Improvement in mileage and performance at 40k

[bulldog]

My V8 4Runner is coming up to it's 40k service quickly. I noticed lately that it did not feel as energetic as it did before. I have done quite a bit of offroad in the last 5k miles as well, including Death Valley with lots of dusty roads.

So before the oil change at 40K, I changed the driveline fluids (diffs and transfer case), greased the shafts and the serviced the intake system. I changed the air filter (old one looked a bit dirty), cleaned the MAF and also the throttle body. I also added a bottle of Seafoam to the gas tank when it was half. All of this is documented in the write up section.

After adding the Seafoam I did drive it a bit more aggresively to clear the injectors, etc. But even before the Seafoam I did notice that it felt a lot more responsive. AFter running the Seafoam through it felt even better.

Now I noticed since my last fill up, that my gas mileage seem to have improved by about 1-2 on the trip computer. It normally shows mid to high 17 (which is 16-17 actual), but now it shows mid 19s :D The performance also feels quite a bit better.

I'm not sure what did it, but it seems all in all it feels a lot better now and works better too. I thought 40K miles would be too low for it to have an effect, but now I know better.

I highly recommend that you give your 4Runner this treatement at 30-40k miles. It made quite a bit of difference for me.

BTW. I change my air filter every 10k miles, so it ws defintely not there for 40k.

[Ryanmb21]

I have 800 miles on my '06...

Hey guys I've got a question...I know my 4ruuner is brand new but the mileage is really bad...my first tank was 16mpg, the second was 15mpg and I've driven ~40 miles on my current tank and the average mpg on the computer reads 13mpg!

Yes, most of my current driving is short trips around the city but 13-15mpg!!?? I'm a little worried... and yes I installed an OME lift and 265/70/17 Nitto's, but from what I've read people with the lift and tires are getting ~17mpg.

Is poor gas mileage typical of all new 4runners?? When might it get better? What % city to highway driving are guys with lifts and tires driving to get 17-20 mpg? Or with the lift and tires is 15mpg my reality???

PS- I've been using a very light foot

Thanks for the help :confused:

[Cruiserhead]

Ryan,
there are many variables and w/ only 800 miles on it, it's too early to panic about mpg rate.

I know Bulldog mentioned he normally gets in the 15mpg range actual around town and the V8 is just thirsty. I'm sure you are fine, keep track of it, keep on top of maintence and see where you are in a few months.

good luck

[Joel]

Mine only says 240 mile range on a full tank. (thats with 285's tho)

[Ryanmb21]

Ryan,
there are many variables and w/ only 800 miles on it, it's too early to panic about mpg rate.

I know Bulldog mentioned he normally gets in the 15mpg range actual around town and the V8 is just thirsty. I'm sure you are fine, keep track of it, keep on top of maintence and see where you are in a few months.

good luck


Yeah...I know it's early but I have the v6 and have been using Premium :eek: ....this weekend I'll be getting some highway miles in so hopefully it will improve. Thanks for the feedback

[MAC4Runner]

FYI - I average around 16 mpg with little to no highway driving. Give the engine time to break in and you'll be fine.

[chiefiji]

i kept records of my 4runner for the first 5k miles and the mileage didn't improve till i broke the 1k barrier. what youre seeing is normal, even if you are using premium.

[Ryanmb21]

Good to hear.......... the truck,lift,tires, alignment.....$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

ching ching ching, hopefully gas prices go to a reasonable level and I can enjoy this 4runner for many many years to come.

[Jared]

Yeah...I know it's early but I have the v6 and have been using Premium :eek: ....this weekend I'll be getting some highway miles in so hopefully it will improve. Thanks for the feedback


Sorry to feel like you've wasted money, but you are going to get worse mileage with premium than with regular. There is more oomph in regular than in premium. I tested premium out for three weeks of my commute, and it ended up worse everytime. I tried my best to drive the same speeds everyday too. Once you get a chance, take it on a highway for a long trip and average 70mph, you'll get 21 miles per gallon. I did all the way up to Oregon (at about 75mph ave.).

[Joel]

Once you get a chance, take it on a highway for a long trip and average 70mph, you'll get 21 miles per gallon. I did all the way up to Oregon (at about 75mph ave.).

Not with your 33's right? Highest I've seen with my 33's is 19 and that was with a steady 20-30mph tail wind.

