High Fuel Consumption.

[Ribenaman]

Hi, people. I am concerned about my 1.0 'S' year 2000 Jap built Yaris' fuel consumption. I bought the car with no service history and it has covered 105k. I immediately got an oil flush, filter and change using Magnatec 5/w 30 synthetic oil at my local branch of National. I changed the plugs, NGK and the air filter which was a QH from the motor factors. I also changed the MAF which seems to have sorted the low idling. It now idles at 700 rpm, which is good. However, I am struggling to get 35mpg from mixed-mode driving. The car starts and runs fine apart from a lack of power in second gear below 2000rpm. There is also a slight 'pinking' from the engine under hard acceleration although it is hardly noticeable. I have used genuine Toyota injector cleaner in the tank and sprayed carb cleaner in the throttle body. There are no obvious signs of fuel leakage and the brakes are not binding. When I connect my ELM 327 to the diagnostic port, it shows no fault codes. The vacuum hoses are all intact. The MPG computer on a cold start runs from 10 mpg to 30 mpg until the car is heated up and then it displays up to 40-50 on a run. The only thing I can think of is to change the air filter again with a genuine Toyota part. Any suggestions will be much appreciated. Thanks, Andy.

[Old Red Celica]

I found my old Yaris became a serious drinker of petrol once I went over 65-70 mph, however I still used to average 44Mpg with a mixture of runs. Are your tyre pressures OK?

Are you accelerating hard?

If you pootle along at 50-55mph are you getting an average of over 50 mpg?

Don't forget cold weather really costs fuel MPG.

[Ribenaman]

I found my old Yaris became a serious drinker of petrol once I went over 65-70 mph, however I still used to average 44Mpg with a mixture of runs. Are your tyre pressures OK?

Are you accelerating hard?

If you pootle along at 50-55mph are you getting an average of over 50 mpg?

Don't forget cold weather really costs fuel MPG.

[Ribenaman]

Hi, Celica. Tyre pressures are fine and all the usual checks. I don't drive a car hard and I was expecting a bit more than 35mpg combined from a one litre. My old Rover 45 TDI would do 85 miles on 2 gallons! lol. Okay, it was a diesel, however it was a big, heavy comfortable car and I expected more from a wee Jap one litre. Thanks for your input.

[carlowlad]

Does the engine take long to warm up? A dodgy thermostat will leak hot coolant to the radiator and your engine will take ages to warm up.

If you want you could get a compression test done. That would tell if the valves or rings are worn.

I also second what Old Red Celica said about the cold weather affecting mpg. It's a killer!

[minidoughty]

have you reset the ECU since the work?

it adapts to your driving style, so reset the ECU then drive like a granny.

[Ribenaman]

Does the engine take long to warm up? A dodgy thermostat will leak hot coolant to the radiator and your engine will take ages to warm up.

If you want you could get a compression test done. That would tell if the valves or rings are worn.

I also second what Old Red Celica said about the cold weather affecting mpg. It's a killer!

Hi Carlowlad. The engine heats up normally and after about 2 miles the coolant temperature light goes out from a cold start. I went to Toyota today and installed the original Denso air filter. It seems to be a tighter fit around the air box than the cheapo one, so I will run it for a while and keep my fingers crossed! lol. I will post after 50 miles with the verdict. Thanks, Andy.

[Ribenaman]

have you reset the ECU since the work?

it adapts to your driving style, so reset the ECU then drive like a granny.

Hi Minidoughty, I have previously reset the ECU, however, I installed the Denso air filter today and I will reset again. Thanks, Andy.

[Ribenaman]

have you reset the ECU since the work?

it adapts to your driving style, so reset the ECU then drive like a granny.

Hi Minidoughty, I have previously reset the ECU, however, I installed the Denso air filter today and I will reset again. Thanks, Andy.

Today I reset the ECU again and checked the tyre pressures. They were a bit low at 28.5 psi, so I inflated them to 34 psi all round. The mpg computer is now reading higher mpg quicker, so fingers crossed! :)

[Ribenaman]

have you reset the ECU since the work?

it adapts to your driving style, so reset the ECU then drive like a granny.

