Tacoma Fuel Economy

[LovinMyTaco07]

Originally Posted by Rick2007Tacoma

I have heard that that a having an ECU re-flash may help the mpg. Since I bought my truck with approximately 100 miles on it, the ECU was set by someone else. Thus the behavior of the ECU was already set when I bought the car. Is this true, or will the ECU adjust to my driving habits?

This thread discusses ECU re-flash...

It will adjust to your driving habits...

[007Tacoma]

I would not recommend "resetting" your ECU yourself. I am going to talk to the dealership when I get my first oil change, but I am betting that they do this themselves.

I went to go get my oil changed at 3000 miles - they told me not to come back until I hit 5000 miles. I told them that I wanted to make sure that my truck was in peak performance condition. They said they aren't allowed to change the oil until 4900 miles due to the break-in period of the engine. Sounds to me like smoke. What do you guys think?

[007Tacoma]

BTW - I think my MPG is slowly starting to come up.

[TRDeity]

After your engine is truely broken in your MPG may go up. A friend of mine average milage went up 6 MPG at 10K (Not a tacoma but it keeps me hopeful that mine may go up slightly).

[007Tacoma]

Crossing my fingers!

[tx_steve]

have under 3000 still on the 2007 v6 auto.
was getting 19-19.5 till last tank got 20.2 and that included a couple of hard charges onto the freeway! looking forward to breaking into atleast the 22 mpg range

[surfponto]

Originally Posted by 007Tacoma

BTW - I think my MPG is slowly starting to come up.

Good to hear.
We just got 22 mpg on ours this last tank. Still under 3000 miles on the odometer. That is our best so far.

[RAPOM]

Originally Posted by 007Tacoma

I would not recommend "resetting" your ECU yourself. I am going to talk to the dealership when I get my first oil change, but I am betting that they do this themselves.

I went to go get my oil changed at 3000 miles - they told me not to come back until I hit 5000 miles. I told them that I wanted to make sure that my truck was in peak performance condition. They said they aren't allowed to change the oil until 4900 miles due to the break-in period of the engine. Sounds to me like smoke. What do you guys think?

I changed mine at 3200 and went with a larger filter. Depending how you drive as long as you score the cylinder walls and the rings conform to them as I was told by a CAT mechanic you are good to go. I was also told to go with a bigger filter for less chance of it filling and bypassing the filtering process.

[007Tacoma]

Huh, I have never heard of going with a larger filter. I will have to look into it.

I do have good news. Last tank, I got 23 MPG. That was with a ton of in-town driving.

I went back to my sticker on my 007 (glovebox for life!). It says that the city average should be 23, so I am good there. When I go to San Antonio this weekend, I will see if I can get closer to the 28 MPG it says that I should get on the highway!

[RAPOM]

It just holds more oil and contaminants. I went with a KN 2009. It also has a 1 inche nut on the bottom to make getting it off a lot easier.

[007Tacoma]

Originally Posted by RAPOM

I changed mine at 3200 and went with a larger filter. Depending how you drive as long as you score the cylinder walls and the rings conform to them as I was told by a CAT mechanic you are good to go. I was also told to go with a bigger filter for less chance of it filling and bypassing the filtering process.

How in the world do you make sure that the cylinder walls are scored in an even manner that the rings can conform to???

The only thing that I can think of is the obvious - change your oil. Dirty oil will score the cylinder walls and cause compression issues and eventually will have you burning oil!

I have always made it a point to change my oil at 3,000 miles. Even my diesels got changed at 3,000 miles. Plus, I use the best oils I can find. Usually I use Amsoil if I can find a dealer near where I live at the time. Maybe that is why I get 200,000+ miles out of my old Accord, Jetta TDI, Suburban, and my old Subaru...

[007Tacoma]

Originally Posted by RAPOM

It just holds more oil and contaminants. I went with a KN 2009. It also has a 1 inche nut on the bottom to make getting it off a lot easier.

The nut on the bottom - Is that for draining it before you take it off?

