Gas mileage and break in period

[Wilks132]

My 08 has about 1000 miles on it. Im only getting between 14-15 MPG. I hear that once the new engine is broken in, the MPG's go up. When did you guys see an increase? My truck is stock and i have the 245 Dunlops on it. I barely ever romp on it. I fill up when the light comes on, and it takes about 17.5 gallons. I get about 275 miles to the tank (approx). I also got got an Extang cover for it and I heard that helps but who knows. It cost me $70.00 to fill the tank last night. I got rid of my Z71 because of gas prices and the Taco doesnt seem to get any better. Does anyone have any suggestions to increase fuel mileage?

[el_smurfo]

I was getting 18 by 1000 miles and about 21 now at 10k

[westpoint]

First off. Buy a Scangauge II. You will love it and then you can keep track of exact MPG numbers.
I was disappointed early on as well with what I was getting for mpg.
Now at 5000km, I regularily see 20 and 22. Today I got 24 and that was in the city on freeways with a few lights. I'm stock and carrying nothing but tools most of the time. I'm also running my tires close to max sidewall- 45 psi - as per cleanmpg.com tips.

Get that Scangauge!

[Wilks132]

Is this Scangauge a hard wired peice of equipment or doe you plug it in to the OBD port? I dont want to mess with my ECU programming.

[TacoNick]

I'm getting 22+ MPG with the V6 Automatic Access Cab. But I don't drive it the way I used to when gas was cheaper. I use a very light foot, keep it under 60 if I can on the highway, and try not to push the RPM's past 1500. I get where I'm going, but it's not as much fun as it used to be. Most of my driving is rural, so I don't see a lot of stop signs or red lights. I don't have a tonneau cover; if I did, the mileage would probably be better. But if you're on the highway, keep the tailgate up. Most people think that dropping the tailgate or taking it off will improve mileage, but it won't. Wind tunnel tests show that a dropped tailgate creates a vortex in the bed of the truck that generates a lot of drag. A raised tailgate, on the other hand, creates a bubble of air in the bed that the wind flows over, reducing drag.

[sechsgang]

Is yours 4WD? Manual or auto? DC?

I have an 4x4 DC 6speed and I got 16.5mpg on my first tank. It has then steadily increased and reached 18mpg at about 15K miles or so. It has been constant since. My driving is about 50/50 city/hgwy.

A few weeks ago I towed our pop-up camper (~ 2.5K pounds loaded) with a loaded truck and 4 people over Snoqualmie pass. I was pleasantly surprised to get 15.3mpg, that tank was 100% towing. 14-15mpg sounds kinda low, but it depends a lot on how you are driving.
Checked the tire pressure?

[One4games]

My last tank 19.4 mpg and that was with a combination of city and highway driving. When on the highway i generally try to set the cruise control for 65-70. When accelerating I generally try and be lite footed, but on occasion my foot will tend to get heavy. My odometer will be turning 4k probably later this week.

[Wilks132]

I have an 08 D/C L/B V6 auto 4x4. I am gonna check my tire pressure once it stops raining. I would be happy with 18 MPG's. I usually drive at around 70 mph on the highway w/ cruise control. im at about 60% city 40% highway. I hope it increases as the engine breaks in. My buddy said he saw an increase after the first oil change with synthetic and a new air filter. I have also heard that an intake helps. Is this true?

[Wilks132]

Oh, and I also read a write up on Tacomaworld.com about the TRD exhaust. The writer stated that he did se an increase in MPG's with the exhaust.

[Jasonoff]

I just took delivery of my 08 DC TRD Sport in May and have been tracking my mileage.

343.6km = 16MPG (City/HWY Mix)
691.3km = 18.92MPG (City/Hwy Mix)
1175.1km = 16.92MPG (All City)

I have about 110km on it now from full and it's at the 7/8th mark.

[sechsgang]

Don't expect wonders from synthetic or an air filter change. It won't do much if any.

[worthywads]

I don't think there is much improvement with break-in, it's pretty much broken in in the first 500 miles.

My first tank was my best tank until around 8000 when I finally beat it, but it probably had more to do with more fuel efficient driving habits, not break-in.

As for intakes and exhaust, they may help power, but will do nothing for better mpg.

I'm finally at 30mpg average over 29,500 miles.

[mjonags32]

Originally Posted by worthywads

I don't think there is much improvement with break-in, it's pretty much broken in in the first 500 miles.

My first tank was my best tank until around 8000 when I finally beat it, but it probably had more to do with more fuel efficient driving habits, not break-in.

As for intakes and exhaust, they may help power, but will do nothing for better mpg.

I'm finally at 30mpg average over 29,500 miles.

haha riiiiiight

[MikeNH]

Mine has 2000 miles and at first it was all over the place. First tank was 19, then 17, then 18, then 20 and now 19. And this last tank was with the new exhaust and me driving silly to hear it.

[sechsgang]

Originally Posted by worthywads

I don't think there is much improvement with break-in, it's pretty much broken in in the first 500 miles.

My first tank was my best tank until around 8000 when I finally beat it, but it probably had more to do with more fuel efficient driving habits, not break-in.

As for intakes and exhaust, they may help power, but will do nothing for better mpg.

I'm finally at 30mpg average over 29,500 miles.

Yeah right. Your truck is listed as getting 20/25mpg, and you are telling us you get 30mpg over 30k miles averaged? You need to check your math. I believe that's what you wish you'd get.
Are you always going downhill?
While it is possible to get slightly better numbers than advertised with really careful driving, I have never heard of somebody beating the highway only advertised mileage by 20% on average over 30K miles. I just don't buy it. Sorry.