2016 Tacoma SR5 V6, 93k...13 MPG?

I just got a 2016 Tacoma SR5 V6 with 93k on it, only mods are Tyger rock sliders, and Black Rhino hard alloys with LT255/80R17 off-road tires. I’m getting an average of 13MPG with a mix of city and highway driving. I’m kinda babying it right now so I haven’t been going too fast or accelerating very hard. It also feels slightly underpowered but that may be me just being too gentle.. Is this normal?

 

Heavy tires KILL mileage, as does cold weather driving, the defroster kicks in the AC, so there's that, and if you're doing trips under 5 miles, that's an mpg killer too. Speeds over 55-60mph will hurt mileage.
How fast are you driving?

 

That is a very big, very HEAVY tire. It's no wonder you're getting only 13MPG. Your driving habits (taking off fast, driving fast) also has to do with your shitty MPG's.

Long story short: Your MPG's are a self inflicted problem.

 

My 255/80/17 are only 52 pounds for a 33”, also less rolling resistance. I haven’t noticed any significant difference going from 265/70/17 46 pound KO2s.

I don’t think OP accounted for larger tires. I believe its a 7% increase in distance vs stock.

 

How are you calculating fuel economy? Did you account for larger diameter tires?

 

Also, are you going off known accurate mileage and volume of gas at full up? If you're using the stock calculations on the dash they will be even more incorrect than usual because the truck has no idea how far you've actually driven because of the larger tires.

 

Also depends if your area has winter blend gas or not. I lose like 2mpgs around this time of year because of it.

 

Heck the stock sr5 v6 ought be getting at least 20 mpg in winter conditions. I get that with my 2020 sr5.

 

My 2020 SR5 got about 22 mpg when I lived in Arizona, driving in mountains and about 65 mph on highways. When I moved to Knoxville the mileage dropped to around 15 mpg.

 

I'm around 14mpg this time of year (short trips) 265/75/16 kenda klevers, 2" lift, cap and racks on cab and cap.

 

That’s pretty bad. My setup is similar but I have smaller LT 10ply Wildpeaks 265/75r16 on my 2016 sr5 DCLB with canopy, racks, ski box and a 2” lift all around and I still managed 19.2 (hand calc) on my 300 mile highway drive yesterday going 65-75 and some traffic.

 

Some of those Black Rhino wheels are heavy AF too. That combined with the larger tire is likely the culprit.

 

Unless driving off road most the time or use the truck for very heavy carrying/towing, why would you ever use those heavier E rated tires?

 

I only have the 4 cylinder, but the acceleration and mpg gains by dropping 18lbs per tire was VERY noticeable. If your truck feels sluggish, buy a set of the stock P-rated tires on stock rims. Switch out to your current tires when you're offroading. I'm down to 15 minutes for a full wheel swap. I don't care if my truck looks a little anemic when mall crawling on all seasons. You'll break even financially after 6 months due to mpg savings, the truck will drive better, and way less noise. Some C, D, and even E rated tires are considerably lighter than others, so consider that too.

 

I replied to another thread earlier today. My MPG (system calculated) dropped very suddenly and significantly almost a month ago and I have no idea why. No mods, no driving habit changes, no terrain changes, no payload changes. I need to manually calculate a few tanks to verify but the system has always calculated ~320 miles but it suddenly dropped to ~260 miles per tank. There has to be a reason for this and I can't be the only one who has had this happen. The truck is driving normally otherwise.

 

It's not tire weight. I've had 38 lb P rated tires and 53 lb E rated tires on my Tacoma and fuel mileage never changed over the last 230,000 miles. But they were stock, or very close to stock size and all had a moderately aggressive AT tread.

The OP's tires are taller which effectively changes the axle ratio resulting in less power. The engine has to work harder. It also throws off the odometer and speedometer. He is driving faster, and farther than he thinks. When you think you're driving 70, you're doing 75 and that extra 5 mph will make a difference in fuel mileage.

If you account for the odometer being off you're probably closer to 14 mpg. With the taller tires that is probably about right. Even in stock form you won't get more than 16-17 mpg under those conditions. Strictly on the hwy, and keep it under 70 mph and you'll be 18ish even with those tires.

 

Unsprung weight makes a massive difference in fuel economy and acceleration. I have never had a car, truck, motorcycle or bicycle that hasn't benefitted from less rotating mass, be that spokes, rims, or especially tires. Sure, the gearing will effect it, but not that much.

 

Heavy tires = lower mpgs
driving over 65mph starts to kill mpgs... driving over 70mph and they fall off a cliff.

How are you calculating mileage? Has the computer/odometer been programmed to work with the taller tires?

 

Depending how I drive I get 15 at worst with 255/85/16s. It’s the nature of the beast.

 

I get a drop with cold weather and winter gas but don't know where you're located.