Oh, my wife got an indicated 60.4mpg in the 3rd gen drafting me home. Normally I’d have the worse aero/mpg car follow, but wanted to see real numbers in the V. I’m going to tank up and add my ‘secret’ brew to the tank and see what happens. Thanks again.
Will I see an mpg improvement with the gen 4 engine? A power increase? Wish, but don’t understand why the non-hybrid motor can’t be tuned/mildly built to add power and/or efficiency…
I’m an old, heavy guy that doesn’t train much and am about as fast on my bicycle as young, lithe, super hero’s, and my speed is proven on Strava. Understanding aero drag and efficiency on the bike are my wins. Same things I used 2 decades ago on my Mk1 (70s/early 80s) Volkswagens to make them overachievers. Why isn’t it used to make our cars perform better? Why isn’t there an Intake, porting/polishing, exhaust, wheel weight, aero mods list available to go from 44 to 60mpg? I can’t believe it’s lazingness as many engineers own these… I’m not an engineer by trade, but I guarantee I can find gains.
First couple of links in my signature have some tips, strategies, relevant repair manual info and links.
Look up Atkinson Cycle Engine and do a little reading. The intake valves are left open for a certain amount during the compression stroke. Not sure how you'd tune that.... REVVL V+ 5G ?
These cars are quite aero. Even the hub caps, factory windshield wipers and undercovers are there to enhance aero. A Gen4 swap is not mainstream yet, mostly diy. Also requires parts of the gen3 for ease of installation including gen3 egr. Gen3 rebuilds are common and start around $3500 installed if you shop and have trust in an independent shop. Best to build that connection before the big stuff hits. Probably the only mod that gets results is a lithium battery cell retrofit.
I’ll let you try it soon just for asking. It’s good to have many PhD/post doc friends in the sciences…
Have the EGR cooler and EGR passages of the intake manifold been cleaned out? If so, or if you do it soon, that original engine might last a long while yet with good care. Methinks the manifold is more critical than the cooler, especially if the overall restriction the car reports via OBD-II port is reasonable. The above assumes it isn't consuming coolant or much oil. Otherwise, I wouldn't be so optimistic. Toyota has already done for you most of the fine-tuning you're looking for.
