried plus gear plus 5 gallons of emergency gas and I estimate there is 600 pounds being added!!!
Also weather effects mpg. If I drive at night and go slow 55-60 I can attain closer to 21mpg on the highway. We were climbing a majority of the time and it was a hot dry day.

Other factors : Automatic subtract 1.5 mpg,
unsprung weight on wheels (Steel vs. Alloy and size) and tires .5-1 mpg. ;
axle ratio higher numerically the lower gears the in combination w/ tires are a major factor can cause major issues 2-3mpg

Total weight of vehicle including:
Custom bumpers made of steel (I have an ARB steel front bumper)
Winch
Rock Sliders
Spare tire (matching tire to 4 on the ground)
And we wonder why the industry tries to make everything out of Plastic!!