Alright so subject basically says the basis of my post.. My gas mileage

It seems as if i'm hardly getting any miles (I usually do city driving for the most part, but even then it seems like i'm getting lower than I should). I saw in another thread another person asked about lost gas mileage etc..

What should I check out/tune up in order to try and get back my miles? I bought the car 2 months ago at 138k miles and have no idea on what the first owner did in terms of tune-ups and when he did them last.

Here are some things I got from the other thread in terms of things to check out/tune up/replace

-: Plugs (Anyone able to specify for me what plugs these are?)
-: Filters (Again anyone able to specify? Gas filters maybe?)
-: Fluids (I did a oil change and tranny flush about 3 weeks ago. Any other things I should do?)
-: Belts (Specifications on what belts?)
-: MAF (I take it this stands for manifold? I really don't know, heh.)
-: Seafoaming (What is this?)
-: Gas Treatment/Injector Cleaners (Anyone able to shed some light on this also?)

Sorry that it's such a nooby post. I'm a real noob to cars and am still trying to learn all about what things are and what they effect etc..

Any help and light shed on this would be highly appreciated. I just feel like my car is sucking the gas away and i'm getting little to nothing

Thanks!

Edit: Also if anyone could maybe throw me an estimate on what doing these things would run me that'd be great and much appreciated. That is if anyone ever did all of these things at once. :P

 

What year and model GS do you have?
How many miles are on the car?


I will assume you have a 2000 GS300.
All items and prices I took from www.rockauto.com(cheapest pricing around..period)

Spark plugs: Use a "Fine tip" plug vs a "Broad tip" plug. The fine tip will usually give you better results than a broad tip with the 2jzge motor.

Visual Example:
"Fine Tip"
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=69349

"Broad Tip"
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=33166

Factory gap is .044 i believe(Someone correct me if I'm wrong. But you can always re-gap the plug yourself to a bigger gap if needed)

NGK Part # 7090 {#BKR5EGP** GP-Series Platinum (.034 gapped) ~$2.60 each plug x 6
NGK Part # 4302 {#BKR5EKPB11** Premium Platinum (.044 gapped) ~$8.16 each plug x 6
DENSO Part # 5303 {#IK16** Iridium Plug ~$7.80 each plug x 6

I'd recommend an iridium.(Personal taste) But it is kinda up to you. I don't gather that you will be going all out racing with this vehicle so what ever works for you.



Filters(Air & Fuel):

Air Filters for factory Air box
PRONTO Part # PA5278 ~$6.60
FRAM Part # CA8613 Rigid Panel; Extra Guard ~$12.73




Fluid:

- You did the key things already. Maybe check your coolant level and if its low top it off.
- Maybe change the differential oil
Link: https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...il-change.html

Belts:
-Serpentine Belt
GOODYEAR Part # 4060760 6 Ribs / Effective Length 76" / Outside Length 76.75" -
~$12.62
DAYCO Part # 6PVK1930 OE Equivalent ~ $15.03


-Timing belt(This is the component set with seals and a new tensioner)
(I'd Recommend this one from rockauto for price vs quantity)
GATES Part # TCK215P More Information About this Part PowerGrip Premium OE Timing Belt Component Kit W/Seals; 5 Components (1 Belt, 1 Tensioner, 0 Idlers, 3 Seals) - ~
$62.79


MAF = Mass Air flow Sensor.
looks like this:
http://info.rockauto.com/getimage/ge...7450023-01.jpg


STANDARD MOTOR PRODUCTS Part # MF4227 More Information About this Part Remanufactured ~ $96.79

DELPHI Part # AF10037 More Information About this Part {#AF1003711B1** NEW ~ $230.79




SEAFOAMI've personally never had it done, but read the bottle thoroughly before attempting)



seafoam instrcutions SC300
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2hras...eature=related

extra seafoam vids
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFIWh...eature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rcww...eature=related




Gas treatment:
refer to seafoam


Labor for the installation of all this is relative to where you live. I know a guy in california that can do all this for around 400$ labor.



