Jetboy
New member
I see. Didn't read carefully enough. In that case - I'll pass. Looks like a bit lake, but not much shore shading. I have a sailboat that could be fun to camp on - but I think I'd just go a bit further to Tahoe!
Weight saving plan: What have you done?
- Thread starter Terrapod
- Start date
I see. Didn't read carefully enough. In that case - I'll pass. Looks like a bit lake, but not much shore shading. I have a sailboat that could be fun to camp on - but I think I'd just go a bit further to Tahoe!
4runr4eva
New member
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiLOzu5d1Cg
Good call. I would hate to be the poor "bugger" that has to clean the bathroom.
Good call. I would hate to be the poor "bugger" that has to clean the bathroom.
baldrik78
New member
When I moved from Baton Rouge to Seattle, I found that there are several stretches out west that are 100+ mi - at least one between Las Vegas and Tonopah is 100 miles. The stretch from Susanville, CA to Mt. Shasta, CA almost got me. It's about 130 miles. Technically there is a gas station at about the half-way point, but it doesn't do you any good when it's closed! So, I had about a half tank when I bypasses the last station in Susanville.
Mileage wise, I was thinking I had enough gas to make Reno to Medford, my stop for the night, but didn't account for the f&$%ing mountain I had to drive over the get through Lassen National Forest! My F150 had been getting about 9-10 mpg all trip, pulling a 2 ton trailer, so I was figuring on a range of 325-350 miles. I think I was at about 4mpg going up the mountain. I only got about 225 miles out of that tank. When I stopped to fill up, I put nearly 37 gallons in my 36 gallon tank!
DesertCanyons
New member
Less Is More
See my sig' for all the steel I've added to my rig. It's all necessary for the places I've been and plan to go.
Rock sliders are a must-have. They've saved my rocker panels more than a few times. OEM skid plates look good when you buy the car but 12 gauge plate doesn't cut it on rocks. Roof rack because the OEM rack leaves all your gear resting on the top and the paint get's scratched. You can't put much weight up there (like firewood) before the roof pops inward. Lift and wheels for added clearance.
Jimmy Carter said "Less is More"
I save on gas by:
slowing down on steep grades
slowing down on the highway to the speed limit (65)
Slow acceleration, light foot on the gas pedal
closing the windows and running the AC & fan
removing the back seats - 50 lbs. 1 hour max to remove or replace them
placing all the heavy gear low where the back seats were
water, tools and recovery gear on the floor behind the front seats
big ice chest right behind the recovery gear, centered if possible
placing the heaviest stuff forward
lighter gear; a tent, pads and sleeping bags, alum table, minimal cooking gear, one pan meal
bought a come along winch instead of a steel front bumper and winch
the 285/70R17 and 8.5 inch rim fits in the spare tire location, down low
diet and exercise
See my sig' for all the steel I've added to my rig. It's all necessary for the places I've been and plan to go.
Rock sliders are a must-have. They've saved my rocker panels more than a few times. OEM skid plates look good when you buy the car but 12 gauge plate doesn't cut it on rocks. Roof rack because the OEM rack leaves all your gear resting on the top and the paint get's scratched. You can't put much weight up there (like firewood) before the roof pops inward. Lift and wheels for added clearance.
Jimmy Carter said "Less is More"
I save on gas by:
slowing down on steep grades
slowing down on the highway to the speed limit (65)
Slow acceleration, light foot on the gas pedal
closing the windows and running the AC & fan
removing the back seats - 50 lbs. 1 hour max to remove or replace them
placing all the heavy gear low where the back seats were
water, tools and recovery gear on the floor behind the front seats
big ice chest right behind the recovery gear, centered if possible
placing the heaviest stuff forward
lighter gear; a tent, pads and sleeping bags, alum table, minimal cooking gear, one pan meal
bought a come along winch instead of a steel front bumper and winch
the 285/70R17 and 8.5 inch rim fits in the spare tire location, down low
diet and exercise
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lukeskywalker
New member
I understand what you're saying. It's just exhausting ... kind of like finding out that Goji Berries and Kale are now bad for you, and avocados are in. Like Health crazes and fads. First it's "let's put all of this cool stuff on the truck".... then it's "10 things You're Doing wrong with your Truck".....then "Top Five Reasons Why your 4runner weighs too much". It's a non stop spectacle of "Not enough" that seems to be utterly rampant these days as a psychosis.
It's the same premise that millennial journalists (if you didnt get the reference) use to keep you always 'go go go go go go' ing because FOMO. "Omg bro, you you're getting 15MPG??!? I'm totally 17 bro. WTF is wrong with you." ... OMg bro ur a TRD Trail??? I'm pro, bro. :car:
I like tinkering. But I don't like it in the name of Religion of Optimization. aka...Keep Up or GET OUT!
