3.0 TD Fuel Consumption

[JAMES 1111]

Once and for all will some kind soul put me out of my misery !

I just bought a 1995 3.0 TD Kzn130 Manual .I cannot spend anymore of my precious life trawling forums to get an average mpg that it should be doing . The guy I bought it off said it did 27mpg .As I already have a manual 89' 2.4 td I know full well that the odometers on all these imports are in km. But as am starting to suspect what I am reading in the posted thread replies are a bit dodgy !
It is widely stated that the 3l does the same as the 2.4but the engine pulls better.
As I get 25/27 mpg (not km) out of my 2.4 I am a bit miffed that after all the research I did before buying it the 3.0 is only managing 120km on 5 gallons (22ltrs) which by my calculations is a pretty shit 15 mpg .(I am measuring till the fuel light comes on again )
Surely people know how far they've gone on a journey and how far London is from ###### Peterborough , the South of France from Portsmouth or Aunt Sallys to Uncle Worzels turnip emporium !.....Surely!
A bit of clarity would be nice .

Its running on 265/70/R16 AT's by the way.

So come on Surf Yodellers' what should it be doing ?

[schrodingers-cat]

The gauge lies to you as does the running out light. 3 Litre 2nd gen 24 mpg on a run if your very lucky used to get mine down to 18 before i give up measuring.
As with most things you`ll get a plethora of answers all different, i`ve even heard someone claim 30mpg out of a second gen

[JAMES 1111]

If only !
Just imagine ....I've done the 5 ltr test 4 times now....the gauge is lying.....
and the tank is now actually full ...

Thanks for the honest reply

[Bogus]

Yep, 15mpg is pretty poor, You dont need anyone on here to tell you that MPG is affected by how you drive, where you drive, tyre pressures, oil viscosity, fuel quality , weather, etc etc and a few more etceteras.
If I wanted to get an "idea" of my mpg, I would fill the tank till the pump cut off, use the vehicle normally till the gauge was as close to empty as I dared, and then fill it again till it cut off. Using the odo, I would then calculate my mpg. For greater accuracy I would do it again and again.
On mixed running, urban, A roads, motorways 25-27mpg should be about right, especially with a manual which is not changing down every time you hit 54mph.
If you are only getting 15 and youre driving is within that normal, urban A road mix you have a problem. If however you have a lead foot and spend lots of time driving up urban mountains , you are doing OK.

[TonyN]

I'd be upset with less than 20, can get still usually get 25 with our well abused 3.0 on 33" tyres.

[red barron]

Fuel consumption

I use my 3Ltr 4Runner KZN130 Manual on some pretty long trips, its even been to the Baltic Coast last December when all the flights were grounded here.I find on a run travelling at 60 mph on the motorway it will achieve 28 to 30 mpg. But if you run it at 80/85 well 18/22 ish.
But do bear in mind there are factors that will greatly affect the economy and performance of your hilux, engine condition, running gear, even diesel quality!

Pete.

[JAMES 1111]

Thanks for the comments boys, its good to hear that your getting 25+. Think I have a bit of refining to do. Did change the oil when I got it the other week and the filler cap was well sludgy in fact more like the consistency of grease although solid black in colour (no emulsification). Planning on dropping it again at 500 miles after its had a bit more of a flush round. It runs and sounds like it should for 114,000km .Its had a new exhaust and it has one of those oil collectors in line with the rocker case /inlet manifold re-circ .
Was wondering if anything would show up on a diagnostics machine ?Have been told because its not EFI it cannot be re mapped and its all set by the injector pump .Been putting injector cleaner through it but I always think these products take several treatments to be effective.Its such a great ride I won't be giving up on it ,just like the 2.4 I hope it just needs a little time to sort itself out.
Will post any improvements as they occur.
Any other suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks for the imput so far everyone.

[Ploddit]

I've done 3000km around france with a trailer with a variety of loads. I drive like a vicar max speed 90kmh/55mph rarely over 2500rpm and accelerate slowly.

Best has been 30mpg/9.5l/100 worst about 25 11.5l/100.

Mine is standard with road tyres.

[Surf01]

I have a 3rd Gen and towing a caravan, 17.6mpg against a headwind and fully loaded otherwise 22mpg towing. Around town and semi rural about 27mpg. Not tried it on a long run with no caravan so cannot comment.

[TonyN]

If its a 3.0 Surf its EFI, but I don't think remapping anything will help overly.

