Your highway MPG

I got a 2013 DCLB 4x4 Sport. Only ran two tanks of a gas in it so far. One tank was only city driving. I babied it, never getting much above 2,000 RPM when shifting. I got 16 MPG. Not bad since my 2002 got around 15 mpg in town.
I then ran a tank of mostly highway driving. I live in Wyoming. VERY windy this time of year when winter creeps in. Driving into a head wind most of the time. I got 16 MPG highway for this tank too.
What speeds do you guys usually drive to get better highway MPG? I would be happy with 19 or 20 MPG. I know the EPA says 21 MPG for this gen 2 in this config but I think that is totally unrealistic.
Hoping next tank in less windy conditions will improve. 16 MPG sucks! Any thoughts?

 

I've hit 21 at 70mph several times.

 

I am on my 3rd Tacoma and every one of them managed about 2 MPG Less on the Highway than my everyday driving. My current 2015 gets about 19 MPG in everyday driving and about 17 on the Highway.

 

With the shitty stock 245 tires, I was calculating hwy mpgs a little over 20. With beefy 265/75/16 snow tires in load C, I was getting around 18. With load E 255/85/16s I get about 15 - 16 on the highway at 70+mph, but about 18 for daily driving.

@shakerhood Where in S Ohio? much of my family is down across from Wheeling. I've spent a lot of time down there.

 

Looks like you got a manual. EPA says manual gets worse MPG than auto but I think generally with these Tacomas it is the other way around.

 

For where I drive, with big heavy tires, and a truck that's way over loaded all the time, the manual definitely gets better mpgs.

 

I think the manuals generally are geared lower too which helps with bigger tires.

 

They are geared lower. Diffs are the same, but tranny is lower. I wish 1st and reverse were much lower than they are. The rest are fine IMO.

 

I average 17/18 every day driving city, grandpa driving.
I average 21/23 all highway if I keep it below 65, anything above 65 and mpg takes a serious dump!

 

lol. Guess I will be driving 70 from here on out.

 

With most of my runs being up and down the hill from 300ft. to 180ft (Placerville, Ca to Sacrament) I tend to average low 17's. That's about 30% mountain roads and 70% 75mph freeway. On a 2k mile trip we did a best tank of 22 and a worst of about 15 (lots of off road on that tank). According to my Scan Gauge I've got an average of 17.9 for a bit over 10k miles. Truck has a shell which may make a bit of a difference, and the last 2k miles is off a bit as I went up one size in tires and dropped from 8 plys to P rated. Seem to be getting a bit better mileage with the new tires, just over 18mpg average.

 

I've logged almost 6.5K miles on mine since buying it in April. Mixed city/highway driving, with highway speeds of 70-80MPH. Worst mileage to date is 15MPG. Best is 20MPG. Overall average is 18MPG.

Ironically, I wish my 6MT had a taller overdrive. The engine has enough toque to get the job done at lower RPMs which, in my experience, would greatly increase gas mileage.

 

With a 3" lift and 285/75/16 KO's I've averaged 15.1 mpg over the last year, with a high on the highway of 20.2 mpg. A lot of that includes letting the truck warm up in subzero weather and mostly short drives to work (about four miles) in the city. The majority of the highway driving is on two lane roads up to 60mph and frequently with a snowmachine in the bed in winter, and a RTT mounted on bed bars or an ATV in the summer.

 

21-23 no lift. 265/70R16 on FJ TRD wheels.

 

In May we took a road trip from GA to the Grand Canyon then up into Utah to see Zion, Bryce, and the Kodachrome Basin areas. Then back to GA in my 2007 DC 4X4.

On most interstates driving 70-75 I averaged 19.5-20 mpg. Once we got off the interstate in Flagstaff and onto 2 lane roads where speeds were 55-60 and there were lots of hills to coast down I went up to 21-22 mpg. Did that until Denver on the way home. But across eastern CO and all of KS I was driving into a strong headwind and about 16ish was all I could get even trying to keep speeds to no more than 70. By the time we got to Kansas City we were out of the wind and back to 19.5-20 mpg for the rest of the trip. The overall average for the 4700 miles was 20.3.

 

about the best I can do out on the road is high 17's and thats around 70ish.

 

Guess its just me...But I never pay attention to MPG

 

'13 DCSB 6 speed manual with 245/75R16 dynopro ATm average freeway(70mph) and highway(60mph) 18-19 mpg

 

I get about 20-21 on the highway, but my everyday mixed driving is about 19. I'm happy with that, but you'd think all highway would be a little higher.

 

I drive focused on fuel economy and I try not to exceed 65mph. I'll cruise at 75 if I'm going long distance because a lot of time can be made on longer hauls. Also we can't really compare fuel economy between my 4-cyl and your V6, but for what it's worth: city around 19, highway around 27, combined average 23-24.

Remember wind resistance starts to increase exponentially as speeds exceed ~~ 60 MPH. Of course this depends on the aerodynamics of the vehicle. Most trucks have bad aero and these Tacomas are no exception.

Also, many people believe that a lighter foot *always* equals better fuel economy. While the theory is sound, the truth is that most combustion engines need a certain minimum throttle opening to produce good torque and power for normal driving, while still considering fuel economy. By what I understand, the drive-by-wire system in these trucks is already programmed to keep a moderate throttle opening. So babying it too much can actually be counterproductive for fuel economy.

Hope this helps you.