Off Road Fuel Economy/Range?

I'm going to Moab soon (Maze District/Flint trail) and have been reading about having extra fuel just in case.

What is everyone getting for fuel economy off road in 4H/4L? I know it's going to depend on a lot of factors, but I'm trying to figure out the range I can count on safely. I'm going to be doing a shakedown off road trip before I go, but I've never really calculated my mileage or range off road.

I have a 2012 TRD Sport DCSB and just ordered a 5gal Jerry can.

 

It's hard to plan, biggest thing is keep A/C off for fuel and to stop it from overheating. Turn off for long waits at specific challenges depending on how busy it is.

There's always someone with more fuel, just make sure to have beer or some cash.

I would bank on 200 miles at minimum.

 

I thought my fuel consumption would increase in 4L but it wasn't drastic. I think 5 gallons should be enough to get you out of a jam. Also keep the A/C off and plan accordingly. I know from I70 to Moab there isn't any gas stations but once you're in town there's a few.

Good luck and have fun!

 

Extra gas is always good to have, but I'm willing to bet most people don't actually "need" it. It seems like people are often far more concerned with stuff like that (the "overlander look") instead of more useful stuff like skid plates and good tires. Hopefully, if you're planning a Moab trip, you've already got plenty of underbelly protection...

Your shakedown trip should be where you start figuring out your expected mileage for yourself. That's why it's a shake down trip.

If you think about it, though, even if you only get 100 miles per tank in 4lo, that's a long efing trail, likely over multiple days. A few weekends ago I did about 70 miles of dirt, and while most of it wasn't technical, I was out for like 6+ hours and used maybe 1/3 of a tank. There was a good portion of it where I was in 2wd, but because my rear tires were going faster than the fronts ( ) I wasn't exactly getting good mileage, lol... I was never more than 10 or so miles from a gas station, either.

But if you're going to be out for multiple days to a week on technical trails with no gas in sight, honestly you'll need a more robust plan than carrying 5 extra gallons of fuel (that's a 1/4 tank worth). Jerry cans are to get you out of a bind. They're not going to increase your range very much.

 

So the plan is to take the Flint Trail from Hans Flat down to Hite. My calculations say it's about 55 miles on the trail, with 83 miles from the last fill-up I was planning on. So ~145 miles. I SHOULD have plenty, but I wanted to check with "you guys" first.

I have been reading the Fun Treks book and Flint Trail is rated as medium. From my YouTubing it looks like I should be fine without skids. I want skids, but I'm not sure if they are going to make it on this truck (probably the next one though).

 

I did this trip in may, so all depends where u start and go, i started from Green River and went down and stayed all over the place for 4 days and came out the southern tip of the trail and still have enough range to make it to hanksville i had 5gal with me extra, so was all good, if you do millard point and back definaly grab at least 7 and can always fuel up in hyat i think is the name of town, if you come out via poison spring should be good. but as guys said above shoot for 200 mile range on full tank leaving from ether hankville or green river. also depends how u drive too, example if u go 4L and stay that 90% of trails then ur range will be bad, however maze 80% u can do 2 wheel or 4H and only few spots 4L so that helps alot to preserve fuel.

 

I've seen Subaru's do parts of Moab. Does a lifted Tacoma really need more than a front skid?

 

You don’t have to have it. I did the golden spike with only sliders. But I was on edge the whole trail. It’s exhausting to be on edge like that for 12+ hours. I also had a friend in a fully armored tacoma leading the way. I was following in his tracks but one of the ledges he dropped off was like a 6 inch drop so no big deal. I took it maybe a foot to the left and it was a 2 foot drop. luckily I only put a dent in my cross member and not a hole in the oil pan.

I am fully armored now and the money spent was with the wife’s blessing because after that trail she understood why you need armor

It really depends on the trails you are doing but no you don’t need it until you do.

 

Lol, yeah, I've seen that video of the subi doing one of the easier slick rock trails (and many of the bypasses) in Moab.

If that's the only trail you do, then no, you don't really need a trany skid, or even a front skid, or bumpers, or a winch, or .... But most of us do plenty of other trails where skids aren't a bad idea.