[RAPOM]

The rings score the cylinder walls in any motor, thats what creates a good seal for compression. (Remember, I am not a mechanic this is just stuff I have heard over the years) It may not even be that visible to the naked eye.
The nut on the filter is to aid in removing the filter. I just use a 1 inch socket and a long extension. Its better than trying to get a filter wrench.

[007Tacoma]

Originally Posted by RAPOM

The rings score the cylinder walls in any motor, thats what creates a good seal for compression. (Remember, I am not a mechanic this is just stuff I have heard over the years).

Ditto!

Originally Posted by RAPOM

It may not even be that visible to the naked eye.
The nut on the filter is to aid in removing the filter. I just use a 1 inch socket and a long extension. Its better than trying to get a filter wrench.

OH! I guess I was over analyzing it's purpose in life...

[RAPOM]

You would have to tear the engine down to check it. The motor does all this by running. Break in as I am told is the mating of parts in an engine, they break in or fit together. They produce exceptable wear patterns, evidence of this is how an oil sample monitors or detects different metals in your oil. Different metals for differents parts of the engine. That is how they can tell what part is wearing or wearing out as time and miles add up. A oil with good film strength is what to look for I am told. Anyway, how I see it as the motor breaks in over say 5000 miles the parts of the engine, tranny, axles have gotten to where they work smoothly together with less friction, which equals better mileage. I am no expert and if I have stated an inaccuracy here I'm sure someone will help me get on the right path and there I go learning again!

[007Tacoma]

Originally Posted by RAPOM

You would have to tear the engine down to check it. The motor does all this by running. Break in as I am told is the mating of parts in an engine, they break in or fit together. They produce exceptable wear patterns, evidence of this is how an oil sample monitors or detects different metals in your oil. Different metals for differents parts of the engine. That is how they can tell what part is wearing or wearing out as time and miles add up. A oil with good film strength is what to look for I am told. Anyway, how I see it as the motor breaks in over say 5000 miles the parts of the engine, tranny, axles have gotten to where they work smoothly together with less friction, which equals better mileage. I am no expert and if I have stated an inaccuracy here I'm sure someone will help me get on the right path and there I go learning again!

I may be completely off my rocker , but that makes complete sense to me! Thanks for the info.

[Rick2007Tacoma]

Well my mpg went up from up from 17.2 to 18.3 for the second fill-up. Not much but I’ll take it. I’m certainly expecting a lot better, 23 to 28, as the car sticker indicated. Every gas station I go to only has Ethanol, which I’m told reduces the mpg by 10%. Therefore, I can’t get a test without Ethanol. Just to grip a little, when I purchased the truck I was deciding between cars which were rated at getting 31 – 38 mpg, however I was willing to forgo a few mpg 23 – 28 just to have a truck. I would not have purchased the truck if I had known that the mileage was only 18+. It certainly better improve, or Toyota and I will be having some major discussions. Now on the bright side, I love the truck, but I want better gas mileage. I want this truck to get between 23 – 28 mpg as Toyota indicated. The truck is brand new as you know, only second tank full, but in reality, should I really expect the mpg to improve after the first 5000 miles?

[surfponto]

Originally Posted by Rick2007Tacoma

...... I want this truck to get between 23 – 28 mpg as Toyota indicated. The truck is brand new as you know, only second tank full, but in reality, should I really expect the mpg to improve after the first 5000 miles?

We are at 3000 miles and the mileage seems to have gone up. Just got 22 with a mix of hwy and city driving.
I am pretty happy with that.

[Rick2007Tacoma]

Originally Posted by surfponto

We are at 3000 miles and the mileage seems to have gone up. Just got 22 with a mix of hwy and city driving.
I am pretty happy with that.

What mpg did you get when the truck was new? And is it a 4 cyl?

[natrlyst]

Originally Posted by Themaster

The results derived from this survey will be inaccurate. For accuracy, only American members should vote or consumption should be measured in miles per liter and not gallons since the US gallon contains 3.785 liters and the Canadian gallon contains 4.546 liters.

The mpg rating you get is relevant to the American gallon, not the British Imperial Gallon, if you are calculating your own mileage then you should use the American Galon measurement. If your machine calc's it for you, it will be based on the American gallon measurement.