jtlinna3vze

not sure why eveyone thinks o2 sensors last so long.. while they may not throw a code or light.. they start becoming inaccurate at around 60K. the college in my town, Michigan Tech University, one of the top three engineering colleges in the michigan.. they did i study on emissions control systems for DaimlerChrysler. nine times out of ten at around 60K miles o2 sensors were causing a average ten percent increase in emissions and a five to eight percent increase in fuel consumption. obviously this was with one brand of cars.. cant imagine its any different with any other..

jtlinna3vze

hmmmm

Whitey13

More like top 3 in Michigan. University of Michigan and Michigan State University are consistently ranked among the top engineering schools in the country.

Michigan Tech's College of Engineering ranked 78th overall out of 198 schools evaluated, up from 84th of 191 schools last year.

BigBallsMcFalls

I guess ...before they light the MIL of course they degrade somewhat

I sure accept they degrade, both external contamination,
(exhaust crud internally, and grease and dirt externally on the ports)
and slow degradation of the element which is a factor of time
at working temperature (molecules at a time)


for best efficiency, yeah change them often.

to pass inspection, change when they trigger I/M not ready, or light up MIL

jtlinna3vze

i changed it for you.. but that was mostly my opinion. things like location.. being ranked among the top twenty schools in the nation in engineering bachelor's degrees awarded. average graduate of Michigan Tech has one of the lowest amounts of debt in the nation, ranking 17 out of the 248 top national universities. mchigan Tech is located in one of the top ten "healthiest, safest and most fun places to live." Houghton, Michigan was given a top ranking as a place to live according to Men's Journal. National Geographic Adventure Magazine ranked Houghton as one of our Nation's Top Ten Summer Sports Meccas. Houghton is the safest college town in Michigan and the eighth safest in the nation (out of 467) according to: The Student Guide to Personal Safety. Michigan Technological University has earned top marks for safety preparedness in a Reader’s Digest survey of 135 colleges and universities. Michigan Tech ranked third in the nation among 45 campuses that received an “A” rating. Michigan Tech is one of 'The Best 361 Colleges,' according to The Princeton Review for 2008. Only about 15 percent of the four-year colleges in the nation are listed. Calling the university a 'tech powerhouse,' the book states that 'Michigan Tech will definitely prepare you for your future.' thats why i said number 1.. but if you wanna go my number of people they cram in a class and shove out the door.. sure there number three in michigan...




but do you agree with what they found??

Whitey13

I can see that being true.

Andrey

I guess I'm also on the side of those who get at most 300 miles on one full tank. Granted, I have S/C installed, but even without it I never got 400+ on the tank (22.2mpg) even when 4Runner was brand new and driving straight on interstate. So I'm pretty sceptical about 23 mpg claims that some are making...

One possibility is that your engine is an exception, but as we can see from this thread the mean is around 18-19 mpg. So, it would be very practical to say that unless you've been getting 22+ mpg to begin with, there is no magic that will suddenly make 4Runner run 400+ on a tank, especially towing 1k load.

cackalak han

As it has been said about 20 times in this thread, your "miles per tank" figures mean nothing. Please figure out your MPG instead. Thanks.

Andrey

Actually, since we all have the same tank with the same capacity, miles per tank do mean the rough numbers of mpg

-- Andrey

Red_Chili

FWIW, I get around 13 towing my Starcraft 10/RT (not the most aerodynamic of pop-ups, and not the lightest of right feet when I'm going to Moab) at ~70mph. I get around 14mpg in mixed winter driving, mostly city. Around 17 at moderate highway speeds. Roof rack used to cost me ~2mpg. OH:

Perhaps it is the mid-80s 5.29 35x12.50 4Runner wrapped around that wonderful 5VZ-FE? Uh... could be...

All you fellers are getting great mileage. Look at the incremental cost of mileage improvement. How much per tank are you saving? Yeah, an O2 sensor R&R at 60K will save you money, and yeah, the payback is getting shorter, but... you see what I mean. Total ROI.

MPG comparos are a little like relative measurement of third members.
And I am not talking driveline. No need to break out the machine guns.

BTW, the feller who fueled up in Da Junk and got x MPG to Cisco, UT... I'd like to know where in Cisco you fueled up!

cackalak han

I see your point, however, at what point do you consider "per tank" to be? 18.5? (full capacity, but I doubt any of us dry out the tank) 15 gallons? 13 gallons? Do you see how inconsistent this is, and what you consider "per tank" to be could drastically differ from others? "300 miles per tank" could mean 20 MPG (300miles / 15 gallons) or 17.6MPG (300/17) or 16.2MPG (300/18.5).

