I also have a new 2023 Tacoma with less than 5,000 miles. I'm 73 and have experienced many different vehicles. It seems to me the Taco is more sensitive to speed in relation to MPG than any vehicle I've ever owned. For example the difference between 75 & 70 m/h can make 5 m/g while having everything else constant.
This has been my observation as well! It is very sensitive to speed. I've tested in increments of 5 MPH like you mention. I also feel like it is sensitive to grade. In any case, I am surprised at just how efficient it can be when driven at a slower speed on a neutral grade.
@@TyDollar I know a guy who spent near $3,000 changing the gears in both front and rear diff's to a lower speed. It increased MPG considerable (probably not enough to pay for changes). He said the Taco would stay in high gear more. I remember I used to order a 3:40 ratio in my Chevy's which had a 3 speed auto tranny with a overdrive. Then all of a sudden the tranny's had more gears and the 4:10 ratio worked better. I have no idea the ratio in my 2023 Taco with 6 speed auto.
My new 2023 toyo sr5 is abnormal and can get 30 mpg on hwy consistently and its an automatic. I keep it a little under speed limit but its consistent on good fuel mileage.
After filling up I got to 28.6mpg driving back home on the freeway about 45-55 mph then lost a bunch as I exited and drove uphill to my house. I believe it went down to 26.3mpg. I drive like a Grandpa because gas is $4.17/gallon at Sam’s Club Honolulu and $4.59+ at regular gas stations. Edit to add: I have a bone stock 2023 Tacoma TRD Off Road base Access Cab. I agree with you about the stop and go killing MPG’s as my 10-15 minute commute to work and home in traffic drops my meter to 18-19.8. I only have 615 miles (27 Jan 2024 purchase date) so I’m hoping that my average will stay or increase a little when my engine breaks in. I am also saving up for the Overland Torque Tune (OTT) as there is a guy in Honolulu that does them.
Sounds like you got a sweet truck! Congrats on your Taco. I'm about 8 months into ownership now and I'm still loving it and still getting good MPG performance. OTT is also something on my radar for the future. I don't mind the way the truck drives now but I'm all for upgrades. Thanks for watching!
I did a 60 mile stretch 2x now with a SR5 and oem Firestone's with cruise set at 60mph for 50 of those miles, and then set at 68mph on 4 lane highway the last 10 miles. Hit 27.1 mpg both directions, so wind/elevation wasnt a factor in a flat forested area. I do have a an intake on mine though, that raised my normal mpg between 1-2mpg. I also noticed towing a boat with regular 87 octane I got 15mpg, but when i tried premium 91 octane this motor responded better under load. I was able to tow in 5th gear, and not downshift into 4 on small hills and mpg went up to 17.5 cuz of that.
These are great details, thanks for sharing. Are you saying you have a cold-air intake installed and it improved the MPG that much? I'm curious where it sources from? Anyway thanks for watching and I hope you have a good one!
@@TyDollar Yep its a cold air intake. Really doesnt do much with air temp, its just a really unrestricted air filter. If u drive in dust a lot I wouldnt recommend one. They do increase cabin noise, but when rung out they sound insane. I got a vid on my channel of hearing it. If u get the Rough Country one like I got make sure to get the sock, its an extra filter and super easy to clean.
@@TyDollar ....$150. Washable reusable filter, paper ones suppose to throw out every 10k miles. Better mpg, cool sound {if u ever floor it} Easy install, easy reversible its a no brainer
I get 16mpg in town and 21 on the Highway. I have a little trouble buying the 28mpg. You must have driven downhill with a tail wind. I usually drive a little faster than you do😂.
It's a bit sus, esp not showing the trip completion screen. That said it doesn't take much to f'ck up and not get that shot...if the door is open when you shut the car off it skips right past it to some other BS, I forget...check back seat or some other nag screen. You have to keep the door closed, put it in park, turn the engine off and then you can get a good picture of it.
Yep, those numbers are pretty spot on for stop and go traffic, and high speed freeway driving. And yes, as I explain in the video there are many factors that likely contributed to increased efficiency, like driving at low speed and on a very slight downgrade. Thanks for watching and have a great day! :)
I get about 25-ish mpg with my 4.0 2nd gen. So 28 doesn't seem too far of a stretch. Idk about the 3rd gen, but I get surprisingly higher mileage with non-ethanol gas, if I can find it.
I believe your results, because I drive a 2021 SR5 Tacoma (in Raleigh NC area; automatic, stock tires, no lift), and I routinely get about 30-31 mpg on highway trips, and I drive around 60 mph on the freeways as well. I do about 75% highway and 25% city driving, and I get around 27 mpg combined, which I've confirmed via the "old fashioned method" of dividing my mileage between fuel ups by the amount of fuel to fill up.
That's incredible, I've yet to hear about anybody getting MPG in the 30's! Maybe part of that has to do with the 4 cylinder engine in the SR5? Anyway good for you. Thanks for watching and have a great day! :)
@@TyDollar I've got a 6 cylinder engine in my SR5. I think only the SR has a 4 cylinder. I think the big thing is that I drive it like a grandpa....slowly accelerate, and even go 55 mph on the interstate if I can. Get my oil changes every 5,000 miles.
