Real world data
To the OP: you asked for real world info,and you’re getting some. How are you going to use it? As you can see, personal reports on fuel use, even for the same vehicle, are quite variable...’cause there are a lot of variables. I can tell you that I routinely get 12l/100km on the highway with my 2007 Tundra Dbl Cab. That likely is above average, but what you really need to know for the info to be useful are the missing details.
First off, you need to know engine and drivetrain details (mine has the 5.7 litre). You also need to know about accessories and modifications. Lots of potential causes there for reduced (or slightly improved) fuel economy: bigger wheels and tires, canopies and racks, lift and leveling kits, different exhaust, performance chips, etc. Even seemingly minor things like tow mirrors vs. regular have an effect. Mine has no mods other than running boards, bedliner and a box cover.
You also need to know about where and how it’s used. Driving in the hills with a load of family and gear can really increase fuel use. When I get 12/100, I’m usually only carrying a wife and son and some light gear for a weekend at the lake, and I’m not dealing with a stiff headwind. That hurts!
Finally, the most important variables to sort out are the personal ones. They can have the greatest effect. How is the vehicle being driven? I regularly drive like a granny, optimizing for reduced fuel use. If I’m feeling punchy, and I treat the throttle accordingly, it’s shocking how much gas I can burn. Even a couple of episodes of exuberance can drop the average big time.
One thing this should tell you is that vehicles have inherent or potential fuel use characteristics, and this might be what you really want to know, but it’s hard to get that by just asking folks on a message board to report their “real world”. The better approach is to find larger data sets that you can sort and compare, apples to apples. The Fuelly website is a good resource for that. Just need to be mindful it’s American, so you have to convert from US to Imperial gallons. I recall the pooled average fuel use for 2007 Tundra double cabs being 14 mpg. Add roughly 20% for unit conversion and that’s nearly 17 mile per Imperial gallon. Now, you can compare that against other vehicles. When I do this, I am often surprised at how small the differences are between similar vehicles in a category (e.g light double cab trucks). Big picture, it’s damn hard to get past the laws of physics.
Hope that helps.
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