You may also want to look into this post on clublexus about mileage and how this guys got his 96' gs300(same engine as yours) back to 25mpg(actually higher than what the car is rated to do). It turns out the pre-catalytic converter(1st one) was crumbling and clogging the catalytic converter(2nd one)

Read the 15th post by "afracer"
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gs-...s-problem.html


Hope this Helps.

 

Everything kene said looks good, i just have a few things to add.

Try cleaning your MAF sensor before replacing it
Fuel treatment
Intake manifold cleaning

 

Thanks you two for the great replies.

And my Lexus is a '98 w/ 140k miles. I'll make sure to print off all of the parts that you told me about and present it to my mechanic to do after I get my struts done, and i'll make sure to have him check the catalytic converter's and see if there's any problems there.

Once again thank you and hopefully this helps me out a lot. Just seems as if i'm getting nothing out of my tank and it's just frustrating me because i'm not really cool with filling up once a week, lol. Want to try and push it to maybe once every week and a half or once every 9 days or so. Just want to try and get it to last me a wee bit longer than 7 days, you know?

Thanks again guys, much appreciated.

Once I get this stuff done i'll probably post again and say if I get a difference or not.

 

Don't waste money on any fuel additives at all. They are already in our pump gas and changing your fuel filter would do a much better job than spending it on wasteful "treatments".

What folks fail to address is the root of most issues and that is how do you drive? Do you do jack rabbits starts or do you tend to ease into getting up to speed? Sure, it isn't bad to have a car tuned up, but since it was sorta brought up, when was the last time you had the car serviced? Just get it done at a dealership and don't bother mentioning anything but mileage concerns . Have them changed what should be changed based off the regular scheduled maintenance and go from there.

So, to summarize what I would suggest.

-address driving habits
-check tires for proper pressure
-have a scheduled maintenance done

Then if that doesn't work after a few tanks of gas and proper logging of your data. You can then proceed to jump to other more pricey solutions that were recommended.

 

I see what you're saying and it seems very logical, so basically I should just go in to Firestone or w/e and get a tune-up and see how it goes from there?

I'm not really one to jack rabbit around the road. If someone is driving slower than me of course i'm going to switch lanes and bring myself back up to the speed limit, but other than that I usually don't.

Tires should be good considering they were just done less than 3 weeks ago and I had them done by Firestone, so I know they're good.

Thanks for replying mate. I'll be sure to do all of that.

 

Yeah I agree also with what "Measured" said.
Start small and progress from there.

A online buddy of mine is able to get 66 mpg(112% increase in fuel over EPA factory mpg) just based off of changing his driving habits, and slights mods. He is now in the +70mpg because of some further mods. Granted its a different vehicle, but the key technique is there. Pulse On-Pulse Off throttle driving.

His online name is Daox
http://board.tercelonline.com/viewth...&ct=clnk&gl=us

 

Is your car a GS400 or GS300? The reason I ask is some of the part numbers listed in the post above might be different depending on which engine you have. He gave numbers for a GS300 motor which is a 2JZ-GE Inline 6 motor, and the parts won't work if you have the 1UZ-FE V8 motor, which is in the GS400. Just wanted to clarify before you spent the money on the parts.

 

I run a GS3.

I got it mainly because it has better gas mileage than the GS4. It has enough power for me and is a great car overall, so I was satisfied with getting just that.

Any pointers on driving habits? I know not to jack rabbit off of a stop light/stop sign etc... Anything else you guys would suggest? (I'm only 18, so you guys have many many years of exp over me and i'm open to everything)

Btw 66MPG is crazy.. Wish we got that with ours. lol

 

Good Driving Habits... avoid hard stopping and slow down on speed humps/road irregularities .

Good Driver Habits... Have the car serviced on time, check tyres once a week and fill up with premium fuel