Already commented on this, the Tacoma fuel gauge rests on the "F" when full, past the highest tick. Traveling 86 miles at 28 MPG consumes 3.1 gallons, or 15% of the tank capacity. It's a reasonable read for an analog gauge. Thanks for watching and have a great day!
I could have, but I would have had to drive 440 miles. Instead, I had the idea for this video after I left the gas station. I ran the experiment for 100 miles (86 miles pictured in video) and that's about when I got bored. Anyway I don't have any issues reproducing high MPGs, and many others have commented with similar experiences. Thanks for watching!
Only the highest quality Taco sauce my friend... Just kidding, I'm using exclusively 87 octane for now. I was driving a volkswagen before this which required 91, so I've been enjoying paying less for gas. Although, some people claim 91 will give better MPGs. Also I live in southern california, so maybe the elevation difference plays into the fuel economy somehow. I will say it definitely depends on your style of driving. If you focus on keeping a light foot you might see a difference.
A good way to tell if that incline made any difference would be to do the exact same stretch going the opposite way and see if you can still get 28 miles to the gallon
You're right! I'm pretty sure it mattered. I've noticed the truck is pretty sensitive to slope. Even though this case was an extremely mild slope, it still probably factored in a few MPGs. Thanks for watching!
It's not hard, keep your foot out of it, accelerate smoothly. Mine is averaging 24.7 mpg since it's last oil change about 4000 miles ago, and that's hauling 8 bales of hay 10 miles up hills every two weeks while driving it back and forth to work 50 miles a day. MPG drops dramatically in high winds or over 65 MPH.
I believe you get that MPG, but I'm surprised you're managing to do it uphill and with extra weight! I agree though, there is definitely a dramatic drop off above a certain speed. This truck moves like molasses. Thanks for watching and have a great day!
@@TyDollar Well to be fair, I’m averaging 24.7, that includes the hay runs. I can pull 26/27 pretty regularly without hauling hay. Gotta Drive like a grandpa to do it, though 😆😆👍
I have a 2022 SR5 2.7 I4 cyl 4 door 5ft bed and as my daily driver, I comfortably get 23.5 mpg, while driving posted speed limits and only slightly faster occasionally. This is driving around my home city of Memphis TN. I recently drove from Memphis to Houston TX (560 miles) distance and back and averaged 27 mpg over the entire trip. Once again, driving all posted speed limits and slightly faster occasionally. How you drive definitely can make a difference.
No way your name is Michael Hunt :) That's really nice to hear someone's experience getting great MPG. The 4-cylinder could be a factor there. Thanks for the input.
Nice I don’t think I’ve ever seen a full tank give me more than 20, I do have 33’s - but opted for fairly light wheels, and the lightest tires I could find in that size
Thanks for sharing. I'm really interested in getting MPG numbers from people on 33's and 35's. That will influence some of my decisions down the road. Thanks for watching and have a good one! :)
@@TyDollar for sure! The gearing/power band and the hunting definitely did not help it either lol. If it had better low end grunt I could have gotten better around town. Had it for 4 and a half years and strangely miss it. Call me crazy, I had a 2021 work truck with a 4 cylinder for a while- I much preferred the 2.7 haha. Less powerful for sure but it didn’t have the lugging issue I had with the v6.
I'll probably wind up tuning the truck like a lot of people suggest. Far in the future I may regear as well. Depends on how hard I want to take it off road! None of that is in the name of better fuel efficiency though, just makes it more fun to drive. Thanks for watching :)
@@TyDollar of course! Yeah mine was a 2wd and I used it to run a business, tried it in snow once, didn’t go well 😂. Was just a daily for me, it was the only truck I’ve ever owned. It was fun, I don’t miss truck payments though haha.
Hey if you're getting the advertised highway MPG I'd chalk that up as a win. I feel like it's much more common to drop below that in stop-and-go conditions.
just as you described, it sounds like the gains were due to a combination of factors: reduced drag by following a trailer, lower speed, mild downhill, high gear low rpms, etc.
Indeed, kind of a perfect storm. It's hard to control every variable and determine how much each contributes. I will say though on other highway drives so far I've tried similar tactics and seen at least a boost to 24-26 MPG. I haven't replicated the experiment over such a long distance though.
19 TRD Sport 4x4 on 3in lift with 285/70/17 Falken Wildpeaks AT3W winch and front bumper I average 18mpg at the moment around town, would to re-gear here soon w/ an OT Tune
Man if you're still averaging 18 around town with those mods I'm impressed. A re-tune AND re-gear should really have you performing well. Best of luck, sounds like a sweet setup. Thanks for watching!
