Break in period

hey guys,
I was reading some of your guys' posts about gas and mpgs. I came across seeing people say that they get worse mpgs when you are breaking in the car? Can someone fill me in with some info. So far i am getting around 14 mpg and i drive a 4x4 6spd manual dbl cab trd offroad tacoma. Thanks!

 

Hey deadbolt-it's because your engine is tight because it's new. I've heard some guys say they felt a significant 'loosening up' as far out as 16-18,000 miles. General initial breakin is 500-1000 miles. Toyota builds tough tight engines that last. Enjoy the wait

 

yup, it'll take a little while, but it'll get better for you. in the meantime, just drive normally, keep the oil changed at the right intervals, and keep your tire pressure adjusted, and you will be good to go.

 

thanks guyss.. so after 1000 miles or so i should start seeing better MPGs?

 

i think each truck will have different characteristics as far as actual breaking in, so it may be around that time, but im thinking you'll start noticing more around 10k or so, but it may be before then. mine actually started seeing better mileage after breaking in around 10 to 12k or so. and some will argue this, but i think i am getting better than that now since i have switched to synthetic oil and rear diff oil, but thats just me. i like to be positive about it.

 

alright thanks for the info man. looks like ill be rushing to 10k hahah
what kind of mpg are you getting with your truck?

 

honestly.....havent really paid alot of attention to it lately. i have been driving the wifes accord to work and she has been driving my truck(she works 5 minutes from home) to save on gas and all, but i was at about 17/18 mpg,(i have an airaid intake and flowmaster muffler, run synthetic oil and diff oil and check my tires religiously),and i drive on the interstate alot. i can say this though, when you have a fun to drive and awesome ride such as the tacoma......its easy to put the miles on quick.

 

yah the car is awesome. i love it. wish i could enjoy it more but the gas prices are putting holes in my wallet. cant wait to mod my car tho

 

Patience grasshopper! When I got my l4 4x4 I was only getting 17-21 mpg and was thinking I was fed a load of bull by the dealer and the brochures I'd read. Folks here told me to wait and see....they were absolutely correct. I'm nearing 5K and mileage is 20-25+ and I'm hoping it'll get better, but happy with what it is.

Fact: Toyota and Honda are the only vehicles made that you can actually get better mileage than what the sticker says, just by driving with a light foot.

 

I just put the first 1000 miles this past week on the same kind of Tacoma as yours. I got 18.9 mpg on the first tank, assuming the odometer is accurate, driving a mix of city and highway with light foot while still trying to vary the speed a lot during the break in. Very different than my old 4 cyl Tacoma - you could floor my old one without worrying about mpg or speeding; these new 6 cyl engines have a lot of excess power (at least relative to what I'm used to!) so it just takes a little touch on the gas pedal. I also noticed the engine is so much quieter in the cab I have to keep checking the RPMs to see when I need to shift.

 

Just rolled over 6.5K on mine, no difference in gas mileage so far...

 

Question on breakin period. The manual says to not drive the same speed for an extended period. What is the reasoning behind this? I had 'assumed' that running at the same speed was a good thing.

I only ask as I have a 400mile roadtrip this weekend and want to know if I can just set the cruise an go or if I need to set an alarm to change my speed every 15mins or whatever.

 

better to change the speed every now and then...I thought the manual suggested not to use the cruise during the 1st 500 miles.

Hell I towed 1000lbs 175 miles with 15 miles on the truck....just don't let it maintain the same rmp for 100 miles.

 

It will definitely get better over time. I'm at 12,500 miles and I get 18 city/23 hwy mpg. New, I was getting 15 city/20 hwy.

 

I had to do a long trip last week during break in and just shifted or turned off the cruise every few minutes to vary speed.

 

From what I know, at a given load/speed, touching parts will wear across a given area. A different load/speed means a different area is involved. If you run at a constant RPM/speed only a certain area will get worn in more-and you need to break in those parts while the parts are tight and really wearing against each other. They really should call it 'the wear-in' cause that's really what you're doing

 

I think there's a lot of misconceptions in this thread. I'm no expert, but here's a few things I've been told:

-Reading around here, it seems that modifications to the air filter will have small to no effect for V6 MPG (seems the 4 cyls get all the luck on that one). If all you are doing is switching filters, I'd read this first. I was all ready to rush out for an K&N or Amsoil filter, at least to get better performance, but not so sure now. A cold air intake should improve performance, but may have little impact or even negative impact on MPG (not sure if that's due to the driver's fault or if it's mechanical).

-Synthetic fluids may have an improvement on gas mileage, I don't have concrete proof. Dad says that he gets a solid increase when using Amsoil oil, and I have experienced smoother operation when I used it with my Honda. Again, I would defer to bobistheoilguy.com

-Consumer Reports did a big article to see what effects MPG - I don't have the link, but I want to find it! To improve MPG, drive with the tailgate UP. I don't remember exactly what the reasoning was, but it was something like the wind resistance pushed against the tailgate helps the back end from bouncing around - makes sense to me since having bad shocks reduces gas mileage, this would be the same effect. The weight of removing the tailgate wasn't as important as having the tailgate up. A camper shell didn't seem to have an effect from what I remember reading. Windows up/down had a minimal effect, and using the A/C would effect gas mileage by up to 1 MPG, so go ahead and stay cool this summer!

-driving style will play a big effect, with moderate acceleration, obeying speed limits, and good coasting habits. Since you have a manual transmission, being able to get to the next highest gear to achieve lower RPMS would be good to try (within reason). There's areas where you can read about hypermiling, but I suggest taking that with a grain of salt - many of the practices are dangerous.

With an '08 Double Cab 4x4 TRD Offroad, automatic transmission, 2,600 miles. I haven't changed fluids yet. I have the tailgate up, windows closed (not that I care up or down), A/C on when I want, and no modifications. I have moderate accelerations, don't pay attention to RPM, and drive the speed limit. I attempt to coast to a stop in such a way that my brakes are gradually applied. My commute is about 9 miles one way, mixed city/highway, moderate traffic. My average speed is around 45. I average 18.7 MPG using Costco regular unleaded.

 

tailgate down = worse mpg