Hello from NJ!

[Electra225]

Hi everybody!

Perhaps I am delusional, but I want to get better fuel mileage out of my 1996 Toyota 4Runner V6 4X4. As it is, I get about 15 mpg average with 70 percent highway and 30 percent city.

My plans thus far are to make the car lighter and more aerodynamic by removing the running boards, mud flaps, spoiler and roof rack. In addition, I plan to remove most of the interior including the carpet and plastic trim, leaving only the front and back seats, dashboard and door panels. Other things I am considering are flattening the underside of the car and closing off the wheel wells. I might also switch to an electric cooling fan, but that will depend on the ROI.

Some things I will not do are removal of the air conditioning, power steering, side view mirrors or loosing the mud & snow tires

I do not have a ScanGauge, but I do have a device that plugs into the OBDII port and tells me the engine's RPM, fuel pressure, air/fuel ratio and other things.

Does anyone else have any suggestions for me?


Thanks
Joe

[elhigh]

Hi, welcome.

Delusional? Not hardly. The biggest gain to be made is in a vehicle that doesn't do well already. And while you might start getting fabulous mileage by switching to a new or new-to-you thriftier ride, you might still wind up in the hole.

Actually I think your return on investment on the electric fan will be pretty positive, pretty fast. You don't have to be going very fast at all before the air flowing through the radiator just from the vehicle's motion far exceeds what the fan can generate.

Everything you mentioned removing is a good idea, with the possible exception of removing the interior bits. Why would you retain the seats but make the inside of the vehicle a creaking, clattering rattling box? Give it a try on the removal, but don't throw the bits away, not for a while. I've had a stripped interior and didn't like it. Weight loss is good for your vehicle in stop and go, but on the highway it doesn't help so much and that's where you spend most of your time.

For a super-quick improvement, consider adding an airdam that blocks off the wind's "view" of your vehicle's undercarriage. It's most of the return you'd get from a belly pan, but a lot less work (and investment and effort) so you can start getting savings immediately.

Read the 65+ ecomods.
Read the 100+ hypermiling tips, too, just to make every drop of gas stretch to its farthest.

You have a pretty chunky ride, not widely known for its thriftiness, but there are other guys on here driving rigs that are nothing like what you'd expect on a mileage site, and they're doing well. You can too.

[Electra225]

Thanks for your reply!

I've had the car for 5 years and and 60k miles, and my hope is to drive it into the ground. If I can get it up to 20 mpg, I would be very happy. I know I could get something cheaper to drive, but it wouldnt have the four wheel drive and cargo space I get with my 4runner.

Part of stripping the interior includes applying some cheap non-dynamat sound dampening material to the interior of the body. The plastics already creak a lot.

Thanks for your advice! I will read through the links you posted.

[UltArc]

Welcome!

Elhigh hit pretty much everything, no need to repeat it! The addition I have is to think about a boat tail. A LOT of drag is back there, and one can make one pretty cheaply. Other than the attachment point (I was lazy and bought a bike rack), it was relatively cheap for the immediate and drastic improvement.

I would also advise an underbody over an air dam ONLY because of how much space you have. Air is going to be traveling under there unless you bring it down very far, which will be hard to keep stable. Also, it should be very easy to do the underbody relative to most other vehicles. (The Mustang I can get on ramps, with it about a half inch above my chest/on my chest- the Insight can't get up my ramps lol)

[Electra225]

For me, a belly guard would make more sense for me, as I do go off road every once and awhile. Could a boat tail be attached to a trailer hitch? I could detach it on the rare occasion I need to tow something.

[sarguy01]

Why not a set of decent LRR tires? They will help, especially coming from a set of mud tires.

[UltArc]

hitch tail - Google Search

Looks like the first five are spot on. Check out the Search feature in the top left of the forum, a lot of useful information at your finger tips

[Electra225]

Originally Posted by sarguy01

Why not a set of decent LRR tires? They will help, especially coming from a set of mud tires.

I have the M+S tires because we get a lot of snow in NJ. I suppose I could get LRR tires and wheels for the rest of the year, though its a bit pricey

[sarguy01]

Originally Posted by Electra225

I have the M+S tires because we get a lot of snow in NJ. I suppose I could get LRR tires and wheels for the rest of the year, though its a bit pricey

I grew up in Jersey. We never needed 4x4's...we had front wheel drives with regular tires...this is a common reason we see, on this forum, that people need their 4x4's. I lived in Iowa for 3 years and got around better in my SRT-4 than half the people with 4x4's. There are LRR's out there that can handle snow. Sorry, not picking on you, just trying to help!!

But, from a money saving standpoint, wait until your current tires wear out. The gas savings won't overcome the price of the tires for a while.

[UltArc]

RE-92s on the Insight, and Pirelli P Zero All Seasons have done fine in this erratic flippy floppy tundra known as Ohio.