@@TyDollar my tires are P grade but im switching to LTs. My tread did not last long with the bumper and winch load up front, Also trying new coil over suspension (rough country vertex 3.5in) here in few weeks
Thank you for posting this, I’ve been asking Wrangler4XE owners what their mpg is if they keep their speed between 55 and 60 with little or no responses. My tacoma can get almost 27, but it’s a 2009 4 cylinder work truck.
most mine got was 24.7 downhill but i got a pipe rack welder, tools and subwoofer so might be decent. love the lunar rock color mine is also a 2023 lunar off road
In the info-tainment screen between the gauge cluster. There are a LOT of menus to comb through. Use the arrows on the right side of the steering wheel. Mine defaults to digital speedometer and "distance to empty" on the fuel tank. But if I go one click down I get the "Tank Average" MPG and the "Current Fuel Economy" bar. The bar moves in real-time on a scale of 0 - 30 MPG. You can see the image of my gauge cluster in the video, the bar is almost maxed out at 30, corresponding to the 28 MPG I was averaging for the tank. There is also an option to display "Trip Average" MPG, if you dig into the settings.
That’s impressive for a 4500# 4x4 with a 6 spd gear box , I get 24 mpg on the highway with mine same truck as yours but I do have a slight lift front and rear with 32inch tall tires , Check out Cheyne Walls with his 2018 TRD pro Tacoma he’s based out of Huntington Beach California he also averages about 28 miles to the gallon doing some mountain driving with a camper in the back … that’s what I love about this truck you can get better fuel economy if you chose to ….
Thanks for the recommendation! I'm definitely impressed if someone's managing that economy with a camper. It gives me hopes for my own future! For a lot more reasons than the MPG, the Tacoma really is an all time great truck. Thanks for watching!
Bro - Why didn't you show the end of trip screen that shows total miles driven along with the MPG; you're just inviting suspicion. Tacoma sucks ass for MPG, period. Admittedly mine is modded on 265/75/R16's (e-load so ~9lbs per corner heavier than stock) with Front, Trans/Transfer, Gas skids tho they're all aluminum and a set of DOM rock rails that probably weigh 150 lbs. Add to that a Rextrax XR Pro bed cover (aluminum maybe 95 lbs) and Pelican BX135 cross bed box with brackets for current added weight. If I drive without regard for MPG I get 16 MPG with a commute that's probably 85% highway. Today I fueled up at the gas station right next to the onramp and drove 17.5 miles (very deliberately) end to end and managed 20.8 MPG with a 1.5 mile street leg at the end. Frankly this is some of the best milage I've ever seen. You are grossly penalized for speed and acceleration, not that the Tacoma really does anything fast LOL. Lots of folks don't know the EPA drive cycle doesn't even break 60 MPH let alone 65~75 so don't be surprised if you don't get Toyota's claimed 21~22 MPG it's based on a drive cycle that doesn't look like typical driving in California or probably anywhere for that matter. dieselnet.com/standards/cycles/hwfet.php
...adding further to the suspicion your fuel gauge is pegged at full. When you fill this truck the MPG meter resets and you can literally drive it 1 mile down a hill and be like ZOMG I get 30MPG tank average; how much driving could you have, "averaged" on a tank that's 100% full *rolls eyes*. Trip-Completion-Screen that includes miles driven bro. Circumstantially your video looks iffy because of all these flaws.
I don't know what to tell you brother, life's too short to lie about something like this. As I explain in the video there are many factors that contributed to the high efficiency, like driving 60 mph on a slight downgrade and the fact that the truck is at bone stock weight. I also explain that the difference in efficiency between even a 5 mph delta in speed is massive. The same is true for small changes in grade. Given how sensitive the truck is, there's really no comparison to your heavier setup. As far as the image I included in the video, I was trying to illustrate the conditions under which I achieved this fuel efficiency, being the speed and RPMs. I admittedly snapped the photo while driving, and thought it would be nice to flip the odometer to the trip meter to show the distance traveled at that point. My habit has always been to use one trip meter for gas tanks and the other for oil changes. Like I explain in the video, I continued this experiment until about the 100 mile point. I simply continued driving at higher speed and did not stop the truck. As for the fuel gauge, it's a non-exact analog reading. In the video you can see the dial resting exactly on the highest tick of the axis. I'm surprised you're unaware that when your Tacoma's fuel tank is full the dial will move past the highest tick and rest completely on the "F" to the right. In any case 86 miles at 28 MPG consumed roughly 3.1 gallons of gas, or 15% of the tank capacity. Again it's an analog gauge, not an exact reading. Most importantly, if you're unsatisfied with the integrity of the video, I encourage you to dislike and unsubscribe. Either way, thanks for watching and have a great day!
@@TyDollar I’d have to be subscribed in the first place, how presumptuous ;) Just busting your balls man, you seem kinda defensive. IMHO - it’s impressive milage on a truck *famous* for absolutely trash fuel economy. In the rare instance you achieve such a thing one would do well to document with unassailable integrity and proof, aka the screen that splashes at the end of *every-single-trip* showing in no uncertain or ambiguous terms total miles driven, at what average MPG, at iirc what average speed and maybe total time as well? You should redo it, you know…for science.
I hate those damn Tesla drivers! 😂 They think they own the damn road most of them can’t drive worth a damn. I got 22.9 on my drive from the Seattle area to the Oregon coast last week. And I’m running bigger tires 265/75/16
Niiice, that's definitely impressive with bigger tires. I'm curious if your rig is much heavier than stock? That could be a factor too. Thanks for watching!