 

Gotcha, I'm out in Missouri so my experience with rock trails is really limited. I just know what I've seen on youtube/insta. (haha)

What are the essential skids you'd recommend? Transfer and fuel tank?

 

GULP. I've got sliders on the way, but thats all for now.

 

I just did the Maze trip 2 weekends ago in my 17 taco. I drove from the Goblin Valley Hans Flat road to the ranger station then all the way to Dollhouse 3. We then drove back out by way of Hite because my buddy's 86 Landcruiser was pretty low of fuel. I would have been fine with no extra fuel, I would have been about 1/4 tank. With 5 gallons of fuel I was a little under half when I got to Hite. The drive from Teapot east to the Maze district is very slow with some pretty fun features. I wouldn't worry so much about fuel as I would about spare tires. I got a flat on the way to the campsite and spent the rest of the trip hoping I didn't get another one. Make sure to do some hikes around Chimney Rock and The Plug area in the Maze itself. Wow, really amazing!

 

That's bad advice...when I bring extra fuel I do so because I know I'm going somewhere remote and I'm going to need it. If I have to share it with someone that decided they were just going to "buy it off someone else in the group", then my trip would be cut short or at least need to be put on hiatus while we go get more fuel for the rest of the trip.

Not to mention, you're screwed if you plan on using someone else's fuel and it turns out that no one has any that they're willing to part with.

If you plan on doing that, at least bring it up with everyone before the trip. Or better yet, get a 5 gallon jerry can...they're $45 at Harbor Freight, or a couple of those $20 5 gallon Scepter jugs. I know Rotopax look cool and all but they are stupid expensive for what they are.

 

I agree with Eon about fuel. Also, The Maze District of Canyonlands is really, really remote. We saw 2 cars in the 4 days we were out there. Don't count on any outside help at all. The isolation is one of the main reasons for visiting this area. No cell coverage either.

 

I should say that I've been in circumstances where I've given fuel to others in the group, but in one of those situations the guy had fuel but his canisters started leaking along the trail, and in another it was one of the heavier rigs on the trail and the trip turned out to be much longer than we anticipated. But neither of them came along expecting others in the group to carry their extra fuel for them and that they'd just buy it like they would at a gas station.

 

Just look under your truck and see what kind of stuff under there that would really suck to smash.

I would say the fuel tank, at least on my first gen is pretty well tucked and has a skid already. Not a super beefy skid, but a skid... The front skid and IFS skids are stupidly thin, not much thicker than fender sheet metal, and the transmission oil pan is completely unprotected. The tranny skid should be pretty easy to fabricate yourself, you could get away with just a flat piece of 3/16", and just bolt it to the steering cross member and the trans crossmember. Some people go a step further and do a t-case skid but you also need to fabricate a new cross member since there isn't one to mount a skid behind the t-case. I'm not as worried about that as I am the trany.

There's a whole thread on "homemade skids" that's pretty cool. If you can weld, or know someone easily bribed with beer who can weld, you could get away with a full skid set for not much more than $100 in steel and beer.

Some people use 1/4" for the skids, but that's heavy AF, it's harder to weld (if you have a small 120v welder like I do, and a well engineered 3/16" with some reinforcement ribs will do just as well.

 

What he said ^ The gas tank skid isn’t really important

 

All I have is a fluxcore and it won't be pretty, but yeah, I definitely could if I put my mind to it.

Now you got me thinking...

 

You have to be hitting some pretty gnarly rocky trails to justify a gas tank skid, I like to think I do some hard trails now and then but I haven't found a need for one. My stock one has only seen a few scrapes but nothing it couldn't handle.

 

120v or 220v?

I have a 120v; a Lincoln 125HD it can be done, you just need to do multiple passes.

Also don't cheap out on that store brand wire either, get the Lincoln NR211-MP. The MP is multi-pass...

I was using some cheap stuff I got at Ace when I started doing my sliders, and always blamed my lack of welding skills for the crap welds. Luckily I ran out pretty early in the project so I got a 10lb roll of the NR211-MP wire and my welds instantly improved.