[The Radium King]

hi folks. i get terrible mileage in my 2000 v6 4x4 crew and would like to lighten my truck as much as possible. i've got a canopy and rack that add weight (but gotta stay-put) as well as 32" rubber on 16" stock rims.

i figure lighter, larger diameter rims will reduce weight and will do that as soon as i burn-off my current rubber.

i am wondering about bumpers; would a prerunner setup (ie, calmini front and rear) be lighter than stock? would any reduction in weight be offset by increased wind resistance?

thanks, keith.

 

[ScottXGTR]

hi folks. i get terrible mileage in my 2000 v6 4x4 crew and would like to lighten my truck as much as possible. i've got a canopy and rack that add weight (but gotta stay-put) as well as 32" rubber on 16" stock rims.

i figure lighter, larger diameter rims will reduce weight and will do that as soon as i burn-off my current rubber.

i am wondering about bumpers; would a prerunner setup (ie, calmini front and rear) be lighter than stock? would any reduction in weight be offset by increased wind resistance?

thanks, keith.

nice idea in theory. the sad truth is the cost of adding any fuel saving accessory to your truck is more than the savings for the life of the vehicle.

larger wheels are actually going to weigh more. unless you switch from steel to aluminum. my 18" aluminum wheels weigh less than the 16" steel wheels that came with the truck. that said, unless you change 10lbs of mass per corner, i doubt you would see any improvement.

prerunner bumpers would probably hurt your aerodynamics. not to mention the cost to acquire them would have to be repaid before your start saving any money.

loosing a few seats, misc interior parts, your jack, and spare tire could shed a couple pounds. but the drawbacks should be fairly obvious.

if you really want to save gas, get a car.

 

[lane.mcpeak]

Anything bigger than stock tires on this vehicle will drop the mpg's. Even the different type of tire you have on there (stock size) can affect mileage. Tread type affects road resistance and some brands weigh more than others. A/T's provide better traction for on and off-road combinations, but they usually decrease mileage. If you want some better mileage, and you don't do any off-roading, ....if you don't already have strictly road tires, you might want to try those (stock size as well).

You might also want to look into a Cold Air Intake. It'll give you a slight increase in HP, so if you can keep your foot off the gas to smile about it, it'll help a little.

What kind of mileage are you averaging??

 

[Aaron26]

if you spent enough money to actually make the truck light enough to see much of a difference you overall would have spent more on the upgrades than you would on the $ of gas your spending. a few cheaper upgrades that will still add a little bit better mpg would be: performance exhaust w/ high flow cats, cold air intake (keeping the filter clean helps too), a bed cover will improve aerodynamics on a truck more than anything else, and ive heard throttle body spacers help a little but ive also hear there not really worth it on the frontiers. just like the guy stated above, if your willing to spend that much money just to get a few mpg you might as well buy a car. unless you get a very small 2wd truck with no off road capabilitys, your gas milage isnt gonna be great.

 

[mudslinger]

u got a lift or something? that plus the 32's isnt doin anything to help. but yea if you not afraid to get your hands a lil dirty id do a few mods as listed above.

 

[The Radium King]

thank guys. i found that the stock springs were way too light for two guys and their lunches in the back seat, let alone anything in the box. so, hd springs in the back. now the truck was sitting like a dragster, so tweak the torsion bars in the front to level it (somewhat). now i have a truck sitting 2" higher with tiny little tires on it, combined with a pending mid-life crisis, results in 32" rubber. i could lose the big rubber, but i'm on shitty logging roads, snow, etc., often enough to justify the extra clearance.

i've got a cold air intake coming, and will put a better exhaust on once the stock one rots off (250k kms and still 100%, however ...).

at $1000 (with shipping) for a set of bumpers, mebbe i'll just set it aside for a baja bug.

 

[Mathster]

I doubt your going to be able to improve much on stock.
You could save a bit of weight by removing the bed for a lighter weight flatbed. swap out steel body panels for carbon fiber panels.
swapping out bumpers might gain you some, some states require a minimum amount of bumper tho.
you can save some weight on tires by going to a passenger car tire.

Everyone I know that has cut weight on their truck is to stay legal with the DOT guy rather than fuel mileage.

 

[nizmut]

you get them light enough and they don't use any gas

:laugh::laugh::laugh:

go to a smaller tire

 

[MITOK]

This is kinda out there, but, if you do a lot of highway driving, an underbelly cut from sheet ABS might reduce your truck's drag coefficient by a noticeable amount.

 

[Alec]

how bad is your mileage

 

[chainsaw]

Do what I did, spend $400 on an 87 hardbody 5sp 4 banger, its really light and gets great mileage. + you dont have to stack miles on your frontier commuting.

 

[The Radium King]

i'm really channeling the two vehicle approach right now - get a highway car, turn the crew into a dirt buggy. until i get the second vehicle, however, i'm trying to do mods that will benefit my truck on the highway while still being useful once it becomes more 4x4 orientented - ac front lift, steering stabiliser, fipk filter, better driving lights, better shocks. trying to justify (by weight savings and improved mileage) getting the bumpers now vs later ...

current mileage (pre-tune up just got) on highway is about 300 km (180 miles) on 55 to 60 litres of fuel (14 to 16 gallons, depending on headwind, etc.) giving about 12 or 13 mpg; less in town. again, that's turning big rubber, carrying and pushing a rack through the air. often in -40.