Drafting the semi is the reason for 28mpg try it again without drafting and I'll bet 24mpg is what you'll get at 60mph. At 2k I was getting 12mpg it took until 8k for my Taco to get avg 21mpg. The highest I've seen was 24.4 on a long trip doing 55-60mph. Not much flat land near me. I did get 21mpg at 73mph with wind on my back and like you going down hill this weekend. I knew this Truck was a gas hog and just except it's a truck and not the car it replaced at 38mpg. I'm still getting fill up shock when filling her up!! I had a 12gal tank and still went further on it.
I'm skeptical about the semi, I was sort of being sarcastic. Like I said I was at least 100 feet back, and I'm not sure that was such a big deal. I am able to replicate these conditions on the highway, but not for the same sustained distance. The problem is there really isn't another highway like I-5 that stays straight and flat for so long. Inland San Diego is higher elevation than most people realize and the slopes and hills make it difficult to maintain a stable MPG. Yeah my previous car - a volkswagen Tiguan - was doing longer range on only a 16 gallon tank!
I was still breaking in my new 2023 SR5 4x4 Tacoma. At start of my trip I had 330 miles on her. I went through alot of small towns and back roads to keep speeds varied and 60 - 50 mph. That easy going break in trip got me 24.5 mpg even with some stop and go traffic and hilly terrain. Not bad for a new V6. Now after running around towns for another 200 miles the mileage was still over 21.7 mpg in moutainous terrain. The return trip of over 300 miles highway got me over 27.5 average mpg and we hit a couple of extended road work construction stop and go zones. My speeds varied from 60 - 70 mph. My Tacoma now has 1025 miles on her..... time to set those piston rings. At one point on my return trip (with mountainous and heavy hilly conditions) after a long sustained speeds of 65 mph I was averaging 28.2 mpg. I beleive a good reason I was able to do so well was a judicious proper break in of the engine early on prior to reaching 750 miles before stretching the engines legs a bit. On the last leg of my trip, the engine power seemed to get a smoother response and exhibit a noticeable increased power.
Thankyou for doing this and presenting the results. Good looking truck. It's almost a wash or a catch 22. You buy a Tacoma, and due to their reliability, you could very likely drive it for 200k miles or more with not so stellar mpg. You buy something better on gas, to save money at the pump, but will it run for 200k miles or more. As with virtually everything sold to us, I can only imagine the price of electricity doubling or tripling once most vehicles on the roads are EV's. Why? Because we all would need more electricity. Less of a carbon footprint than ICE's yes, but the same grubby greedy hands of whomever is selling what we need when we need it most.
You're welcome, I hope this was helpful. I do think she's a beauty. You make some good points. Ultimately, most of us aren't buying these for the MPGs anyway. And personally I didn't buy this because I wanted to take long road trips. I want a reliable vehicle that I can take off road and camping and so forth. The long road trips are a byproduct of that. Compared to EVs or even just the hybrid gen4 Taco, I felt much more comfortable with this truck. Driving a Tesla this many miles for example you'll be paying for an expensive battery replacement multiple times. And for the Gen4 Taco I want to see how they iron out any kinks first. If the Tacoma had 30 MPG or something I think it would be the perfect vehicle :)
I have to admit I have achieved 33.4 mpg on my 2020 6 speed manual. I drove behind a big rig that was going 45 mph. And I never left 6th gear. Call me a cheat, but it can be done.
Haha wow now that is impressive! Maybe drafting really is possible, although it's interesting because at a lower speed you should have less drag already. You're a soldier for being patient at that speed long enough to measure that high of an MPG!
Better than the 2024 hybrid
Haha well if this thing can be pushed to this point, I'm sure you could push the hybrid above 35+ MPG's.
I also have a new 2023 Tacoma with less than 5,000 miles. I'm 73 and have experienced many different vehicles. It seems to me the Taco is more sensitive to speed in relation to MPG than any vehicle I've ever owned. For example the difference between 75 & 70 m/h can make 5 m/g while having everything else constant.
This has been my observation as well! It is very sensitive to speed. I've tested in increments of 5 MPH like you mention. I also feel like it is sensitive to grade. In any case, I am surprised at just how efficient it can be when driven at a slower speed on a neutral grade.
@@TyDollar I know a guy who spent near $3,000 changing the gears in both front and rear diff's to a lower speed. It increased MPG considerable (probably not enough to pay for changes). He said the Taco would stay in high gear more.
I remember I used to order a 3:40 ratio in my Chevy's which had a 3 speed auto tranny with a overdrive. Then all of a sudden the tranny's had more gears and the 4:10 ratio worked better.
I have no idea the ratio in my 2023 Taco with 6 speed auto.
Re-gearing the Taco is something I've read a lot about. Seems to work well and it may be something in my far future...
@@TyDollar I would be interested in the results. You might have to change your name to "HiDollar" 😊
Going down the grape vine in neutral
Haha in neutral you might push 40 MPG in some areas!
I got 24.6 from Texas to central Arkansas
That's impressive! Especially if you had any amount of weight along for the ride. Thanks for watching!
Good information. Presentation was as though Napoleon Dynamite was reading for the local news.
Awe that's great I'm glad I could help. Thanks for watching!
My best was 26.5 mpgs in my 2017 trd off-road……when it was bone stock…😂
That's really good! "Bone stock" is the key though, we all know people like to throw a bunch of stuff on the trucks!
