Getting far fewer miles on a full tank - ideas?

Thanks for the explanation - makes more sense now. Maybe it's just condensation you're seeing at start-up and I hope no oil smoke. I have to believe though that a loose timing chain tensioner can't be helping your engine performance. It could affect your mileage as your engine is working harder.

I have family down in Savannah - great city!

All the Best.

 

Yea the startup smoke is likely water vapor, as I see water dripping out the pipes often.

I am sure the lose tensioner is not helping my engine but it's not jumping timing or doing anything the ECU can not compensate for within parameters.

Yea we were visiting family in Beaufort SC and staying in HH and visited Savannah to site see.
Savannah is beautiful and old, but downtown parking is a nightmare like every city lol.

 

Just curious, but how does the ECU compensate for a loose timing chain? Retard/advance the timing? I'm certainly no expert, but I can't see how it can react fast enough for erratic/unknown chain tension changes and even if it tried to, it would be too late and off correction anyhow. Then again, I'm no expert.

Best.

 

This might be a long shot but have you had your brakes and calipers inspected. The age and mileage and areas you take your vehicle would seem suspect to check for rust around the rotors or possibly stuck calipers slightly grinding to cause some MPG loss. Like I said, a shot in the dark but worth looking into as well as tire pressure and alignments.

 

Unless the chain jumps teeth causing off timing it really doesn't do much at all.
But yes, as you said correctly the ECU can adjust timing (within limits) and as you may know computers tend to be really fast

If it jumps a tooth (or more) I could be fooked, which is the real worry here, along with damage to the chain itself and the housing/mount for the tensioner due to all the slapping around.

I really need to get it fixed but don't have the $2k+ to spare right now and have not even begun looking for a qualified master tech I can trust to do this open heart surgery right the first time.

I have the experience, skills, and tools to do it myself, but I don't have a driveway, or garage in my shity townhouse, and have no desire to work on cars anymore ever.
I don't even have the motivation to push my front plastic wheel wells forward to stop the rubbing in reverse from my new 34" tires

Doing my own front pads and rotors a few weeks ago was hateful and took 3 days before I felt right again physically.
Most of which probably has to so with working on the fricken ground and being out of shape for this crap, not to mention over 40.
My swollen nutz (on the truck) didn't make it any easier having to hammer and pry the socket on and off every lugnut either.
I'm out of shape and maybe sick and dying of cancer or something but whatever

 

Thats good advice right there, nice work!

I did check all this already, and per my above post recently replaced and lubed front pads and rotors.
Something dragging was one of the first things I looked into as it is more common then people realize.

My truck however has almost no rust and its mainly on the TRD exhaust which will need to be replaced in the coming few years probably.
Even though the 1st owner lived in VA beach, the truck must have been garage kept and not driven much.
I became the second owner after buying it from carmaxrip-off in Feb 2019 with about 53k miles.

It's been on the beach in OBX for a week twice, and spent a week in Hilton Head SC/Savannah GA, otherwise lives outside in Northern Va.
Working from home I also don't have to drive in the snow and salt much, but do go out for a joy ride in any decent snow event.
Gotta get my donuts in to keep my figure

 

I just went from 14.2 mpg to about 16.3 mpg by adding air to my tires. Have Falken wild peak atw3's load range E that were at around 38 psi. Put 52 psi in the front and 55 psi in the rear. Sidewall states it can goto 80 psi. I think it rides better on the road with more air in it. Of course off road not so much.

 

Higher air pressure in your tires will help mpg some yes.

But as a trade off your E rated tires will wear out early and unevenly.
Air pressure is based on vehicle weight and load.

E rated tires are overkill and not designed for our Tundra's so anything over 35-45psi pushes the tire shape into unwanted territory for wear/lifespan.

Higher psi also puts more load on your suspension and significantly reduces ride quality.

I am already running the high end with an always unloaded truck and 45psi.

There are threads on this issue you can research for more information, but don't run that kind of pressure unless you are loaded down/towing heavy etc.

 

Thank you for the advice. A little background. I carry a lot of weight. Vehicle has all my gear, recovery gear, tools, and camping gear 24/7. Plus the skids, fridge, other mods, it's pushing 6500 lbs rolling.

Honestly one of the best mods I did right away was put E's on it.
The tires are rated up to 80 psi. I run around 36-38 since getting the tires and now mid 50's due to fuel costs.

This is the first time in two years I have pumped them up past 40 psi. I will monitor them closely for cupping, etc.

 

Your welcome.

Your weight will certainly help with high psi for sure.

I may still want to keep it under 50, based on what we have seen here from tire reps recommending psi to us, but keep an eye on it and see how it does.
Better mpg is always good, but not at the cost of $1400 tires