doctorcarta

alright,here i go...so i got my first 4runner back in December of '07 and recorded the following stats:

1/8/08(full tank)
212miles before gas light came on
47miles until the car died
Total= 259miles tank

roughly 3 weeks ago i got my timing belt,water pump and major service tune-up done by the "stealership" and today i recorded the following stats:

1/29/08(full tank /w seafoam, mileage 112,xxx)
205 miles before gas light came on...

i am so upset that i didn't even want to see how far the 4runner would go until it died...i don't understand why my gas mileage didnt improve...?

insight anyone?

thanks!

1990Runner

do a search on gas mileage, hate to be the bearer of bad news but thats actually about right. If not a little above average

rearviewmirror

Looks about right to me...

https://www.yotatech.com/forums/f2/w...runners-86034/

jjrgr21

i have an 03 d-cab taco/stock 4.10 gears, 255/85/16 bfg's, rear bumper/tire carrier, custom front bumper, and a cap. with winter gas i'm getting about 13mpg.

summer w/245/75/16 coopers i was getting a consistant 19-20mpg hwy here in MD, and about 22-23 out west, towing a trailer.

your runner probably weighs about the same as my taco with all my stuff. so your about right on.

AustinTaco

You can read through all of the posts, but I will save you the trouble. MPG will vary with type of gas(winter/Summer), tire size, accessories/weight, terrain(hills/desert), use(city/hwy/4wd/towing), driving style, speed, and wind.

I have a similar setup to the 03 Taco above on my Tacoma and I get 15 on a bad day and 22 under best conditions. If you start cleaning out or replacing sensors etc...reset your computer so it can start from scratch on the new air/fuel ratios or you will need to drive it for a few days so the computer can reset itself.

If under best conditions, you can't get over 17, something is wrong. You said you had a tune up done, but did they use the correct spark plugs? Even though it says what type to use under the hood, the kid they assigned your truck to might have skipped over that.
Here's what I would do:
Check one plug to make sure they put in the right type.
Gradually do the seafoam treatment. Start with it in your tank, and build up and plan around your next oil change.
Add the seafoam to your crankcase a few days or 50 miles before you decide to change the oil( I can't verify if this makes a difference, but its what's in the threads)
On the day you change your oil, go ahead and seafoam through pcv.
Change PCV.
Change Oil/filter
Clean out MAF and Throttle Body
If you have a filter like K&N clean it and oil lightly(search on this) or use a stock filter.
reset your computer by disconnecting the battery or the fuse.

That should bring you back to normal. I can vouch for seafoam and MAF cleaning. The other stuff I just do because it can't hurt and you are working on the car anyway.
Hope this helps.

Yodaforce

First of all, you fill your tank, drive it until it's low, not out, write down your mileage at the gas pump, get out, fill the tank again, write down the amount of gas it says on the pump, then divide the mileage by the amount of gas you just pumped. Remember, it's not about how many miles to a tank, it's miles to gallons. Do this for a few fillups, then average the mpg's from each time. That would be more accurate. Also, if you are concerned about mileage, remove any uneccesary items from the truck (weight), check your tire pressure weekly, and don't push the gas to the floor (drive like grandpa). Try this and see if any better.

cackalak han

^^ Yes, what Yodaforce said, except you really don't have to drive until the fuel is low. You can fill it up at any time, but generally, middle to low on the gauge is a good time to fill up. The dummy light (gas light) cannot be trusted, so use the above method to see what your actual MPG is. Also, do not let your gas level go down so low (and do NOT let it go till it dies, like you did--there are a lot of crud on the bottom of the tanks and if your pump sucks it up, it will clug up the pump, filter, injector, etc.).

hopper

I replaced my pcv valve its only $6 at toyotapartsales.com and picked up 1.5mpg. Just got my timing belt and waterpump done so I hopfully will see more. Im getting 15.5mpg now.

doctorcarta

that first part makes no sense to me and doesn't sound accurate. with my way i know for a fact that when my car dies i used all the gas from the tank...i divide the total miles used from a full tank of gas by 15 gallons(tank size).your way sounds like somewhat guesstimating the mpg unless i am misunderstanding something...

thanks

Spence1016

your gas tank will not always hold 15 gallons. Generally they only hold about 80 percent of their capacity to allow for changes due to temperature changes. Gas station fuel pumps stop based off pressure in the gas tank and due to environmental factors this means you are not getting 15 gallons in every tank.

Spence1016

yodaforce's way is completely accurate (allowing for some room for error) because you are dividing the distance traveled(by resetting your trip odometer when u fill up) by the gallons that were used by seeing how much gas was required to fill up the tank to the same level.
and x2 on running your tank all the way down, it is very bad for all of the before mentioned reasons

1990Runner

look, say if you fill up between quarter and empty and your milage was say 124,600. then you put 14.6 gallons of gas. then when you go to fill up, your milage is 124,786 and you put in 14.2 gallons. got 12.73 MPG on the previous tank, you get it?

FavreRunner

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

doctorcarta

can you make yourself more clear...like show some arithmetic.

thanks

Whitey13

If he can't fit 15 gallons of gas in his empty tank than it's his lucky day because there must be a couple kilos of booger sugar hidden in his tank. Did the truck come from MExico by any chance?

Yotaforce is 100% right. Just break down what he is saying...it's not rocket science.

crolison

I get like 300-340 miles till my light comes on in the summer

Winter gas sucks, and i get around 260-300 a tank during the colder months.

Godzilla

man, if you arent kidding, then please for the sake of your vehicle do not try to do any maintenance or modification yourself.

pattycakes77

iTrader: (2)

i swear, i'm about ready to do a 2.7 swap!

i just filled up today, only got 170 miles on the last tank of gas. all in town, had to switch to 4X4 a few times, i always drive like a grandpa, but i think i may need new O2 sensors down the road. guess it doesn't help having a lift and bigger tires either so i shouldn't complain about mileage when i purposely mod my truck with known mileage killers

hnugen

Clean your MAFS!! I was getting 16-17mpg and terribly sluggish acceleration until I cleaned my MAFS and did the deck plate mod. It was throwing the p0171 code for "lean bank #1" for awhile. As far as cleaning the MAFS, I used rubbing alcohol and compressed air which didnt do much but make it wet. I then used brake cleaner and it got the MAFS as clean as the day it left the factory. Im getting 22 +-0.5 mpg highway now and I can pass people without trying to put a dent in the floorboard with the gas pedal. This is a 99 3.4L auto 4x4 I bought with 82k. It now has 93k and with factory O2 sensors. I drive home every weeked, 360miles round trip and I can surely attest that truck stop gas is the SH-TTIEST of them all. This garbage may be be 10-15 cents cheaper but it is NOT worth it. I have noticed this everytime I put truck stop gas into my tank and dont plan on using it unless I absolutely have to. I dont know how much ethanol they put in their gas but it cant be good.

pattycakes77

iTrader: (2)

i've cleaned my MAF and the TB, but perhaps it's due for another. my '98 4runner has never had much "get up and go", and i drove a '99 with the exact same setup as mine and it hauled you know what! haven't tracked down why mine is lacking yet. here in iowa, they push ethanol. however, the last 6 months i've been buying the 87 octane gas to see if there is a difference, can't say i've noticed anything: mileage or power. perhaps it's just about burning cleaner and not gunking up the internals so much, i don't know.

fyi - i'm browsing for a rolled 4runner with a working 2.7L