My new 2023 toyo sr5 is abnormal and can get 30 mpg on hwy consistently and its an automatic. I keep it a little under speed limit but its consistent on good fuel mileage.
What kind of fuel are you putting in that thing?! :)
More of what speed am I driving. There seems to be a sweet spot. Regular fuel
After filling up I got to 28.6mpg driving back home on the freeway about 45-55 mph then lost a bunch as I exited and drove uphill to my house. I believe it went down to 26.3mpg. I drive like a Grandpa because gas is $4.17/gallon at Sam’s Club Honolulu and $4.59+ at regular gas stations.
Edit to add: I have a bone stock 2023 Tacoma TRD Off Road base Access Cab. I agree with you about the stop and go killing MPG’s as my 10-15 minute commute to work and home in traffic drops my meter to 18-19.8. I only have 615 miles (27 Jan 2024 purchase date) so I’m hoping that my average will stay or increase a little when my engine breaks in.
I am also saving up for the Overland Torque Tune (OTT) as there is a guy in Honolulu that does them.
Sounds like you got a sweet truck! Congrats on your Taco. I'm about 8 months into ownership now and I'm still loving it and still getting good MPG performance. OTT is also something on my radar for the future. I don't mind the way the truck drives now but I'm all for upgrades. Thanks for watching!
I did a 60 mile stretch 2x now with a SR5 and oem Firestone's with cruise set at 60mph for 50 of those miles, and then set at 68mph on 4 lane highway the last 10 miles. Hit 27.1 mpg both directions, so wind/elevation wasnt a factor in a flat forested area. I do have a an intake on mine though, that raised my normal mpg between 1-2mpg. I also noticed towing a boat with regular 87 octane I got 15mpg, but when i tried premium 91 octane this motor responded better under load. I was able to tow in 5th gear, and not downshift into 4 on small hills and mpg went up to 17.5 cuz of that.
These are great details, thanks for sharing. Are you saying you have a cold-air intake installed and it improved the MPG that much? I'm curious where it sources from? Anyway thanks for watching and I hope you have a good one!
@@TyDollar Yep its a cold air intake. Really doesnt do much with air temp, its just a really unrestricted air filter. If u drive in dust a lot I wouldnt recommend one. They do increase cabin noise, but when rung out they sound insane. I got a vid on my channel of hearing it. If u get the Rough Country one like I got make sure to get the sock, its an extra filter and super easy to clean.
Thanks for the advice! I'll definitely add this to my long wish-list of truck mods...
@@TyDollar ....$150. Washable reusable filter, paper ones suppose to throw out every 10k miles. Better mpg, cool sound {if u ever floor it} Easy install, easy reversible its a no brainer
The best ive acheived is 24mpg in a 16 trd offroad. Sweet vid!
Nice, I think that's definitely do-able if driving conservatively. It's fun to see where the limit is. Thanks for watching and have a great day! :)
See if that stays the same around the 15-20k mark
Are you saying you think the MPG will get worse when there are more miles on the truck?
I get 16mpg in town and 21 on the Highway. I have a little trouble buying the 28mpg. You must have driven downhill with a tail wind. I usually drive a little faster than you do😂.
It's a bit sus, esp not showing the trip completion screen. That said it doesn't take much to f'ck up and not get that shot...if the door is open when you shut the car off it skips right past it to some other BS, I forget...check back seat or some other nag screen. You have to keep the door closed, put it in park, turn the engine off and then you can get a good picture of it.
Yep, those numbers are pretty spot on for stop and go traffic, and high speed freeway driving. And yes, as I explain in the video there are many factors that likely contributed to increased efficiency, like driving at low speed and on a very slight downgrade. Thanks for watching and have a great day! :)
I get about 25-ish mpg with my 4.0 2nd gen. So 28 doesn't seem too far of a stretch. Idk about the 3rd gen, but I get surprisingly higher mileage with non-ethanol gas, if I can find it.
Nice! That's good data. I'd love to hear more from 2nd gen folks.
damn i step on the pedal too much and drive above 65 mph alot. I get 15 haha
Yeeeeah that sounds about right. No more going 85 for me...
I believe your results, because I drive a 2021 SR5 Tacoma (in Raleigh NC area; automatic, stock tires, no lift), and I routinely get about 30-31 mpg on highway trips, and I drive around 60 mph on the freeways as well. I do about 75% highway and 25% city driving, and I get around 27 mpg combined, which I've confirmed via the "old fashioned method" of dividing my mileage between fuel ups by the amount of fuel to fill up.
That's incredible, I've yet to hear about anybody getting MPG in the 30's! Maybe part of that has to do with the 4 cylinder engine in the SR5? Anyway good for you. Thanks for watching and have a great day! :)
@@TyDollar I've got a 6 cylinder engine in my SR5. I think only the SR has a 4 cylinder. I think the big thing is that I drive it like a grandpa....slowly accelerate, and even go 55 mph on the interstate if I can. Get my oil changes every 5,000 miles.
Dang! That's great efficiency for the 6 cylinder. But I have to agree, conservative driving is a huge factor.