GO GO GO GO!!! #killingit #omgamazing #blessed #keepup #youredoingitwrong
I would rather Shit my pants than in those bathrooms
Agreed but also disagree. Toyota wouldn’t be toyota. The 4Runner wouldn’t be the 4Runner if the Japanese adopted that sort of mentality. But I do get your drift. While I totally yearn for better mpg, I don’t lose sleep over it. They’re just simple challenges and accomplishments that keep us entertained.
Jetboy
New member
I think we may actually agree quite a bit here. At least for me - weight savings is mostly just a result of doing less. Not buying into the marketing that you need armor that's 5 times as thick as the frame rails and a roof rack that costs more than the ferry ride to Alaska. Weight savings to me mostly means doing less. Bolting on less crap. Buying less stuff. Adding less parts. My key weight saving strategy is actually to stay as close to OEM as possible while still getting enough capability to go where I want. Keeping it simple and light. Toyota already did a pretty good job of building what I want.
I'd rather spend more time out doing fun stuff and less weekends building in the shop. I do have to admit that I tend to enjoy the modification tinkering at times too.
What I think we both agree on is that it's easy to get caught up in the consumerism part of it rather than evaluating whether a certain item is even useful.
Terrapod
New member
Ironically, based upon what you said, the conversation is not about you. It's not about what you think. It's about what others do. If others want to focus on details...let them. Who gives a shit?
As the saying goes...if you can't contribute anything positive, why offer anything at all? FFS... :der:
For the others - I've enjoyed seeing the responses. I too purchased the 4runner for the MPG's. I came from an Xterra Pro-4X and the 4Runner slays in MPG's by comparison.
Maximizing the efficiency of the rig makes as much sense to me as putting sliders on. It all depends on what your goals are.
Cheers.
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I've noticed that aerodynamics (lift/front bumper) and tire weight are more important than sprung weight or what ever you are carrying. For both MPG and performance. 50 lbs seats? meh! Granted a massive steel bumper is noticed, so are massive skid plates...
But a roof rack (aero) will kill your mpg and performance, especially at the higher speeds and even more with high wind. I love the forerunner roof rack but man that thing killed 1.5-2 mpg and even more between 70 and 75. In fact sometimes it even limits the ability to accelerate. Mainly because it's higher up and doesn't have a fairing. Oh and I put some max trax up there as well. My 4runner loaded with the kitchen sink to go camping (330 lbs?) got better performance than with the roof rack on empty. Had a wranger with the same thing, lots of drag there but the roof rack was a death-knell on mountain roads. I had to gas it to accelerate down steeeep hills.
I'm not saying all of the weight won't add up when you take 10lbs from here and 20 from there, but not that much and then you don't "have it when you need it".
So despite not learning (caring) and putting lots of heavy things on. I'm going to have a Diet front bumper (a hybrid and thinking better aerodynamics) with my McDonalds (Shrockworks) rear bumper and skid plates and roof rack =)
But a roof rack (aero) will kill your mpg and performance, especially at the higher speeds and even more with high wind. I love the forerunner roof rack but man that thing killed 1.5-2 mpg and even more between 70 and 75. In fact sometimes it even limits the ability to accelerate. Mainly because it's higher up and doesn't have a fairing. Oh and I put some max trax up there as well. My 4runner loaded with the kitchen sink to go camping (330 lbs?) got better performance than with the roof rack on empty. Had a wranger with the same thing, lots of drag there but the roof rack was a death-knell on mountain roads. I had to gas it to accelerate down steeeep hills.
I'm not saying all of the weight won't add up when you take 10lbs from here and 20 from there, but not that much and then you don't "have it when you need it".
So despite not learning (caring) and putting lots of heavy things on. I'm going to have a Diet front bumper (a hybrid and thinking better aerodynamics) with my McDonalds (Shrockworks) rear bumper and skid plates and roof rack =)
lukeskywalker
New member
Mate, lol. I'm gonna say what I think...because this is a forum. I applaud people trying to share their thoughts. But the "YOU think this stuff" and blaming someone for giving their thoughts because "It's not about you"...give me a break. I understand you need to take the moral high ground and be the mighty noble ethical holier man. I have no problem with people trying to lose weight. As long as it's not in the 'fomo' realm of never being good enough...or maximizing MPG cause you're at "19 bro, not 18".
And even if it is, good for you. But I have every right to voice my opinion.
