I think I finally have it sorted...

PitbullRescuer

PitbullRescuer

New member
A lot of you guys know I've been plagued by the gas mileage gremlins. Been getting about 15 MPG (or less) out of my '97 Limited on stock size tires, no lift and full maintenance done. Last week I replaced my muffler with a Cherry Bomb Vortex becuase the stock one had a few pin hole leaks in it.

Well today I was in NJ for work where gas is a lot cheaper than PA so I filled up. 202.9 miles on the tank, 11.369 gallons to fill it up. 17.84 MPG. :beer:

Needless to say I am super happy about this. It's been driving me crazy, I actually thought about unloading it and starting fresh with another 3rd Gen but this has given me new hope. However, NJ is full service only, you actually can't pump your own gas. I've gone about 40 miles so far and the gauge (I know they suck) has moved a lot. I'm not so sure the guy topped it off for me so my numbers maybe skewed.

Keep your fingers crossed for me.
 
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Good to hear :)

How are you calculating the mileage? Do you have a scangauge or anything like that?

I use an app called Fuel Log.
 
Well, a clogged (or leaky) cat or muffler can certainly hurt gas mileage, so here's to hoping it was the muffler.

Also, don't make it a habit to top your tank off. There's no good reason to, and and it can cause problems with the EVAP system. I let mine shut off automatically, and then simply hit it one more time after about 5 seconds. We all know that in our trucks, you could keep topping off for a while if you wanted to, and sometimes squeeze a 1/4-1/3 gallon more in.


Oh, and I was feeling good about my last tank too. I got 286 miles on 14.2 gallons. But I did 200 miles of highway at a steady 70mph...instead of my usual 75 or 78.
 
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I don't go crazy topping it off, after it stops I usually pull the nozzle almost completely out, wait to hear it swirl down and then it'll take maybe another 1/4 gallon.
 
So actually you

went 202 miles on 11.3 gallons of gas. So if you burned say the 16 gallons that are useable youd have gone 300 miles easy.
 
^correct.

I calculate my MPG by dividing the Tripometer reading by the gallons required to fill it back up. I do not have a scan gauge or anything like that. I'm just not sure if this last reading is totally accurate or not since I'm not sure if it was filled "all the way up" when the gas station attendant pumped my gas. I've gone 45 miles since and my gauge is already at 3/4 tank.

I'll keep this thread updates though over the next few weeks.
 
Hope you've got it fixed and there was no false positive from the gas attendant not topping up to your normal level, keep us posted.
 
Never would have guessed PBR. I really hope this was it for you. It really makes me think though. I recently took a ~320mile trip one way to new orleans and averaged ~22 on the way there and ~21 on the way back. You know my exhaust troubles, too. I wonder if I could actually gain a little more MPG if I fixed my issues.

Anyway, congrats on potentially solving your issue. Can't wait for the next update.:cheers:
 
Well, it's not as good as I had hoped. I filled back up today, pump stopped at 8.581 gallons. I waited until I heard it gurgle down then topped it off one time until is stopped again at 8.838 gallons.

144.6 miles/8.838 gallons = 16.36 MPG. A lot better than it has been but I think the gas station attendant in NJ gave me some false hope.

We'll see what happens from here.
 
Your mileage sounds good to me.

16.6 isnt bad at all and does not indicate mechanical issues.

The V6 4Runner is rated at 15-17 by the government, when non-aspirated.
 
I know you did it already before the muffler, but I would reset the efi again. It was mapped with how it thought it should run with your old muffler leaking. Just a thought.

With summer approaching, you should start going up even more. Winter kills mpgs in lots of ways.
 
4-Ripcord said:
I know you did it already before the muffler, but I would reset the efi again. It was mapped with how it thought it should run with your old muffler leaking. Just a thought.

With summer approaching, you should start going up even more. Winter kills mpgs in lots of ways.
Click to expand...

PitbullRescuer said:
^ good idea, I'll try that. F-ing 10% ethanol gas isn't helping either.
Click to expand...

True, but My question is this(Which I think I already know the answer to), does a SuperCharged T4R run better in the winter due to colder temps, like the T/C vehicles? Probably not due to the fact that the latter runs Hot/compressed air vs a Pulley system correct?


PS: Sorry to cloud your thread there PBR
 
awdjunkies said:
True, but My question is this(Which I think I already know the answer to), does a SuperCharged T4R run better in the winter due to colder temps, like the T/C vehicles? Probably not due to the fact that the latter runs Hot/compressed air vs a Pulley system correct?


PS: Sorry to cloud your thread there PBR
Click to expand...

She runs like a beast in winter, intake temps averaged like 40-50 degrees the last few months.. I dont have an A/F or a boost gauge, so I dont have any other numbers to provide, but it was definitely powerful. I actually dont have much of any summer time logged with the SC, installed just before September. So I am interested to see how she runs with 90+ degree intake temps..
 
4-Ripcord said:
She runs like a beast in winter, intake temps averaged like 40-50 degrees the last few months.. I dont have an A/F or a boost gauge, so I dont have any other numbers to provide, but it was definitely powerful. I actually dont have much of any summer time logged with the SC, installed just before September. So I am interested to see how she runs with 90+ degree intake temps..
Click to expand...

Thanks for the response, I'm interested to see the difference.. :thumb3:


PS: I wish I would have known, There was a Local CL ad a month or so ago which had a TRD S/C boost Gauge for 20 bucks... I'll keep an eye out (That's for anyone that needs one)..
 
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That's awesome, but lets get it to 20! MOAR POWAHH!!!

Have you looked into scangauges? They really do help. I thought I drove like a granny, but having that CONSTANT reminder sitting on top of your steering column of what your instant and AVG mgps are helped me to get another 1.5 or so MPGs out of her.
 
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