3 months of fuel economy statistics for MT V6 TRD OR. BS will be destroyed.

Based on three months of data, I have found that the dash MPG meter understates fuel economy by an average of 2% per tank. Looking at the graph below, it's clear that the On board MPG per tank meter can be reliably used to track mileage and to adjust one's driving habits for fuel economy. This is counter to the Tacoma World consensus that the MPG meter is a "lie-o-meter" or "Bullshit gauge".

Also, the trend line in the scatter point graph shows that Mileage is starting to dip as we enter into the winter, which is probably due to winter blends.


Further, based on my estimated city/HWY driving, which has not be substantiated, it appears that my overall mileage is bang-on with the EPA rating.


Additionally, for anyone that wants to own a Manual Transmission TRD OR, it appears that it costs 15 cents per mile to operate this machine.


Also, while I did notice that on long highway trips, the addition of a Tonneau cover allowed me to get 21-23 MPG on the highway (an 1.5 MPG increase). I don't drive on the highway enough to make a noticable different in my tank averages. I installed a Tonneau cover in late September.

Summary Statistics


Raw Data

 

WTF...??? Who has the time for this..????

 

I have tracked my gas mileage for years. Did it when I owned a 06 Tacoma, 09 Ram and now for my 16 Frontier Pro 4x. I was curious on how close the truck computer reported mpg vs. hand calculations.

As far as time, it doesn't take much more than entering the data into sites like fuelly. It seems some members here do use on line fuel tracking.

As far as your post. ...

 

Hey

So it looks like you've put a lot of effort into recording all your data. You know yourself better than any one else.

I don't know you.
Is your truck lifted?
Bigger tires?
Do you drive with a loaded truck?
Do you take if off-road?
How long do you idle your truck?
How would you rate the hills if any in your daily drive?

Also grab a gps and check Speedo. It is not true. 5km/hr indicated faster than gps using stock size tires.

 

Lift / tires / sliders / RTT / lol even ditch lights. All added to the truck through out the past year and a bit. Fuel consumption is so subjective to the comparison of other trucks and drivers.

Best of all I can still hit almost same fuel economy as the first day I babied my truck around out of the dealership. But these peaks and valleys make sense to me cause I remember the drives and the spikes playing in the snow, or climbing mountains, or idling in my truck on a mountain cause it was just too damn cold.

Enjoy your truck. Is all im getting at.

 

Down with reason. Up with the emoticons!

 

I never calculated the delta in actual vs displayed but I'd agree with the 2%. Based on quick napkin calcs when filling up.

Computer always seems a little "conservative".

 

trusting the computer doesn't sound too bad

I just don't understand why would I trust the odometer & gaz pump more or less than this.

 

Is this the BS recycling station? I have about 4 lbs I need destroyed. Thanks in advance.

 

Not sure the real timeline but gas pumps are pretty well regulated for accuracy. The odometer yes is a different matter.

Also OP. Did you do this before the tonneau cover?

 

I have same trim, stock tires, tonnoue cover, bolt on sliders (~160 lbs).

I tracked mpg for a couple of months and found that the computer reading was consistently 0.5 MPG less than actual reading.

90% city driving

Summer months 16.4 MPG actual

Last few fill ups has been shit... 15 MPG actual
Winter blend?

 

I takes maybe 30 seconds to take a picture of my dash and the pump every time I fill up.

I gathered all the pictures today, and put this analysis together in about 30 minutes. I used Excel daily by trade.

 

I put the tonneau cover on in September. My current tank is mostly highway, and the tank average is 19.5. I think the tonneau cover has made a difference for sure.

 

Have had my 2017 for three months. I live in the foothills; truck is stock with added tonneau cover. Average mpg for 11 tanks is 22.2; high was 23.2, low was 20.8. There is a definite drop off with winter blend. Just returned from a 1600 mile trip over Thanksgiving. Average for that was 21.9. Majority of miles was on interstate using cruise control set at 65-70+ mph. My on board MPG dash meter always indicates higher than what I actually get (by .2 to .3 mpg), but as the OP pointed out, it is a reliable measure of fuel economy for the current tank, and that's what I use it for.

 

I have noticed the dash computer to be pretty accurate also, its' usually within .5 MPG, my truck averaged a solid 20 since the day I drove it off the dealers lot but has dropped recently on this winter fuel.

 

I have never understood why people feel that the old method of miles driven/gallons put back in is any more accurate. While the pump I would hope is accurate in the delivery of gas, I would wager there is a margin of error in when the pump shuts off. In my experience both methods are usually within 0.3 MPG of each other.

 

If you speedometer is off, your MPG display will be also.

My speedo is dead on and so is my MPG display. I check it at every fill up, and it's never been wrong.

 

Just curious --if the odometer (distance traveled) is accurate, can the speed (how fast you're traveling) be off?

 

Mine are all accurate. Tested with GPS to verify.