Hi Minidoughty, I have previously reset the ECU, however, I installed the Denso air filter today and I will reset again. Thanks, Andy.

Today I reset the ECU again and checked the tyre pressures. They were a bit low at 28.5 psi, so I inflated them to 34 psi all round. The mpg computer is now reading higher mpg quicker, so fingers crossed! :)

I have been driving like a granny all day, and I was astonished to see the mpg computer reach 57.0 mpg at one point! I think I am winning. :)

[Cyker]

Nice!

[Old Red Celica]

I used to often get over 50mpg when on low speed trips (upto 60mph) but the overall average would drop once I added some higher speed runs into the mix.

[carlowlad]

Today I reset the ECU again and checked the tyre pressures. They were a bit low at 28.5 psi, so I inflated them to 34 psi all round. The mpg computer is now reading higher mpg quicker, so fingers crossed! :)

Cool! Now they will wear more evenly too. Underinflated tires count for a lot of wasted fuel.

[Ribenaman]

Today I reset the ECU again and checked the tyre pressures. They were a bit low at 28.5 psi, so I inflated them to 34 psi all round. The mpg computer is now reading higher mpg quicker, so fingers crossed! :)

Cool! Now they will wear more evenly too. Underinflated tires count for a lot of wasted fuel.

Aye, Carlowlad. The ride is more bumpy now thanks to Glasgow's pot hole situation! lol. I put 9 litres in the wee car yesterday, so I will see if it does any better this time!

[Ribenaman]

Today I reset the ECU again and checked the tyre pressures. They were a bit low at 28.5 psi, so I inflated them to 34 psi all round. The mpg computer is now reading higher mpg quicker, so fingers crossed! :)

Cool! Now they will wear more evenly too. Underinflated tires count for a lot of wasted fuel.

Aye, Carlowlad. The ride is more bumpy now thanks to Glasgow's pot hole situation! lol. I put 9 litres in the wee car yesterday, so I will see if it does any better this time!

Hi, People. Just to let you know I managed to squeeze 38mpg out of the wee car by driving like a granny! lol. There is a slight 'pinking' from the engine on acceleration, not very noticeable, though. On a lighter note, the car passed it's m.o.t. this week with no advisories. Not bad as it has covered 106k! The gear change is a bit of a pain, though. 3rd to 2nd and 2nd to first is a pain. I have tried everything including changing the gearbox oil with the recommended grade of oil and adding Molyslip, greasing the control rods at the engine and under the centre console and bleeding the clutch. I guess it's just a Yaris thing! lol.

[carlowlad]

38mpg is an improvement so well done.

You could get more out of it but it would entail a major shift in the way you drive. Obviously you may not be interested in such a shift. Neither would i. I had a 1.5 civic that got 40 mpg normally but i managed to get 67mpg per tank out of it. Suffice to say i would not fancy driving like that too much. In the end i just got a diesel yaris and no matter how hard i drive it i cannot get under 70mpg.

In fairness, the yearly fuel bill is small compared to what our governments are bleeding off us. Just keep your car maintained and tyres properly inflated and you'll do ok.

[Ribenaman]

38mpg is an improvement so well done.

You could get more out of it but it would entail a major shift in the way you drive. Obviously you may not be interested in such a shift. Neither would i. I had a 1.5 civic that got 40 mpg normally but i managed to get 67mpg per tank out of it. Suffice to say i would not fancy driving like that too much. In the end i just got a diesel yaris and no matter how hard i drive it i cannot get under 70mpg.

In fairness, the yearly fuel bill is small compared to what our governments are bleeding off us. Just keep your car maintained and tyres properly inflated and you'll do ok.

Aye, Carlowlad. You can't beat the Diesels for fuel economy. I have just noticed a few drips of oil under the front of the car! C'est La Vie. lol.

