gas mileage

E

eanema

New member
Hi All,
I've owned a 3rd gen for the past 8 years and its finally rusted away to the wrecker. I just bought a 2007 v8 sport edition to replace it a month or two ago. I was expecting the gas mileage to be worse than the old v6, but it seems to me what I'm seeing is *really* bad...

I have filled the tank 3 times since I bought it, and I have only driven 650km (that's ~400 miles). From the first fill to the second fill, I got 12.8mpg, and from the second to the third I got 10.4mpg. Its all city driving, and short trips too, but thats still pretty awful. I will have to wait to see what its like on the highway... Fuelly says that the average person get around 17mpg: 2007 Toyota 4Runner MPG - Actual MPG from 194 2007 Toyota 4Runner owners

I know from my old 4runner that these forums are pretty good at knowing what things tend to cause problems, so does anyone have any experience with bad gas mileage?

Should also add that this is a stock 4Runner, no mods, not even lift/tires (yet)
 
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What’s your source? The dash display is notoriously inaccurate so if that’s what you’re looking at, don’t get too worried until you actually calculate miles driven by gallons to fill up. FWIW, mine’s a V6 and I’ve used Fuelly to track MPG for 41K miles and have averaged 17.2.
 
Ya, I've been watching the center console display, but the numbers I mentioned before (10.4 and 12.8 mpg) are based on three full tanks of gas. Calculated miles driven per gallons used.

I've got a few things to try, but I'm interested if there's anything in these vehicles that I can point at and say, that's probably the cause.
 
Use the fuelly app for a few weeks to get the true number.

Not that far off from whats to be expected with the v8 , 100% city driving and winter gas
 
Tune up with fresh spark plugs and air filter. Clean the throttle body and MAF. Make sure all vacuum lines are good and not cracked or loose fitting, there aren't many on the 4.7.

Even with oversize tires, I get 16.5 to 17.5 on average, combined city and highway driving. That's using the center console gauge and comparing it to my UltraGauge. Which will be more accurate than Fuelly since Fuelly is only based off the mileage you input, not the actual vehicle. The center gauge is inaccurate but actually not THAT far off. Usually reads 3 or 4 tenths high.
 
I have already replaced the air filter. Next on my list is spark plugs, o2 sensors and cleaning the MAF & throttle body. I hadn't thought of the vacuum lines, but good idea.

Basically it's just like any other engine. Nothing specific to the 4th gen t4r that'll be causing bad gas mileage
 
eanema said:
I have already replaced the air filter. Next on my list is spark plugs, o2 sensors and cleaning the MAF & throttle body. I hadn't thought of the vacuum lines, but good idea.

Basically it's just like any other engine. Nothing specific to the 4th gen t4r that'll be causing bad gas mileage
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That's correct. An engine is pretty much the same as any other. They have old, crusty parts, they are going to run like crap.

Only change the O2 sensors if you have codes. If you don't, no sense in spending the funds.

Check the coils closely when you remove them for the plugs. Looks for cracks or burnt areas. If any need re4placement, use OEM or Denso (which is also OEM). Aftermarket coils will likely fail or not work correctly. They have a bad reputation.
 
no real help here, but i have seen a MAF sensor severely hinder a friends nissan mini suv. it got to where the car was in handicap mode. had no idea a MAF sensor could render a vehicle disabled til then.

for 4th gen 4runner reference, i get ~17 mpg going 75 on highway cruise control, ~18 mpg going 65 on highway cc. this is trip miles recorded / gas gal.

the mpg meter reset each fillup, varies from 17 to 20 mpg which is consistently off by 1 to 2 mpg by hand calcs.

bumping around in the woods, usually ~16 to 18 mpg depending on what i am doing, e.g. majority creeping or majority going 15-40 mph on bladed dirt roads.

31 inch tire, 235/80/17.

i hand calc mpg religiously.

i am curious to the marvelous mystery oil or seafoam engine cleanout. i may try this on an old ford engine has seen better days here soon.
 
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Thanks for the reference mileage, seems to line up pretty good with the online average. Good to know that once I get my mileage under control, new tires won't be a huge impact

On my old 3rd gen I sucked a can of seafoam into the air intake, poured a bunch into the oil pan and gas tank and drove for a 1/4 tank before changing the oil and filling up. Tbh I didn't notice a difference, but the internet loves that stuff, and it might have been because my 3rd gen was already running just fine.
 
eanema said:
Thanks for the reference mileage, seems to line up pretty good with the online average. Good to know that once I get my mileage under control, new tires won't be a huge impact

On my old 3rd gen I sucked a can of seafoam into the air intake, poured a bunch into the oil pan and gas tank and drove for a 1/4 tank before changing the oil and filling up. Tbh I didn't notice a difference, but the internet loves that stuff, and it might have been because my 3rd gen was already running just fine.
Click to expand...

Yeah, if your motor is running good and you change oil/filter at regular intervals, Seafoam is a waste of money. Won't hurt anything but not really doing much of anything on a well running and maintained engine either.
 
City driving can be hard to compare car to car, cause driving style and the specific city environment matters so much.

When you get a chance to drive hwy. On the highway at 65-70 mph, if you are not getting at least 16 mpg there is probably something wrong. Agree with giving the thing a baseline of maintenance.

I drive a lot of highway and "easy" miles for mpg and get ~17 average year round. Slight lift with 265/70 tires.
 
Maybe it needs a tune up? How many total miles?

I get ~15 mpg on my 2019 V6 since my commutes are short. 11-12 mpg isn't that bad for an old V8.
 
Next time you drive, feel your wheels, maybe you have a stuck brake caliper or two. 10mpg is awful. Even spirited city driving should be 15mpg
 
That's a good thought, but I assume that's not the case because I just bought it and it passed safety inspection. That being said, still worth checking. Thanks for the thought
 
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