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1Gen-TundraGeneral discussion forum for the 2000 to 2006 Toyota Tundra.
This is a discussion thread titled "20 mpg How do you do it?", within the 1Gen-Tundra forum, part of the Truck Forums category.
glad to hear i'm not alone thackl I'm going to pump up my tire pressure a bit and see what happens..I think i can do a little better when the warmer weather comes around because even though i said we had a mild week I still let her warm up a little while before taking off(still chilly in the A.M.)
The only way I trade is if you take my wife (5 months pregnant) and my cat.
Just kidding.
I am at a loss at to why the mileage varies so much with the exact vehicle.
I am going to up my PSI to 36 all the way around and see what that does.
I have noticed that running the defroster tends to lower mileage a bit but not that much.
My highway milage has been 17-20. It's the city driving that's killing me. Here in Lubbock, nohing is very far and I think the ultra short trips are the reason for the 13mpg. My wife's yukon gets about 12 around town and 16-17 hwy..... I thought the Yota would be significantly better, but I was wrong
I do an average of 12 mpg, the only thing is i run it with lpg. This conversion brings an extra weight of approx. 440 lb Burning lpg brings an extra fuel consumption of 15 % max. so that means an average of 13.8 mpg. Speeds over here are higher than over in America. Highway speed is at least 75.
Romaniac, two suggestions
1. NEVER fill up in California. It cuts into your milage considerably.
2. Buy the V-6. I've AVERAGED just under 20 mpg for the 70K I've owned the truck. Two tanks I actually went over 500 miles (I've bragged about this before, forgive me).
I live in the Laurel Highlands Mountains of SW PA. I generally get about 14-15MPG around the mountains. Granted, I don't usually put my foot into it but I also don't idle it either. The best I've ever gotten on a trip is 19.1 MPG @ 68mph on the PA Turnpike. I was happy about that since I have a 4x4 and 265/70-16 tires. Must be the Sunoco gas and Havoline oil!
This is my second 4x4 Tundra. My first was the 00' 4X4 Limited AC 4.7, and this one is the DC 4.7 4X4 VVTi. I live in Utah, so the elevation may play a small part in the mileage, but I've always had approx. 14.7 mpg in both of them around town. On the freeway, I seem to get a little better...but not worth mentioning at an average speed of 70-80mph.
When I put the K&N FIPK kit on, my mileage went down quite a bit. I noticed my first half tank to be approx 10 mpg, and averaged 13-14 mpg with partial freeway driving (Minimal fourwheel drive action too).You can really put your foot in it, and watch the tank go down. Since then, I've put the stock filter back in and am running Royal Purple...and my mileage went back up to approx 14.6 mpg.
I was discussing this with a friend recently, and he thinks poor mileage is due to the way trucks are geared toward towing heavy loads. My AC is on order and due in soon, and I got it with the tow package. Is the gearing any different with the tow package? Maybe this is why some of you are getting poorer mileage than others.
I believe the axle ratio is 3.91 and does not change by adding the tow package. You get the hitch, and a transmission cooler is added. My conclusions, from reading this forum, are you get better mileage if you're driving flatland, that is, not up & down mountains, driving at lower elevations, like Florida instead of Arizona, and leaving the truck stock. Uh-Oh. I think I hit a nerve. Well, mod your truck to suit your taste. Just beware it can affect mileage. Other opinions welcomed.
Your right about the stock gear ratio, However Engine mods have been a rather long and experimental process with my 01 Tundra. I am ( and I'm not kidding) getting 25 mpg on the highway at speeds in mid to upper 70s
My fellow truck owners are blown away when on trips and are convinced there next trucks will be Tundra's
01 2 x 4 extra cab
2 1/2" front lift. Cold Air Intake, Helix power Tower, Headers, 2 1/4" dual exhaust/(H-Pipe/ Dynomax Super Cats & Ultra Flows) Unichip, Dyno Tuned and tested at 307 peak hp w/240 at the wheels. Torque band dominant at 35 to 4600 rpm displaying 85 to 90% of peak horsepower. While you could not have convinced me of it 3 months ago, I do now believe the engine runs better ( more or less hp debatable)with the stock cold air intake with a K&N filter than with the K & N cold air intake. I think the air is cooler coming in from the fender-well, than in the engine compartment regardles of the heat shields provided with K & N.
Just my humble opinion
This is my second teenagership. I'm lovin every minute of it. But the money!!!!!!!!!!
I have 2600 miles on my 2005 DC 4x4 Tundra. I have only driven it around town with lots of stop and go. The last 2 times I filled the tank I got 17.62 mpg. I try not to exceed 2200 rpms and only get into the throttle when necessary. I expect to break the 20mpg on long road trips. The only mechanical add on is the dual exhaust.
Here is another story : My co-worker bought the same truck that I have (only difference is color) His gas milage in town is 12.4 and 16 on the highway. I think we might exchange trucks for a week and see if its his driving or his truck. Toyota says if we can prove its the truck and not his driving, they will do what it takes to fix it.
hey trueduel, what do you attribute most of your gains to? not trying to be controversial here, but suspect some of your mods maybe didn't do much. for example, most folks on ts don't think much of the helix power tower or intake mods. do you think the exhaust made the biggest change? or the chip?
or maybe the dyno tuning? can you describe this process? i assume you have to have the unichip installed so they can map your advance and a/f numbers over the rpm range, right?
i know it's possible to improve mileage over stock on other cars. my nissan actually started averaging 30 mpg after intake and exhaust and ignition mods and still produced more horsepower. i think it got around 22-25 mpg when i first got it, so that's significant.
just trying to get closer to the bottom of this complicated issue...
I have aprox. 3,500 miles on my 2006 Tundra SR5 4x4 and I am now averaging between 16.8 and 17.5 mpg (65%HWY) and aprox. 15.3 with mixed driving. These figures are for mostly mountainous driving condition with no modifications at the moment. I have owned a 2004 and got between 19.5 and 20.5 on trips to the beach after it was broken in. Hopefully my mileage will improve with the new 5 speed transmission? Tim B
But I really baby it most of the time. Under 2200 RPM.
That's the trick. Work on keeping the RPM's down low. I generally keep mine at 1300-1800 as much as possible. I mostly drive New England back roads so it can be tough, but that's the ticket.
If you drive city with a lot of lights and stop and go, forget about getting high MPG.
I tried to drive my Tundra yesterday by keeping the RPMs below 2200. The cool thing was I got a lot of stares! The bad thing was, they were not looking at my good looking truck. They were staring in anger for holding up traffic as a drove past me!
Seriously, my accelleration was so slow while keeping the RPMs below 2200 that it was hardly worth it. I getting 15 @ town and 17-18 on the highway. I do try to keep the RPMs below 2800. That way it does not take my 30 seconds to get up to speed.
Re: 20 mpg How do you do it?
I'm going to pump up my tire pressure a bit and see what happens..I think i can do a little better when the warmer weather comes around because even though i said we had a mild week I still let her warm up a little while before taking off(still chilly in the A.M.)
A lot of CID.
Linear Mode
