computer gas mileage

[TeryT]

10mpg?!! you must have a really heavy foot there.

Hook a big trailer up & see what you get!

 

[Falls]

Man, I've been making a concerted effort to drive less aggressively to hopefully conserve gas. But I'm still only getting 12.4 avg mpg according to the computer. I hope it's due to me living in the city and never being able to go more than a couple blocks without hitting a traffic light or stop sign.

Thats pretty low, I've got the same truck and am getting 16.5 with the warmer weather in strictly city driving with a heavy foot,and that's not factoring in the bigger tires which would actually make it more than that. I'd get it checked out.

I also did'nt buy this truck for the gas milage , but do check it now and then for a few consecutive tank's to make sure all is well and in check.

 

[Ryanmb21]

I recently installed slightly larger tires. Now the speedometer is slightly low but the fuel computer is more realistic.

With a heavily loaded truck, roof basket and lots of gear I calculated 18.5 MPG over roughly 1400 miles including the Utah off-roading. Highway speeds varied from 60 to 75 MPH. Off road I left it in 4WD high most of the time and dropped to low and locked for the difficult stuff.

Unloaded and no roof basket I get 20 to 21 MPG averaging 65-70 MPH on long drives. I don't let the cruise control over-accelerate on any uphill portions. I take over and keep the RPMs reasonable.

Around town about 18 to 19 MPG if I obey the speed limits and avoid leadfooting it.

Wow, that's way better than my mileage.....what PSI do run on the street?

Thanks

 

[teotwaki]

Wow, that's way better than my mileage.....what PSI do run on the street?

Thanks

I am running 35 psi

The mileages I quoted are based on starting with a full tank, correcting the odo for the tire induced error and then refilling the tank when near "E".

 

[Atomic 4Runner]

I've tracked my fuel usage since I got the truck 3 weeks ago. The computer is consistently off by ~10%. During the first 1,000 miles, I did avoid hard starts, no trailers, and no more than 40-50 miles of interstate driving at a time.

Each tankful the mileage has improved over the previous tank. The mileage for the first 1,150 miles is 17.4 mpg. Not too bad for the V-8. Only the last 200 miles was interstate, most of the miles have been around town and in the mountains.

 

[Uneek]

17.93 mpg from the first tank of gas with about 40 miles in 4WD. Tires were at 34psi, bumped it up to 37 now.

Edit: Forgot to mention, that's a hand calculated figure. Computer reports 19.1, if I recall. (Use the display for outside temp instead, it's more useful IMO. )

 

[TeryT]

Again: computer over-reports 7%; odometer under-reports 3%. Figures approx. but pretty close as per GPS & highway markers.

 

[teotwaki]

Again: computer over-reports 7%; odometer under-reports 3%. Figures approx. but pretty close as per GPS & highway markers.

Fixing the computer readout is another great excuse to buy larger diameter tires..... :zoom:

As for the speedometer, no local shops or Toyota can easily re-calibrate it. Looks as if buying a $150+ gadget that goes in the speedo sensor signal line is the only choice.

 

[charlier180]

Again: computer over-reports 7%; odometer under-reports 3%. Figures approx. but pretty close as per GPS & highway markers.

Since the beginning of the year I decided to track the display MPG along with the calculated MPG. My Computer seems to over report by an average of 13.93%. This figure represents the timeframe from January to April. One has to wonder if the figures would vary much in the warmer summer temps.

 

[exokomp]

10.2.... just did my first manual mpg calculation. Ugh! I guess living in the city and never seeing a clear stretch of road really hits the mpg hard.

 

[boston_kevin]

"extra 2-3 gallons"

The "extra 2-3 gallons" you notice when the trip computer tells you to fill up is not actually extra. You need to keep a minimum of 2-3 gallons of gas in the tank to keep the fuel pump lubricated. if you drive below this mark (and espeically if you drive until empty) you run the risk of damaging the fuel pump (which by the way is not covered under warranty). Replacing the fuel pump would mean dropping the tank and removing any gas (hazardous waste disposal fees), the replacing the pump and reinstalling... I would say the averag cost of this procedure would be around $500 (rough estimate).

Those 2-3 extra gallons are there for a reason... Don't push it too far...

BTW: My trip computer regularly shows 21, and I get 20 MPG... I have not reset my trip computer for the last 10,000 miles which may account for the average being more accurate for day to day driving... When I do all highway trips, the computer reports less than my actual gas mileage (21 and I get 22-23 MPG highway).