[Cyker]

Torquey engine + light car = ossom :D

[Athar]

i get about 275 miles from £40 of petrol on my 1.3 cdx. mostly local traffic that is

[Cherry Red Pocket Rocket]

I seem to be having the same problem with my Yaris. The tyre pressure are fine, I'm having four wheel alignment done and when I get it back I'm going to try to drive more carefully and maybe that'll help!

[Ribenaman]

I seem to be having the same problem with my Yaris. The tyre pressure are fine, I'm having four wheel alignment done and when I get it back I'm going to try to drive more carefully and maybe that'll help!

Aye,CRPR. The car does well on fuel on a long run. However, on short journeys it is only returning between 25-35 mpg dependant on how it's driven. The tyres are wearing evenly and there is no vibration through the steering or anything else which would lead me to suspect wheel alighnment issues.

[Cookie-monster]

Just thought I'd add my fuel consumption figures for mine - T reg 1.0 CDX.

Not had it long, inherited it from my mother (no she's not dead - just bought a newer Yaris lol), and I cant beleive how economical it is - I get about 47mpg round town, and taking it on a run at a steady 56mph up the motorway, it will do between 56 and 61 mpg, but seems worse at night when using the headlights, or in colder weather. I make sure my tyres are all at 30psi, and it has had oil changes every year with 5W30 s/s oil (I serviced it during the 7 years my mother owned it. I also changed the gearbox oil and regularly change the air filter, as a partially clogged one will seriously impact fuel economy. I also drive with a very light right foot, rarely exceed 3000 rpm - which means never over 60mph in 5th gear. I also run Redex through the fuel tank to clean the injectors. Check also for binding brakes, and dont drive over 40mph with the windows wound down as this causes drag.

Try the Redex treatment, as your pinking could be being caused by excessive carbon deposits in the cylinders, and Redex will clean this out gradually if added regularly.

As long as the car is maintained well, which you seem to have done, and driven with a lot of respect for the throttle pedal, then George Osborne wont be getting rich off your Yaris's fuel appetite lol.

Dont forget that in Scotland you will use more fuel due to it being colder weather!

[Ribenaman]

Just thought I'd add my fuel consumption figures for mine - T reg 1.0 CDX.

Not had it long, inherited it from my mother (no she's not dead - just bought a newer Yaris lol), and I cant beleive how economical it is - I get about 47mpg round town, and taking it on a run at a steady 56mph up the motorway, it will do between 56 and 61 mpg, but seems worse at night when using the headlights, or in colder weather. I make sure my tyres are all at 30psi, and it has had oil changes every year with 5W30 s/s oil (I serviced it during the 7 years my mother owned it. I also changed the gearbox oil and regularly change the air filter, as a partially clogged one will seriously impact fuel economy. I also drive with a very light right foot, rarely exceed 3000 rpm - which means never over 60mph in 5th gear. I also run Redex through the fuel tank to clean the injectors. Check also for binding brakes, and dont drive over 40mph with the windows wound down as this causes drag.

Try the Redex treatment, as your pinking could be being caused by excessive carbon deposits in the cylinders, and Redex will clean this out gradually if added regularly.

As long as the car is maintained well, which you seem to have done, and driven with a lot of respect for the throttle pedal, then George Osborne wont be getting rich off your Yaris's fuel appetite lol.

Dont forget that in Scotland you will use more fuel due to it being colder weather!

Aye, Cookie Monster. I purchased some genuine Toyota injector cleaner and I use that in the tank. The new air filter is also genuine Toyota from Arnold Clark. Maybe the injector cleaner will take time to work as I don't rack up a very high mileage! Nice car, btw.

[apaykapuy]

have you reset the ECU since the work?

it adapts to your driving style, so reset the ECU then drive like a granny.

sorry for my ignorance but can you please elaborate how to reset the ECU?

thanks

[Ribenaman]

have you reset the ECU since the work?

it adapts to your driving style, so reset the ECU then drive like a granny.

sorry for my ignorance but can you please elaborate how to reset the ECU?

thanks

One way to reset the ECU is to disconnect the Negative Battery lead and leave it off for 15 minutes. Then re-connect it. You may have to re-tune your radio channels after doing this.