22re, ideas on improving fuel economy

[Jimm]

I have a '94 2wd 5sp pickup and would like to get better fuel economy. I am getting around 22 city driving and 26 highway. I would like to get at least 27/32. Here are my ideas (not implemented yet).

new O2 sensor
check timing/tune up
remove Catalytic Converter
thinner motor oil (maybe 0W-30 or 5W-20)
already have synthetic oil in the rear end and tranny
40 psi in the tires
narrow/taller tires
4 wheel alignment
drop tailgate on the highway

Any other ideas before I get started?

[jarrodH]

those seem like all good ideas. I heard someone on here say to stay away from synthetic oil in your motor if your truck has higher mileage... not sure though.

also dont forget you could put some fuel injector cleaner through your fuel system, or take the injectors out altogether and have them cleaned and balanced.

and an aftermarket air intake will help gas mileage even better than just putting in a new stock air filter.

[Jimm]

I've always been of the opinion that a more free flowing intake/exhuast would hurt fuel economy. If you get more air through the engine it will need more fuel to accompany it.

Good point about the injector cleaning. A drippy injector will kill your economy.

Anybody know of any tricks with the timing/valve adjustments/maf adjustments? I could care less about more power, I want efficiency.

[humanoid]

I'm thinking that's as good as you're gonna get. That's pretty good mileage in my estimation. If you want good mileage maybe should have gotten a Prius? Check with the guys over at yotatech.com and I'm sure they can give you some pointers on getting more fuel efficiency.

[nofear4189]

the K&N full intake that they put on my brothers GMC helped fuel mileage by 3 MPG. Definately worth the 300$ in the long run. If your state tests emissions then do not remove the cat. Around here, its illegal, so id check with your state first. Free flowing exhaust helps too because it lets the exhaust folw out alot faster, and making the motor run more efficient. K&N Intake sucks more air, is mixed, burnt, and exits with ease will help your truck alot.

-adam-

[2tacomas]

If you put a cap or tonneau cover on your bed that should give you atleast 2 or 3 more mpg...possibly more. Getting a tune-up should help some as well; the mileage you are getting now is pretty darn good though, it is going to be hard to get much more than that.

[reb]

From your mileage numbers, it sounds like you know this, but for those who don't: Driving habits are a major consideration. No fast stops or starts and avoiding high speeds make a lot of difference.

From my experience larger tires helps up to a point. Too large a tire can hurt mileage. Higher pressure is a good idea unless it is high enough to cause uneven wear. The cost of replacing tires early can eat up a lot, if not all, of the gas savings. Lowering the tailgate for fuel economy is controversial. The tonneau cover is probably a better ideal.

[fast68]

cat is federal its technically illegal to remove in almost all cases, but we do it whenever we find one thats plugged up,

good luck

[subliminaltrips]

you could tinker with ignition timing and plug gaps, maby a hotter coil. youll get a more complete burn and more power as a bonus.

[humanoid]

You can go with synth motor oil too. 40 PSI in your tires will definitely make your tires wear a lot faster than the recommended PSI and thus use up your tires faster which means more money out of your pocket. Also having "taller" tires will give you an unaccurate MPG and MPH reading. Finally dropping the tailgate will actually cause more drag than give you fuel efficiency. Check out the link below for that study and other tips for better fuel economy, but like stated before, it's gonna be hard to beat the mileage you're currently getting, but good luck.

http://www.scangauge.com/tailgate.htm

[humanoid]

And here's another thread from another site on whether to leave the tailgate up or down.

edit: ooops, here's the link

http://www.customtacos.com/ubbthread...ev=#Post349638

[sefus]

open up the intake and exhaust. those are your two best bets. dont just do a drop in replacement filter for the intake, go with an open cone style. I wish to hell i could remember the technical of why but i am 100% sure it helps not hinders milage. the other side is exhaust. open it up witha tri-y style header (pacesetter is cheap and effective) and use a good freeflowing muffler and larger pipe diameter all the way. its all about the flow.

[alltrac165]

That mileage is pretty good. I only get about 18 on the freeway at 65 mph with no tail gate, 29" tires up to max psi. Of course, I have 4wd which doesn't help.
Removing the cat won't help mileage but WILL make our air worse so don't bother. On the other hand, a slightly larger exhaust pipe size can help both power and mileage as it can reduce pumping losses associated with forcing the exhaust out the pipe.
There are high mileage engine synthetic oils out there.

[qsd-dan]

That's odd...

1984 22re Toyota 2wd SR5 163,000mi

28 city 36 highway

Worst milage obtained in 21 years 25mpg

Best milage obtained in 21 years 41 mpg


Must be due to the larger, swirl type combustion chamber head with domed pistons or non TCCS EFI

[Jimm]

nice MPG's qsd-dan!!

I used to get much better. First 7 years with the truck it got 27/32. I would occassionally get 35 on the highway and always carrying a load in the back. I could even get 32 pulling a small trailer with about 500lbs. in it. I'm thinking I will get some of that back with a new O2 sensor and tune up. 2wd trucks with 5 speed and stock tires should get much better mileage than 4wd.

I still don't think I will see any improvement from opening up the intake and exhuast. The more flow you get the more fuel you burn.