Use lots of Redex for a while to clean out the fuel pump, then change the injectors (awhile later, in case any shite gets spat out of pump)

Also search on here for the filter behind the temp sensor, that often get blocked as restricts fuel flow.

Thanks for the comments boys, its good to hear that your getting 25+. Think I have a bit of refining to do. Did change the oil when I got it the other week and the filler cap was well sludgy in fact more like the consistency of grease although solid black in colour (no emulsification). Planning on dropping it again at 500 miles after its had a bit more of a flush round. It runs and sounds like it should for 114,000km .Its had a new exhaust and it has one of those oil collectors in line with the rocker case /inlet manifold re-circ .
Was wondering if anything would show up on a diagnostics machine ?Have been told because its not EFI it cannot be re mapped and its all set by the injector pump .Been putting injector cleaner through it but I always think these products take several treatments to be effective.Its such a great ride I won't be giving up on it ,just like the 2.4 I hope it just needs a little time to sort itself out.
Will post any improvements as they occur.
Any other suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks for the imput so far everyone.

[markp2]

I don't know much about Gen 2 trucks but I believe they run on 15" wheels as standard. If yours is fitted with 16" wheels the additional circumference length will make your odometer under read by around 5%. You may be going further on 5 litres of fuel than you think! Check with a GPS/SatNav if you have access to one.

[IanB2]

I don't know much about Gen 2 trucks but I believe they run on 15" wheels as standard. If yours is fitted with 16" wheels the additional circumference length will make your odometer under read by around 5%. You may be going further on 5 litres of fuel than you think! Check with a GPS/SatNav if you have access to one.

Regardless of whether a truck came with 15" or 16" wheels, the tires will have roughly the same outer circumference, so that's a non-issue. The extra weight of a 16" setup, due to the larger wheel, and wider tires that came fitted, will make a difference.

I always get thrown off by you guys and your mpg figures, as we use different sized gallons here in NA, so my numbers never stack up to yours, lol.

[BillaBob]

Fuel Consumption! Call me a liar!But Ive obtained......

Hi there,Call me a liar,but Ive obtained 30MPG and yes I do know the Odometer is in KM! Right can I further add that this is the exception rather than the rule.This is driving carefully,thinking ahead,backing of the throttle & coasting up to junctions and lights etc.I was actually pleasantly surprised my self! When I purchased the vehicle I was expecting around the 20 mark,I was using the vehicle for work mainly within a 20 mile radius of home,and was prepared to take this on the chin,rather than pay more money for a Van-which would be more unreliable and uncomfortable!(My ex company van Peugeot expert had a £3000.0 engine repair at 56 000 Miles).So I was delighted to actually see higher than this.I would say 25-27 is more realistic,this does depend on other things as well,I have all the best quality lubricants throughout,and keep the tyre pressures bang on.You have a problem with only doing 15mpg! A 5.0L V8 petrol Camaro will do better fuel consumption!For the sake of a few quid,some injector cleaner may help,but i doubt it.I would have a diesel specialist look at it.Hope this helps

[Cranfield]

Most of my driving is rural country lane stuff, rarely get over 50 mph.
I did two consumption tests in 2009 (yes the speedo is in KMs, but it does convert) and I achieved 32 mpg and 34 mpg.

I did another test last year which included an 80 mile round trip on the M20 at around 70+mph and a couple of shorter dual carriageway runs and achieved 29 mpg.

[ROMEROTECH]

Just my tuppence worth....

My 3.0 3rd Gen auto managed 400 miles to a tank full abroad when i went to the South of Spain and back recently. That's with a bootfull of heavy gear, stuff on the back seat, and the missus riding shotgun. I'm sure i got very close to properly empty as the empty light stayed on and the guage needle stopped moving completely.

On a recent rip to Scotland with just the dogs in the boot and a few bits of gear on the back seat, plus the missus riding shotgun i got to 400 miles and the opportunity arose to fill up again so i took it but there was still fuel showing on the guage and the empty light had only just that second come on.

On both occasions i was keeping a steady 70-75 mph, under 2500 rpm. Around town and countryside driving i'm seeing about 330-340 miles to a tank and the gauge has stopped floating about on empty, empty light permanently on, not going off round some corners.

400 miles on a run is a very useful range indeed having come from a thirsty modified Impreza that just about managed 280-300miles on a steady run and considerably less around town & country.

I only wish the tank was 100ltrs instead of 65. That would really make it a proper intercontinental oil burner with about 600 miles to a tank, and i might only have to fill up once a month or so while at home.

Incidently, does anyone know for sure how much fuel is meant to be left in the tank when the empty light comes on?