Michael-Dallas
New member
I pity the foo that stops there at dusk or at night! :scared:
This is why I bought one of these, no more using park toilets! https://smile.amazon.com/Cleanwaste...=1529272523&sr=8-1&keywords=cleanwaste+toilet
4runr4eva
New member
Ignorance is bliss. What you can't see might be better in this regard. I am not the biggest fan of spiders. I had my fare share of cane spider incidents in Hawaii... Ugh. :spider:
CarborundumK
New member
Apologies if this was covered in pages 2-4 but I wanted to jump in with a little experience from my build and other off road vehicles I have wheeled or built.
More than the mileage, I like to keep weight down to improve off-road performance. More weight means more work for your suspension, more work for your breaks, less control in off-camber situations, and for most expo-style builds, more pucker factor on side-hill trail sections. Weight also helps you to break axles, cv's, tie rods, etc.
Specific to the 5th gen, the only thought I really had was around aluminum armor. As big as the body is, unless you are doing actual body damage (fenders, quarter panels, etc) on most of your trail runs, I think most people would be fine with aluminum vs steel skid plates. Now, if you are really getting it and have reshaped your fenders via the rock and roll method (banged into rocks and at least one partial roll) then by all means, grab some steel skid plates
.
Most of the other things I can think of are non-vehicle specific. Removing unused seats and roof racks, gong to a lighter wheel and tire combo if you don't need beadlocks and 37's, a competition winch (50 ft of cable) and an extension, and of course, packing like you were going to hike as opposed to stowing your patio kitchen, half of your tools, and your spare closet worth of clothes on top of your rig.
You could do 4130 control arms vs. DOM, you could compare the weights of different manufacturers shocks and select something light, you could go to two piece brake rotors etc. If your rig is going to weight over 6,000 pounds though, I would focus on quality rotors vs light weight, I would go with a 2.5 inch diameter shock to have extra fluid to control that big floppy rig if you do any runs at speed, and I would go with a tire that has a good sidewall as opposed to the lightest c-rated AT that I could find.
Finally, echoing comments from others, if you want to improve mpg's, I would focus on aerodynamics first, then I would look at weight. I don't have data for a gaggle of different 4Runners but compare the Chevrolet Colorado Z71 to the ZR2. With a moderate lift, a nominal change in tire size and track width, and a less aerodynamic front bumper you go from 24 MPG to 18 MPG (both 4wd, 3.6L V6, 8 speed auto).
More than the mileage, I like to keep weight down to improve off-road performance. More weight means more work for your suspension, more work for your breaks, less control in off-camber situations, and for most expo-style builds, more pucker factor on side-hill trail sections. Weight also helps you to break axles, cv's, tie rods, etc.
Specific to the 5th gen, the only thought I really had was around aluminum armor. As big as the body is, unless you are doing actual body damage (fenders, quarter panels, etc) on most of your trail runs, I think most people would be fine with aluminum vs steel skid plates. Now, if you are really getting it and have reshaped your fenders via the rock and roll method (banged into rocks and at least one partial roll) then by all means, grab some steel skid plates
. Most of the other things I can think of are non-vehicle specific. Removing unused seats and roof racks, gong to a lighter wheel and tire combo if you don't need beadlocks and 37's, a competition winch (50 ft of cable) and an extension, and of course, packing like you were going to hike as opposed to stowing your patio kitchen, half of your tools, and your spare closet worth of clothes on top of your rig.
You could do 4130 control arms vs. DOM, you could compare the weights of different manufacturers shocks and select something light, you could go to two piece brake rotors etc. If your rig is going to weight over 6,000 pounds though, I would focus on quality rotors vs light weight, I would go with a 2.5 inch diameter shock to have extra fluid to control that big floppy rig if you do any runs at speed, and I would go with a tire that has a good sidewall as opposed to the lightest c-rated AT that I could find.
Finally, echoing comments from others, if you want to improve mpg's, I would focus on aerodynamics first, then I would look at weight. I don't have data for a gaggle of different 4Runners but compare the Chevrolet Colorado Z71 to the ZR2. With a moderate lift, a nominal change in tire size and track width, and a less aerodynamic front bumper you go from 24 MPG to 18 MPG (both 4wd, 3.6L V6, 8 speed auto).
alexfrankbob
New member
alexfrankbob
New member
Oh my yes. Just did a long XC (OR-MD & back) and 55 vs 65 vs 75 vs 80+ (UT/NV) really shows the effects of having the aerodynamics of a brick/reefer. There were reasons we all drove 55 (or were supposed to) in the 70s.
Metalsaber
New member
I'm pretty much stock. I'm running Falken Wildpeak AT/3W tires (stock size). I have Aluminum underbody stuff. My last 3 fill ups I've done 19mpg with manual calculations.
I live in the country, so pretty much all my traveling is done via highways. No real city/stop/start driving.
I live in the country, so pretty much all my traveling is done via highways. No real city/stop/start driving.
