mkgarrison5

hey i was telling you guys that even after new plugs, fuel filter, seafoam in the cv and 2 cans in the tank i was getting the same gas mileage as before.. now after about 400 miles later i am getting great gas mileage! it has been cold like below 45 degrees for weeks and now its in the 60's.. i wonder if my truck just doesnt like cold air or the computer is just now getting on point. i disconnected the negative cable after replaced the spark plugs and etc.. i do howver need to clean the maf sensor.. thats going to happen today.....btw, i also changed my rear, front differential gear oil and changed the motor oil. all mobile 1 syn..

shiftMX

What is your before and after gas mileage?

Elton

maybe it was the gas ?

mkgarrison5

no not the gas....i gained about 2 mpg.. mabye a lil more.. it took a bit for it to do that though.. trips me out.... i am curious if the cold and warm weather had something to do with it

shiftMX

It could be the cold weather. On cold mornings here, it takes higher rpm's for my tranny to shift out until it warms up, then it shifts normally. When the weather is warmer, it shifts normal from the start.

rdlsz24

I get worse mileage with both my truck and car when it's cold outside. I've always attributed it to the air entering the engine being colder and denser, so the ecu has to allow more gas to enter as well to compensate and keep the optimal air/fuel ratio. But that's just my theory. I could be totally wrong lol.

Rob

mikehinthehouse

mine does the same thing... I just let it warm up, and if im in a rush take it easy until it warms up...

good to see a fellow Louisiana member

mkgarrison5

hmm that maybe it but its like night and day on the gas mileage. i usually get 150 miles on half tank (where the needle points to the half mark) now its 185 miles on a half tank... pretty damn good if you ask me.. i am going to clean the maf today or tomorrow. hope this helps more. i do have somewhat of a rougher idle than before but the better gas mileage over rides that lol

etan

it might be the gas. i hear that companies use more ethanol during the winter periods. ethanol is horrible on gas mileage. A=B, B=C, therefore A=C.

mkgarrison5

we still have winter gas so its not it i am sure. i think they dont change it over until the leaves start to appear on the trees

AndYota

X2 on that, my 3.slow sucks down the gas faster than normal when the daily temps stay below 45F, and our Forester drops to near 20mpg on the highway in the winter.

neliconcept

i bet its warm up there, its 70 today, i actually let down all windows and had a polo shirt and flipflops on..

it could be the weather, however i get crappy mileage period since im sitting at over 7 feet tall in the truck

rocktown

That sounds about right. Colder, denser air has a greater concentration of oxygen, thus, requiring slightly more fuel to compensate. Thats also why some people will feel a slight increase in power when its cold out.

fullmann

i've noticed the same thing, really cold=worse gas mileage.

I think that the extra two minutes of warm up time in the morning hurts. but the thing i've seen is the use of the defroster, front and rear.

rear defrost drags on the alternator, and the front defrost turns on the A/C compressor to dry the air. kind of like driving around in the summer with the A/C on. I've limited my use of defrosters and my gas mileage goes back to what it was, less the warm up idling.

I only saw about a mile per gallon decrease when they started using the crappy 'winter' gas. power was down for sure though.

I've also noticed that I drive much more agressivley when the snow is falling , I think all the idiots around here that dont know how to drive when ANYTHING is falling from the sky brings out the irritation. that also kills my mileage.

k_southman

My limited experiance:

Drove my truck home on the highway in November, it was about 40 deg outside and I got 22 MPG on both tanks.

This weekend again tested the milage on the highway, it was around 10 deg and I got 15 then 17 MPG on two tanks.

It seems that cold weather does drastically effect fuel economy.

mkgarrison5

this is gettin better and better lol.. i avg'ed over 20.7 mpg this past tank.. far better than 16-17 i was getting. all the work and a lil help from the warmer weather and she runs great..

MTL_4runner

Yep, that's pretty normal.

My mileage goes to hell in a handbasket when the temps drop into the negative numbers. You just do your best to keep the engine in tip top shape to make the most of whatever weather/gas you get (ie change plugs regularly, Seafoam carbon deposists, keep tire pressure about 32-35psi, etc).

sharrack

We get raped here in AZ on a gallon of gas so I try to get the best mileage I can especially now that it's getting warmer.
Gas here is in the high 2.50's and Cali is at 2.85 and it's going up!
Utah........2.20

I've covered my deckplate and removed my silencer tube mod and my mileage is like it was when I bought it. Sorry ........but the noise and minimal gains
are not worth the money.
That coupled with a new O2 sensor, plugs, throttle body cleaning and battery reset.
It's nice to have my efficient runner back............Kenny S

mkgarrison5

i like that blue.. thats good lookin