Hmm full tank, fresh mpg reset .. kinda sus
Already commented on this, the Tacoma fuel gauge rests on the "F" when full, past the highest tick. Traveling 86 miles at 28 MPG consumes 3.1 gallons, or 15% of the tank capacity. It's a reasonable read for an analog gauge. Thanks for watching and have a great day!
Show me the gas mileage when the gas gauge is around 1/4 tank
I could have, but I would have had to drive 440 miles. Instead, I had the idea for this video after I left the gas station. I ran the experiment for 100 miles (86 miles pictured in video) and that's about when I got bored. Anyway I don't have any issues reproducing high MPGs, and many others have commented with similar experiences. Thanks for watching!
Be interesting to see what you get going the opposite direction!
Indeed! I suspect a few MPGs less. I've replicated 24-26 MPG several times over various conditions. Thanks for watching!
Drafting help a bunch. What are you feeding that thing? Here in CO. 20 is max I have ever got.
Only the highest quality Taco sauce my friend... Just kidding, I'm using exclusively 87 octane for now. I was driving a volkswagen before this which required 91, so I've been enjoying paying less for gas. Although, some people claim 91 will give better MPGs. Also I live in southern california, so maybe the elevation difference plays into the fuel economy somehow. I will say it definitely depends on your style of driving. If you focus on keeping a light foot you might see a difference.
A good way to tell if that incline made any difference would be to do the exact same stretch going the opposite way and see if you can still get 28 miles to the gallon
You're right! I'm pretty sure it mattered. I've noticed the truck is pretty sensitive to slope. Even though this case was an extremely mild slope, it still probably factored in a few MPGs. Thanks for watching!
It's not hard, keep your foot out of it, accelerate smoothly. Mine is averaging 24.7 mpg since it's last oil change about 4000 miles ago, and that's hauling 8 bales of hay 10 miles up hills every two weeks while driving it back and forth to work 50 miles a day. MPG drops dramatically in high winds or over 65 MPH.
I believe you get that MPG, but I'm surprised you're managing to do it uphill and with extra weight! I agree though, there is definitely a dramatic drop off above a certain speed. This truck moves like molasses. Thanks for watching and have a great day!
@@TyDollar Well to be fair, I’m averaging 24.7, that includes the hay runs. I can pull 26/27 pretty regularly without hauling hay. Gotta Drive like a grandpa to do it, though 😆😆👍
I have a 2022 SR5 2.7 I4 cyl 4 door 5ft bed and as my daily driver, I comfortably get 23.5 mpg, while driving posted speed limits and only slightly faster occasionally. This is driving around my home city of Memphis TN. I recently drove from Memphis to Houston TX (560 miles) distance and back and averaged 27 mpg over the entire trip. Once again, driving all posted speed limits and slightly faster occasionally. How you drive definitely can make a difference.
No way your name is Michael Hunt :) That's really nice to hear someone's experience getting great MPG. The 4-cylinder could be a factor there. Thanks for the input.
@@TyDollarMike Hunt 😏
Nice I don’t think I’ve ever seen a full tank give me more than 20, I do have 33’s - but opted for fairly light wheels, and the lightest tires I could find in that size
Thanks for sharing. I'm really interested in getting MPG numbers from people on 33's and 35's. That will influence some of my decisions down the road. Thanks for watching and have a good one! :)
Had a sr5 2018 v6. City was awful, but highway I was able to manage over 30 at times lol. 30ish going across country
Over 30 is definitely impressive!! But I agree, it does fall off a cliff pretty quickly when you hit stop-and-go conditions.
@@TyDollar for sure! The gearing/power band and the hunting definitely did not help it either lol. If it had better low end grunt I could have gotten better around town. Had it for 4 and a half years and strangely miss it. Call me crazy, I had a 2021 work truck with a 4 cylinder for a while- I much preferred the 2.7 haha. Less powerful for sure but it didn’t have the lugging issue I had with the v6.
I'll probably wind up tuning the truck like a lot of people suggest. Far in the future I may regear as well. Depends on how hard I want to take it off road! None of that is in the name of better fuel efficiency though, just makes it more fun to drive. Thanks for watching :)
@@TyDollar of course! Yeah mine was a 2wd and I used it to run a business, tried it in snow once, didn’t go well 😂. Was just a daily for me, it was the only truck I’ve ever owned. It was fun, I don’t miss truck payments though haha.
My drives are mostly 30 minutes or less. The best I’ve ever seen in my 2020 V6 automatic SR is 22.5 😬
Hey if you're getting the advertised highway MPG I'd chalk that up as a win. I feel like it's much more common to drop below that in stop-and-go conditions.
I get 18 maybe 19
Sounds pretty par for the course, especially if you're doing local driving and not really thinking about it. Thanks for watching!
just as you described, it sounds like the gains were due to a combination of factors: reduced drag by following a trailer, lower speed, mild downhill, high gear low rpms, etc.
Indeed, kind of a perfect storm. It's hard to control every variable and determine how much each contributes. I will say though on other highway drives so far I've tried similar tactics and seen at least a boost to 24-26 MPG. I haven't replicated the experiment over such a long distance though.
@@TyDollar i'd say a few hours is plenty long.
