Time for him to start calculating gallons per mile I suppose.


Lamm

 

I've thot about running a bit leaner, too. However, I wouldn't want to lean it out too much. Running lean means running hot, and I sure don't want to encourage burning valves or blowing head gaskets. Top Fuel dragsters have a lean-out button they use to increase power near the end of the quarter mile. We've all seen what happens when those machines run too lean. ( Lots of white smoke from cooked pistons )

I 'will' say that while I was chasing a power loss issue, I got a CEL message near the end of a long road trip ( 300 miles ). The CEL code showed a problem with the O2 sensor. Strangely enough on that one trip, I received OVER 20 mpg on the 2nd tank-full of fue ( the BEST that I had EVER received , up until that time ). What I found (finally , after changing plugs, O2 sensor, dist cap and rotor ) was that my fuel pump was not working properly. It was, in fact, working just enough to make the 4Runner run. Sometimes, it would not work well at all,, and the 4Runner would buck and jerk wildly. This had the same effect as leaning out the air/fuel mixture.

Mike in AR

 

just get the ngk sparkplugs(#BKR5EYA ) and youre all set.ive used these plugs for 8yrs no problem and only 2dollars and change

 

I have an 88 with the 3.0 and auto transmission. I replaced plugs, wires, cap, rotor, fuel filter and my mileage didn't change a bit! I'm gonna have the 02 sensor tested soon to see if that might be the culprit.

Yes winter does kill mileage for me. Of course I'm doing nothing but: starting truck, drive 7 blocks, start truck, drive 7 blocks, over and over....some idling for warm up.

Last fill up= 8 mpg! 100% city driving. In the summer mixed driving I get 15 mpg

 

Here's a question?

Could bad wheel bearings (front) cause signifigantly lower gas milage?

A little while back I started to notice a slow, rythmic squeek when I was driving very slow (like in a fast food drive-threw with my window open).

Or for that matter, could that even indicate bad wheel bearings? It seems to be worse in turns and I can only hear it with the radio off and driving slow, so its not incredibly loud. There are no other apparent signs or symptoms of front end trouble.

Any ideas or input on this aspect of everything?

Lamm

 

get a 5speed, those auto trannys just dont do us any good...

 

I am getting 19 to 20 MPG out of my automatic 40% in town 60% highway. I happen to like torq converters for towing though. However I have never had a chance to tow where I could start in 4L.

 

Wheel bearings could definitely affect MPG but I wouldn't think it would be a large factor.
Back to one of your earlier posts, you asked if locking hubs could make a MPG difference...I have manual hubs. I did a simple test to determine the effect of locking the hubs. There is a large hill near my house. First, I coasted down the hill with hubs not locked noting my maximum speed. Next I locked the hubs and coasted down the same hill. There was a slight but noticeable drag evident. My top speed with hubs locked was approx 5 MPH slower. How to quantify this to a specific MPG effect is beyond me...but locked hubs does appear to cause more drag and thus a small MPG loss.

 

Any more input on the mystery squeek guys? I'm pretty sure it may be causing some of the drop in my MPGs.

Lamm

 

i got a new snorkle now i am getting 8 mpg. so i defianetly feel your pain!!!And i have a 5speed. iI am shifting at lower rpms to see if it will help but i have almost noticed that if i drive at 3Grand compared to 2 grand i am almost getting better mpg. and what is really weird is i mainly drive really slow so it doesnt make sense.

 

Your problem is you have a 3.slow with an auto. The only soultion to better mpg is a motor swap... seriously.

 

WOW, that makes me thnk twice about getting one. I though it might even help a little because it provides cooler air. The little intake tube on the airbox is so small, its hard to see how a snorkel would be much worse...

You sure its not something else, or that you didn't put everything back togeather too loose causing leaks or something?

Lamm

 

Thanks for the tip!


Lamm

 

Check your front brakes. I thought the same thing till I noticed how low my pads were. It was the squellers. They are not very loud. Replaced pads - problem fixed.

 

Thank you. Its possible I suppose that one of the caliper pistons has failed causing accelerated wear of the pads. It happened to my 92 4Runner.

Lamm

 

a little off topic, but does anyone know the stock fuel pressure for a 93 3.0 5-speed 4x4 pickup?

 

Lamm,

I am currently getting between 19 and 21 with a misfire and a check engine light that I'm trying to diagnois.

The warm-up routine for the 3.slow is relatively long, avoid long idling to warm it up, just jump in a drive after oil pressure stabilizes. Even when the coolant gauge is reading 'norm' after driving for some time the engine isn't getting that hot (the gauge is not very sensitive). My electric fan helps aid in warm-up but I found that I was able to completely block the radiator with a piece of cardboard and keep the coolant gauge in the 'norm' even when driving in stop and go traffic and/or cruising 50-75mph on the highway for 1.5hrs. Also, my fan has only switched on once and that was during a freak day with 55* weather. I noticed an improvement of just over 2mpg here, although you must watch your temp gauge.

When adding/repacking manual hubs using a high quality synthetic grease will reduce drag. Also, syn fluiding in the rear diff, trans, etc. can help as well. I don't have them in my current Runner but I've used them (Redline) in my two previous Toyota trucks with success. I've even used syn. ATF in the power steering to help free things up and noticed improvements.

Air pressure should be checked once a month. You should be between 32-35 psi cold.

 

i doubt it, but im about to replace mine so i post if anything improves

 

This sure makes me feel better about the mileage on my 4runner. A '90 with a 5speed and I average 17 mixed and have seen 24 on the highway. Gas with ethanol definitely impacts your mileage, and for a simple reason. Alchohol contains less energy per gallon than gasoline. When I was doing straight alcohol conversions the rule of thumb on carbed engines was to double the jet size and fine tune from there. The mixture for fuel to oxygen is also in favor of gasoline. As I remember, gas is bout 17-1 fuel to o2 and alcohol is 12-1. Don't quote me on this, as I'm going from memeory from 20 years ago. A question I have, I went to 31 inch tires from stock and checked on a radar gun my speedo is now 2 mph below actual. Is the odometer calibrated differently than the speedo? Or does my odo now show somewhat more than my actual mileage?

 

Your odo 'should' also show fewer miles traveled. A taller tire covers more ground per revoluition. Therefore you travel faster AND farther compared to what your speedo and odo show.

Mike in AR