Terrible Gas Mileage 5sfe - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

Retrospekt · 09-12-2009, 03:30 PM

I got 19.7 mpg on my recent tank. No one drove the car but me, and I am VERY light on the gas. I do 0-60 in probably 15 seconds. Yeah, I'm a slowpoke.

I'd say I did about 100 miles on the highway and 170 in the city. I just had a Timing belt job done 500 miles ago. Is it possible that the belt is so new it's just getting "worked in"?

I just put new tires on and the car is aligned.

abew330 · 09-12-2009, 05:29 PM

try seafoam. i had very bad mpg.. 94 1mz and i would only get 200 miles a tank at most
after the seafoam i get at least 50 mile extra but depends on how i drive.. i got as high as 300 mile to a tank after the seafoam
also try a tune up after the seafoam

rusty9 · 09-12-2009, 08:42 PM

i had weird milage on my old 5s, if i was on a trip i could easily get 500+ miles on the highway keeping it at about 2500 rpm. but in the city i would only get around 200-250

Retrospekt · 09-12-2009, 09:53 PM

My spark plugs are old, I know that. Wires look solid. I cleaned out the throttle body recently and my air filter is clean.

Maybe I'll try the spark plugs.

uibalnme · 09-13-2009, 01:32 PM

What grade of oil are you using? If it's too thick, your engine will work harder. Do you carry alot of stuff in the trunk? Extra weight affects your MPGs. Recheck your tire pressure. Change the plugs, wires, cap, rotor, and PCV valve. Do the seafoam thing. It does help.

Retrospekt · 09-13-2009, 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uibalnme

What grade of oil are you using? If it's too thick, your engine will work harder. Do you carry alot of stuff in the trunk? Extra weight affects your MPGs. Recheck your tire pressure. Change the plugs, wires, cap, rotor, and PCV valve. Do the seafoam thing. It does help.

I use 89 I think. The cheapest option available in Chicago. Trunk is almost always empty. Sometimes jackstands or some books.

My tire pressure is at 30psi. I put on new tires and that's what they filled it to. It looks a little low, my dad said I should do 35 psi. Opinions?

I don't know what the "cap", "rotor" or "PCV valve" is, or if it's expensive. I'll definitely do the seafoam eventually.

***fenixus*** · 09-13-2009, 04:19 PM

retrospect try NGK plugs along with their wireset. plugs are mentioned (together with DENSO) in Camry manual, model# is NGK BKR6EKPB11, at least for 2000 camrys and solaras i4, might to double check that. you can get both in Advance Auto pasts store.

plugs and wires can make hell of a difference in comfort of driving and MPG. try it. it's a part of 30k tune up (together with fuel filter) anyways.

Retrospekt · 09-13-2009, 04:32 PM

Ah yes, fuel filter. I keep hearing about that, and with how much this car was neglected by the previous owner, I'm sure mine is ancient. Is that hard to install yourself?

***fenixus*** · 09-13-2009, 04:45 PM

it's not that hard, however one of bolts maybe a problem to remove. some DIY here:
http://www.solaraguy.com/viewtopic.php?t=25792

or here:
http://www.toyotaownersonline.com/pu...HowToBroch.pdf

I let the mechanic do this. i didn't feel comfy about messing with fuel lines anyways... no mechanic here.

have you tried replacing the PCV valve? may help a bit too:
http://www.toyotaownersonline.com/pu...HowToBroch.pdf
it's located on top of engine head and connects to the throttle body. very cheap ($5) in autozone, takes 5 mins to replace, you only need pliers to do this.

"cap" is a distributor cap, the thing that's on the other end of spark plug wires. official DIY here:
http://www.toyotaownersonline.com/pu...HowToBroch.pdf

I found lots of interesting DIYs in here:
Camry FAQ ------> READ FIRST -----> Comprehensive List of Gen 3/4 INFO and DIY

and here:
http://www.solaraguy.com/viewforum.php?f=20

plus some basic stuff here:
http://www.toyotaownersonline.com/pa...rvice/diy.html

uibalnme · 09-13-2009, 10:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Retrospekt

I use 89 I think.

What I meant was the weight of oil use(10w-30, 10w-40...) not the octane rating of the fuel you're using.

Retrospekt · 09-14-2009, 12:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by uibalnme

What I meant was the weight of oil use(10w-30, 10w-40...) not the octane rating of the fuel you're using.

Ooooh.

Honestly, I'm not sure. The car had a brand new oil change done when I bought it, and I haven't driven anywhere near 3,000 miles yet.

A shop would probably use 10W-30 right? It was serviced at Jiffy Lube according to the windshield sticker.

Mickyblue · 09-14-2009, 01:08 AM

ALSO! if you have ever done a tune up yourself and you didnt use TOYOTA APROVED spark plugs and wires and cap and rotor, that could be your problem, Because i have done that, and i used to get 33-35mpg all day long on the highway and 26 in town, now because i did a cheap tune up a while back with bosch spark plug wires and autolight plats, i now get 29mpg and 20 in town.

uibalnme · 09-14-2009, 02:47 AM

Well, bosch is garbage when it come to our cars. Use NGK or Denso parts and you'll be golden.

TonsOfToyotas · 09-14-2009, 11:43 AM

maybe the o2 sensor? i know my celica (5sfe) ran shit until i replaced that but id def check the cap and rotor to make sure it aint all burned up, besides the fact that its not good mpg does the car run okay? sputters? backfire? miss at all?

Retrospekt · 09-14-2009, 12:59 PM

The car drives fantastic. Ride is smooth, always starts up right away. I may sound crazy here, but I'd compare the ride quality comparable to my Dad's 2010 Camry. It's perfect.

Only thing I can think of would be slow acceleration, but that probably has to do with the car being slow itself, haha. It does go when I punch it though, so probably not an issue.