19 TRD Sport 4x4 on 3in lift with 285/70/17 Falken Wildpeaks AT3W winch and front bumper I average 18mpg at the moment around town, would to re-gear here soon w/ an OT Tune
Man if you're still averaging 18 around town with those mods I'm impressed. A re-tune AND re-gear should really have you performing well. Best of luck, sounds like a sweet setup. Thanks for watching!
@@TyDollar my tires are P grade but im switching to LTs. My tread did not last long with the bumper and winch load up front, Also trying new coil over suspension (rough country vertex 3.5in) here in few weeks
Dang, sounds like a sweet setup. It's nice to hear from somebody whos passionate about experimenting with their truck! Best of luck with the upgrades!
Thank you for posting this, I’ve been asking Wrangler4XE owners what their mpg is if they keep their speed between 55 and 60 with little or no responses. My tacoma can get almost 27, but it’s a 2009 4 cylinder work truck.
I'm glad I could help! I have fun making vids about the truck. It's cool I can still get similar MPG as you but with the v6.
most mine got was 24.7 downhill but i got a pipe rack welder, tools and subwoofer so might be decent. love the lunar rock color mine is also a 2023 lunar off road
Sounds like you have a sweet truck. Let's be honest, we didn't buy these for the MPGs anyway. But it's still cool to mess with. Thanks for watching!
@@TyDollar no problem yep fck those mpgs we hauling sht thats why we have our girlfriends car lol
I managed 26.5 MPG over a 300 mile trip!
That's beast! Where was your trip? Based on what I've experienced, 26 MPG or so seems totally reasonable over a long distance!
@@TyDollar the trip was from Invermere BC to Eureka Montana and back.
Super cool. I need to get up to Montana
Where is the real time mpg reader?
In the info-tainment screen between the gauge cluster. There are a LOT of menus to comb through. Use the arrows on the right side of the steering wheel. Mine defaults to digital speedometer and "distance to empty" on the fuel tank. But if I go one click down I get the "Tank Average" MPG and the "Current Fuel Economy" bar. The bar moves in real-time on a scale of 0 - 30 MPG. You can see the image of my gauge cluster in the video, the bar is almost maxed out at 30, corresponding to the 28 MPG I was averaging for the tank. There is also an option to display "Trip Average" MPG, if you dig into the settings.
@@TyDollar thx bro!
That’s impressive for a 4500# 4x4 with a 6 spd gear box , I get 24 mpg on the highway with mine same truck as yours but I do have a slight lift front and rear with 32inch tall tires ,
Check out Cheyne Walls with his 2018 TRD pro Tacoma he’s based out of Huntington Beach California he also averages about 28 miles to the gallon doing some mountain driving with a camper in the back … that’s what I love about this truck you can get better fuel economy if you chose to ….
Thanks for the recommendation! I'm definitely impressed if someone's managing that economy with a camper. It gives me hopes for my own future! For a lot more reasons than the MPG, the Tacoma really is an all time great truck. Thanks for watching!
Bro - Why didn't you show the end of trip screen that shows total miles driven along with the MPG; you're just inviting suspicion. Tacoma sucks ass for MPG, period. Admittedly mine is modded on 265/75/R16's (e-load so ~9lbs per corner heavier than stock) with Front, Trans/Transfer, Gas skids tho they're all aluminum and a set of DOM rock rails that probably weigh 150 lbs. Add to that a Rextrax XR Pro bed cover (aluminum maybe 95 lbs) and Pelican BX135 cross bed box with brackets for current added weight.
If I drive without regard for MPG I get 16 MPG with a commute that's probably 85% highway. Today I fueled up at the gas station right next to the onramp and drove 17.5 miles (very deliberately) end to end and managed 20.8 MPG with a 1.5 mile street leg at the end. Frankly this is some of the best milage I've ever seen. You are grossly penalized for speed and acceleration, not that the Tacoma really does anything fast LOL.
Lots of folks don't know the EPA drive cycle doesn't even break 60 MPH let alone 65~75 so don't be surprised if you don't get Toyota's claimed 21~22 MPG it's based on a drive cycle that doesn't look like typical driving in California or probably anywhere for that matter.
dieselnet.com/standards/cycles/hwfet.php
...adding further to the suspicion your fuel gauge is pegged at full. When you fill this truck the MPG meter resets and you can literally drive it 1 mile down a hill and be like ZOMG I get 30MPG tank average; how much driving could you have, "averaged" on a tank that's 100% full *rolls eyes*. Trip-Completion-Screen that includes miles driven bro. Circumstantially your video looks iffy because of all these flaws.
I don't know what to tell you brother, life's too short to lie about something like this. As I explain in the video there are many factors that contributed to the high efficiency, like driving 60 mph on a slight downgrade and the fact that the truck is at bone stock weight. I also explain that the difference in efficiency between even a 5 mph delta in speed is massive. The same is true for small changes in grade. Given how sensitive the truck is, there's really no comparison to your heavier setup.
As far as the image I included in the video, I was trying to illustrate the conditions under which I achieved this fuel efficiency, being the speed and RPMs. I admittedly snapped the photo while driving, and thought it would be nice to flip the odometer to the trip meter to show the distance traveled at that point. My habit has always been to use one trip meter for gas tanks and the other for oil changes. Like I explain in the video, I continued this experiment until about the 100 mile point. I simply continued driving at higher speed and did not stop the truck.