Andrey

Full tank is assumed to be full, i.e. at capacity. Thus, it would be 18.5 gallons.

Number of miles per tank is much easier for folks to estimate. Granted, there will be slight discrepency in mileage of a few miles but not that much different. To be specific:

280 miles on a tank ~ 15.1 mpg <-- statistical mean for members here
300 miles on a tank ~ 18.5 mpg
350 miles on a tank ~ 18.9 mpg
400 miles on a tank ~ 21.6 mpg

So, to make things even simpler, those who're claiming 22+ mpg in 4Runner should be getting at least 400 miles on a tank. Personally, I find it very difficult to be believe, especially when towing a trailer. And that's my point. =)

cackalak han

Ok, I still do not get how you can assume how many miles your truck will get without completely running it dry. For instance, when you said, "300 miles per tank", do you mean you went 300 miles, the engine puttered to a stop, and you had it towed to a gas station and put in 18.5 gallons? I really doubt that.

When people say that they get 280, 300, or whatever per tank, rarely, do they mean running it completely dry and putting in 18.5 gallons. Most of the time, they run it until either the needle hits "E" or the dummy light comes on. Some put in 13 gallons, some 15, and others 17. Maybe few have ventured into the 18 gallon range, but no one that I know of. This is why these figures are inconsistent. "Per tank" is not a consistent figure. "Per gallon" is. That is why we use it.

Greg_Canada

The most i've ever got out of a tank was 530 km which is 330 miles, and i got 20.5mpg on that trip, and i BABIED it.. i really dont know how you could get any more than that.
Oh and my scangauge reads 18 on the TPS when im cruising, mpg is around 20....
btw w/ 265/75/16 (+1)

Man4God

The most I have ever stuffed in my tank was 18.1 gallons and that was when I got 290 out of the tank = 16.1 MPG. I usually put 16 give or take a tenth and get 250-260 a gallon out of it = 16.1. No matter WHAT I do, I am always there. I am going to replace the fuel filter and see if that helps.

Whitey13

It's painfully simple. You take your average MPG and multiply it by 18.5. For example, if you average (AVERAGE!) 20 mpg, then you would get 370 miles per tank. It is completely unnecessary to run your tank dry if you establish a mean over the first 15 gallons on a full tank. If I average 20 MPG over the first 15, it is a safe assumption that the final 3.5 gallons would net me the same result.

This statistical reference doesn't center around the MPG's discussed in this thread, because most here are speaking to their BEST mileage under optimal conditions.

Whitey13

I think it was Bamachem who fit 18.9 in his tank after sputtering into the station. This obviously included a chock full filler neck also.

4biker

I'm going to chime in here. When I was in school, I used to drive from Portland, OR to Salt Lake City, UT and my mileage always got better in the higher elevations. My theory is a lower wind resistance due to lower air density. I don't know if that's the exact reason, but that was always my observation. That was with my previous SUV. Maybe that accounts for you sea-level folks.
Since I bought my 4runner last Feb, I used to consistently get 20mpg with mixed driving. My best tank was highway at 23mpg - yes, I calculate it correctly. Now that I put on the heavy, noisy 265/75/16's with a larger diameter, I consistently get 18mpg or so (after figuring tire size differential). This might also be due in part to the ethanol-laced gasoline that kills mileage during the winter. Last tank I light-footed it, and I got 19.5mpg (90% highway).

My suggestions for trailer towing (especially watercraft): repack trailer bearings, air up trailer tires to max, no flapping pwc covers, low speeds, fill aux gas tanks close to destination.

Good Luck!

BigBallsMcFalls

Ido to.

here it is, I hope it is simple enuf for you to digest
--

I measure mpg on the highway, on a 150 mile trip at 65-67 mph,
I get 22.1-22.5 mpg.

so I will stand and say I get 22 mpg on my 5vz 4runner.

Now, I go fill up, and reset my computer. I have
a full tank and drive off, and hit a stoplight. I have an
average of 3 mpg and a tank distance to empty of maybe 50 miles.

I get to the highway and get up to speed and my tank distance will
climb to about 380 miles. I am getting 22 mpg but I lost some just by
getting on the highway. OK now I have to pass some chump throwing bad
vibes..and then back to 22mpg.

My actual tank distance will never ever be the theoretical MAX, but I damn
sure AM GETTING 22 MPG or better. jeeze how simple is it to understand ?

When I compute --total tank MPG-- it gets to be about 21 at best

cackalak han

Painful is the key word. So to get this straight, you need to find your MPG first THEN multiply by 18.5? WTF?? Why the extra step? Really don't get it.

Anyway, like I've already said, most people do not calculate it this way. They go by the fuel gauge like I said above. If you want to go by the long round about way, that's fine.