3.sloooowww

[JVB559]

1990/V6/Auto/3.0

problem is its slow and hogs too much gas
what can I do? or just swap out?

any thoughts/comments are welcome...

 

[rlpjw1959]

How many miles on the truck?

What kind of MPG's are you getting?

Has the Engine been tuned up lately?

 

[JVB559]

215k miles
getting about 12-14 on highway
and yes I did a tune up just last month, fuel filter, spark plugs, distributor cap and rotor, air filter...

 

[Red]

There isn't much you can do. When I first bought my 95 with a 3vze I tried a full tune-up, spark plugs, dist, filter etc etc. I don't remember everything I did but nothing was much of an improvement. It runs well but it still isn't very fuel efficient and it is definitely not a powerful motor, it's nicknamed 3.slow for a reason.

If it runs smooth and starts regularly I wouldn't waste too much time trying to squeeze more power out of it.

that's just my experience with my truck. Still love it though.

I even did the air intake mod, forget what it's called. but that was a bit of a headache, ended up back to stock.

 

[WoodsRunner88]

Check to see if your catylitic converter is clogged, also check your ignition timing, Toyota want's it to be 10 BTDC, but I set mine to 7 or 8 + or - and my mileage went from 16 to 20mpg, and the power was sweet, it could definitly out run my 86 22RE. Also when I did my timing belt somebody had not set the pulleys up right, so when I set it right when I put it together, I noticed better performance as soon as I set my ignition timing.

 

[Hyde802]

You can advance your timing for a little power, I have mine at 15 (stock is 10 as mentioned above) Watch for knocking.

Get rid of that power robbing auto and put a 5 speed in. or re gear.

Then if you feel like spending more money, throw some headders at it.

 

[aj884runner]

How old is the O2 sensor? If it is lazy it will cause power and mileage issues.

 

[RonMAIDEN]

With that many miles on the truck itself I wouldn't spend the money swapping out an engine/tranny,instead save and buy a 3rd gen since the prices on those are dropping all the time and the 3rd gen will feel like a rocket compared to the 3.sl0.