As for the fuel gauge, it's a non-exact analog reading. In the video you can see the dial resting exactly on the highest tick of the axis. I'm surprised you're unaware that when your Tacoma's fuel tank is full the dial will move past the highest tick and rest completely on the "F" to the right. In any case 86 miles at 28 MPG consumed roughly 3.1 gallons of gas, or 15% of the tank capacity. Again it's an analog gauge, not an exact reading.
Most importantly, if you're unsatisfied with the integrity of the video, I encourage you to dislike and unsubscribe. Either way, thanks for watching and have a great day!
@@TyDollar I’d have to be subscribed in the first place, how presumptuous ;)
Just busting your balls man, you seem kinda defensive. IMHO - it’s impressive milage on a truck *famous* for absolutely trash fuel economy. In the rare instance you achieve such a thing one would do well to document with unassailable integrity and proof, aka the screen that splashes at the end of *every-single-trip* showing in no uncertain or ambiguous terms total miles driven, at what average MPG, at iirc what average speed and maybe total time as well?
You should redo it, you know…for science.
I hate those damn Tesla drivers! 😂
They think they own the damn road most of them can’t drive worth a damn.
I got 22.9 on my drive from the Seattle area to the Oregon coast last week. And I’m running bigger tires 265/75/16
Niiice, that's definitely impressive with bigger tires. I'm curious if your rig is much heavier than stock? That could be a factor too. Thanks for watching!
Drafting the semi is the reason for 28mpg try it again without drafting and I'll bet 24mpg is what you'll get at 60mph. At 2k I was getting 12mpg it took until 8k for my Taco to get avg 21mpg. The highest I've seen was 24.4 on a long trip doing 55-60mph. Not much flat land near me. I did get 21mpg at 73mph with wind on my back and like you going down hill this weekend. I knew this Truck was a gas hog and just except it's a truck and not the car it replaced at 38mpg. I'm still getting fill up shock when filling her up!! I had a 12gal tank and still went further on it.
I'm skeptical about the semi, I was sort of being sarcastic. Like I said I was at least 100 feet back, and I'm not sure that was such a big deal. I am able to replicate these conditions on the highway, but not for the same sustained distance. The problem is there really isn't another highway like I-5 that stays straight and flat for so long. Inland San Diego is higher elevation than most people realize and the slopes and hills make it difficult to maintain a stable MPG. Yeah my previous car - a volkswagen Tiguan - was doing longer range on only a 16 gallon tank!
I was still breaking in my new 2023 SR5 4x4 Tacoma. At start of my trip I had 330 miles on her. I went through alot of small towns and back roads to keep speeds varied and 60 - 50 mph. That easy going break in trip got me 24.5 mpg even with some stop and go traffic and hilly terrain. Not bad for a new V6.
Now after running around towns for another 200 miles the mileage was still over 21.7 mpg in moutainous terrain.
The return trip of over 300 miles highway got me over 27.5 average mpg and we hit a couple of extended road work construction stop and go zones. My speeds varied from 60 - 70 mph.
My Tacoma now has 1025 miles on her..... time to set those piston rings.
At one point on my return trip (with mountainous and heavy hilly conditions) after a long sustained speeds of 65 mph I was averaging 28.2 mpg.
I beleive a good reason I was able to do so well was a judicious proper break in of the engine early on prior to reaching 750 miles before stretching the engines legs a bit. On the last leg of my trip, the engine power seemed to get a smoother response and exhibit a noticeable increased power.
Thankyou for doing this and presenting the results. Good looking truck. It's almost a wash or a catch 22. You buy a Tacoma, and due to their reliability, you could very likely drive it for 200k miles or more with not so stellar mpg. You buy something better on gas, to save money at the pump, but will it run for 200k miles or more. As with virtually everything sold to us, I can only imagine the price of electricity doubling or tripling once most vehicles on the roads are EV's. Why? Because we all would need more electricity. Less of a carbon footprint than ICE's yes, but the same grubby greedy hands of whomever is selling what we need when we need it most.
You're welcome, I hope this was helpful. I do think she's a beauty. You make some good points. Ultimately, most of us aren't buying these for the MPGs anyway. And personally I didn't buy this because I wanted to take long road trips. I want a reliable vehicle that I can take off road and camping and so forth. The long road trips are a byproduct of that. Compared to EVs or even just the hybrid gen4 Taco, I felt much more comfortable with this truck. Driving a Tesla this many miles for example you'll be paying for an expensive battery replacement multiple times. And for the Gen4 Taco I want to see how they iron out any kinks first. If the Tacoma had 30 MPG or something I think it would be the perfect vehicle :)
I have to admit I have achieved 33.4 mpg on my 2020 6 speed manual. I drove behind a big rig that was going 45 mph. And I never left 6th gear. Call me a cheat, but it can be done.
Haha wow now that is impressive! Maybe drafting really is possible, although it's interesting because at a lower speed you should have less drag already. You're a soldier for being patient at that speed long enough to measure that high of an MPG!
That sounds torturous!