Best mods to increase Mileage?

My advice is to not worry about the mileage unless it is really bad indicating you have a problem. No truck gets overly great mileage. A difference of 2-3 mpg really isn't that much. In the past I've thought about getting a second car to get better mileage when I had a van that sucked gas. After I ran the numbers it was just cheaper to put gas in the van.

 

I drive to and from work 7km each way, 9km if I drop my girlfriend off at the university. Id ride my bike but I live at on a mountain side, riding a dh bike home after a hard day at work sucks. In a month I only rack up about 150km driving to and from work, the rest I burn on weekends. Id like to move within walking distance of my shop eventually and just use the truck for pleasure.

Commuting is for chumps, I did it for a year and a bit, racked up a ton of kilometers and burnt lots of gas.

 

I dont get the people complaining about trying to find ways to improve mileage on the Tacomas. There is a reason the Tacoma is the #3 vehicle tracked on fuelly (the Pius is #6) and its because people want to squeeze out a little more mileage. A 1mpg gain will make more of a difference in the Tacoma than it will in a compact car.

I get the trucks dont get great mileage and hopefully no one expected them to. I didnt buy it expecting awesome mileage. I drive at least 30K a year and bought the Tacoma to for several reasons:
-Safety
-Utility
-4WD system
-Dependability

I could have gotten some other vehicles that would of offered most of these items and gained 5-6 mpg on the highway (and that's about it). I think the truck can basically take this mileage and last an extremely long time.

If someone wants to improve mileage, I don't think there is anything wrong with it and they should have the support of the community to find ways in which we all benefit. I haven't done any modifications to improve mileage yet as I am still gathering data. I do want to try a belly cover to see if the reduced air drag helps. I realize the most you can do is probably gain an additional 1-2 mpg on the highway from stock if that, but as someone who is on the highway a lot, it would be a gain for me.

 

Before I got my rims on I got 16.5 combined. Now with my new rims that stick out of the fender wells I get 14.8...

 

It depends. If you drive 30K a year, avg of 16 mpg a 1mpg will save you $444. It will take almost two years to pay back but you will see a positive return.

 

Worth is subjective. I would pay 1K for a 1mpg improvement and to me it would be worth it. What I dont want to do is pay 1K for snake oil. There are only several things that can probably net the 1mpg improvement, and most of them should have some other benefits.

 

Since the OP is Canadian, I have to assume the MPG numbers he is referring to is imperial gallons, not US gallons. Equal to 4.54 litres, rather than the 3.78L US gallon. But, still not realistic to expect 18 MPIG city, unless you drive extremely conservatively, in summer, with stock sized street tires, with ethanol free gasoline, no load...

On the other hand, if the truck is stock, driven reasonably, 10.3 MPIG leaves a lot of room for improvement, unless it is mainly short trips where the engine runs below operating temperature, or in 4x, or loaded to the bumpstops...

 

get a good guage for measuring mpg/km realtime, watch the heavy foot. Keep your filters clean, and use a good fuel additive for the gas to clean the injectors. 1 can of seafoam for 1/2 tank of gas. I know it saids different but i want that stuff to mix and get burned.

 

It seems like fuel mileage goes to crap above 60-65MPH.

I got the best mileage of the whole time owning this truck in Yellowstone, where we had to drive 45MPH everywhere. I actually got almost 25MPG running empty on cruise control. It seems like it might be a sweet spot there. I have an extended cab 4wd V6.

 

If you search for "gas mileage vs speed" you will get several studies that show, for a truck, that the optimal mileage is indeed close to 45 mph.

 

My daily commute is about 9 miles of 8 miles of 45 and 1 mile of 55, with 10 traffic ights along the way. Since I leave at 6:40am the traffic is light I can fairly easily time the lights and avoid stopping. In winter I can expect 26-30mpg since the engine isn't hot until 2/3 of the way to work. In summer that changes to 29-34mpg. If that was a 20 mile commute I'd easily get 36+ mpg at that speed.

If I leave at 7:30 or later I will get a red on more lights and 2-5mpg hit.

 

Oops! I meant 25MPG... but, interesting that the truck shape would have that outcome (in general terms).

In my area, most of the speed limits max out at 60, but not many people abide by it. I've been on some highways in Utah I believe that the limit was actually 80.

Other than being terrible for gas mileage, at night it's well beyond the capability of most low-beam headlights. But, if you're in CA doing the speed limit you'll pretty much get run down. And people bitch about bad gas mileage. I can't imagine what an Escalate or F250 diesel gets at 75MPH.

 

Diesels actually do quite well.
I was averaging about 16 in my '03 Tundra. 2WD, access cab, hard tonneau cover.
I traded it for an '06 Silverado 2500HD Duramax.
4WD, Crew Cab, 285/75-16 (stock was 245), mild performance tune, full shell, roof rack with offroad lights.

The thing averaged 18mpg... 3,000 pounds heavier than the Tundra, and the 6.6 Duramax is a 400cid engine, the Tundra's 4.7 is a 280 class.

I NEVER got worse than 15, and that was towing a 16ft flatbed with a ramp tailgate (mesh, but still a sail) from Bakersfield back into LA over the Grapevine.

 

Yup, speed is the biggest factor in milage. One factor many people fail to realize is braking. Every time you apply the brakes you are throwing away kinnetic energy, or momentum, that you spent fuel to "get". Following too close so you are constantly braking, approaching stops at speed, then braking, etc, all adds to fuel consumption. If you maintain a steady speed with smooth throttle it helps a lot. And when you downshift approaching a stop, the ECM cuts out the fuel injectors, so in those instances you are getting infinite mpg, as you are still moving with no fuel consumption. Moments that you would be burning fuel otherwise. Brake life is also amazing when you drive this way.

 

^

That's commonly called "driving without brakes" DWB and is a good description. If you find yourself needing to slam on the brakes then you've done something wrong. Could be following too close, not looking far enough down the road to anticipate stoplights, or slowdown on the highway. Even maintaining 5-10 mph approaching a stoplight instead of braking and coming to a complete stop really helps.

I'm at 60K and the front brake pads look solid for 60+ more.

 

That term describes it perfectly, DWB. Tire life benefits too.

 

Wish my wife would get that through her head.

The trip to Wal Mart is about 5 miles.... 2.5 south and 2.5 west.
It CAN be made by making a left, right, left, and right into the parking lot.

Her route is left, right, left, right, left, and right into the parking lot.
If she sees a semi ahead, she'll add another pair of turns.

 

I have a family member who drives like her Subaru is binary -- it's either stomp the gas or stomp the brakes, then yell at the mechanics when she needs repairs.

Funniest thing was when she went into a dealership a few months ago then started yelling at them when they told her they couldn't fix her vehicle. After a while they finally got her to calm down long enough to explain that it wasn't a Subaru dealership.

 

No way. Can it be that common sense has, once again, prevailed?

There is no doubt that if you step on the gas of a 4.0 Tacoma you better hang on tight and it's fun BUT like any other form of excitement, it's gonna cost ya.

The choice is yours.

 

Read this & practice the techniques in section 3. You can improve MPG in any vehicle.

http://www.cleanmpg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1510

Very good stuff here.