Sluggish acceleration

My 2010 Toyota Tundra SR5 5.7L with 139k miles and it feels sluggish at times when accelerating.What can I do to make it more responsive when I hammer it down? I’m literally having to press down harder on the gas than I normally do. Also my fuel economy is not up to par if you know what I mean. Whatever the issue I may be having affects both the performance and fuel economy.
Things I’ve done so far… Fuel injection service, throttle body clean, spark plugs changed over 35k miles ago, I change air filters every 15k or every 3 oil changes. Performance only improved slightly after getting some of the above done.

 

Did you clean the MAF sensor while you were in there cleaning out the throttle body?

 

I generally know that these trucks don’t have the best fuel economy but I know for sure I’m not getting what I should out of it. It may be running rich on fuel as there is a fuel smell that comes out of the tailpipe. When i fill up for gas, the distance to empty (DTE) that I get is 302 miles. When I use to get in the upper 300 through the mid 400 mile range with DTE, the acceleration was so much better.

 

I don’t believe I had the MAF sensor cleaned. I’ll definitely check into that

 

Use the proper cleaner for the sensor when cleaning it or you can damage it, good luck.

 

I noticed a drop in my mpg, not really the power though. I changed my air filter which really didn't look all that dirty, but what an improvement. I probably wouldn't be a believer if it had not happened to me.

 

There isn't much to change on these engines, assuming it is stock. Try the very obvious basics like air filter, spark plugs, check for any engine codes and repair what's necessary.

Otherwise, "hammering" the gas and getting worse MPG generally go hand in hand.

 

Well you guys, the weird thing about this situation is that on some “good” days the truck runs good performance wise. This may not make sense to you guys but it’s what I’m noticing. It has its sluggish days and days where it really wants to go. This other day when I hammered it down, I felt it lurched forward and took off like a jack rabbit other days it’s not that responsive. I’m working on getting the MAF sensor cleaned.

 

Op - any improvement? Has this been an ongoing issue or did it just come up? If the latter, I am wondering if you got some bad fuel.

 

Go to a different fuel station.

(*I usually go to the station that the police use...with all the gas they burn up there is always fresh petrol for the rest of us....

 

I had this issue with my old LX470. It seemed to be a throttle issue, where it needed to warm up a bit, then it would suddenly break loose. It felt bogged down until it would have a sudden surge of power. Never did figure it out after cleaning throttle body, replacing MAF, spark plugs, etc. Sold it as is to a guy with more free time than me to figure it out. Please post when you find the solution, I'm curious what the cause is.

 

I would suggest trying premium fuel, although right now is expensive to say the least and get an induction/ fuel system service done. Some argue it is not necessary but if all else fails it can only help resolve this issue.

 

Gas or gas station problems typically resolve after one tank. I've had that happen and my Tacoma was sluggish and switched gas station and it was back to normal. Kind of hard to get a bad gas consistently but something to consider.
Find a nice and not very old Chevron or Shell and try one tank just in case.

 

I sure would like to know if anyone found a resolution to this issue. I have the same problem in a 2011 Tundra. I've replaced the fuels pump, MAF sensor, cleaned the throttle body. The only easy fix I've noticed is removing the ground from the battery for 5 minutes, and reconnecting it.

The problem is completely random.

 

Reading your post reminded me of my old 280Z. Some days it was a race horse and other days it was mediocre. Long story short, could it be the fan clutch? Just throwing that out there.

 

Check your drive belt, make sure half of it isn't wrapped around the clutch fan.... speaking from experience. lol

 

So ideas that might help, dump some B12 Chemtool in the gas tank, that might clean out some gunk. Maybe a sticking brake caliper???? When it feels sluggish after a drive then carefully touch each rim. If it is hot then you know which wheel is the issue. Had one freeze on me once and definitely took a hit on fuel economy/ performance. Good luck and hope you figure out the issue!

 

Is your vehicle a flex fuel engine? The alcohol percentage is known to climb to e85 territory when running standard e10 stuff. Since ethanol is less energy dense, it starts dumping fuel in to the motor, running poorly, with decreased fuel economy. Resetting the battery would sometimes alleviate the problem short term but I think you have to hard reset the sensor/computer value via the dealer or tech stream (or maybe a good scan tool?). I'm not 100% sure on the requirements for resetting it as I don't own a flex fuel vehicle and have never had to do it.

Also, if you live in a high altitude state and have 85 octane available to you.. the truck hates it. It works, but feels very sluggish in warm weather.