[Ryanmb21]

Sorry to feel like you've wasted money, but you are going to get worse mileage with premium than with regular. There is more oomph in regular than in premium. I tested premium out for three weeks of my commute, and it ended up worse everytime. I tried my best to drive the same speeds everyday too. Once you get a chance, take it on a highway for a long trip and average 70mph, you'll get 21 miles per gallon. I did all the way up to Oregon (at about 75mph ave.).

That's great to hear, I love when Cheaper is better, you can't beat a 30-pack of natural light for $14.

I've been waiting till I hit 1,500 miles to switch over to regular. Not sure why though :spank:

[MAC4Runner]

Sorry to feel like you've wasted money, but you are going to get worse mileage with premium than with regular. There is more oomph in regular than in premium. I tested premium out for three weeks of my commute, and it ended up worse everytime. I tried my best to drive the same speeds everyday too. Once you get a chance, take it on a highway for a long trip and average 70mph, you'll get 21 miles per gallon. I did all the way up to Oregon (at about 75mph ave.).

:iagree

Ditch the premium......

[Jared]

Not with your 33's right? Highest I've seen with my 33's is 19 and that was with a steady 20-30mph tail wind.


Oh, hell no with the 33's. That was still when I was stock. I have no idea what I'd get now, but it'd be much less than 21mpg.

[my034runner]

Yeah...I know it's early but I have the v6 and have been using Premium :eek: ....this weekend I'll be getting some highway miles in so hopefully it will improve. Thanks for the feedback


Dude, stop wasting your $$$$ on Premium!! You don't need it. My034runner is a V6 also, and I've never run with premium on any regular basis. I've used it a few times thinking maybe it would help, but it had no positive effect, except to make the oil company just a little richer. I, like Joel, am running 33"'s (285/75) almost 33" anyways, and my mileage varies, usually not on the good side, but I also carry a lot of crap in the back though. :pissed2:

[bulldog]

You guys running larger tires need to correct for the extra size of the tires when calculating mileage. I run 32" Revos which is quite a bit smaller than 33" MT/Rs and my odo underreads by 5% compared to my GPS. I have measured it so many times and it always comes out to be around 5% difference.

Gas mileage also depends alot on driving style. I'm not the slowest or most conservative driver out there, but with a heavy vehicle you need to keep momentum up if you want good mileage. Dont brake and accelerate like it is a 2000lb sports car.

My comp normally shows 310-320 mileage range after fillups and I normally do 280-300 miles before I fill up. Calculated by hand I normally get 16.5-17.5 sometimes the odd 18 on my daily driving, which includes a good deal of highway. However everybodies highways, routine and driving style is different so it will vary a lot. I only use premium brands and premium gas most of the time, probably wasting my $$$, but it has given me good results.

[Ryanmb21]

Thanks for the advice guys, results from last tank of premium 301 miles 20 gallons, so 15 mpg in 75% highway driving.

Hopefully I'll get better results with the 87. :guns:

[Jared]

You guys running larger tires need to correct for the extra size of the tires when calculating mileage. I run 32" Revos which is quite a bit smaller than 33" MT/Rs and my odo underreads by 5% compared to my GPS. I have measured it so many times and it always comes out to be around 5% difference.

Gas mileage also depends alot on driving style. I'm not the slowest or most conservative driver out there, but with a heavy vehicle you need to keep momentum up if you want good mileage. Dont brake and accelerate like it is a 2000lb sports car.

My comp normally shows 310-320 mileage range after fillups and I normally do 280-300 miles before I fill up. Calculated by hand I normally get 16.5-17.5 sometimes the odd 18 on my daily driving, which includes a good deal of highway. However everybodies highways, routine and driving style is different so it will vary a lot. I only use premium brands and premium gas most of the time, probably wasting my $$$, but it has given me good results.


My 33's are exactly 10% bigger than the stock tires, so it worked out really nicely. Adding 10% is math anyone can do.

[bulldog]

My 33's are exactly 10% bigger than the stock tires, so it worked out really nicely. Adding 10% is math anyone can do.
Best is to check the accuracy with a GPS. DO a few straight line drivs of 100 miles or more and you will quickly get the figure of exactly how accurate it is.

The strange thing is that in the past guys would claim how good their mileage was on different cars and when we tested them we found out that some had odos that were up to 10% optimistic. FOrtunately on the 4R it seems to be that they are pretty close stock, but wiht bigger tires it gets pretty pessimistic.