Drove my new GX470 home yesterday and kept it 70 - 75 mpg. What's your average highway speeds? (1 Viewer)

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Drove the GX470 from Monterey to Los Angeles yesterday and kept it below my typical highway speeds. When I picked it up and hit the surface streets, I was extremely impressed with its power and comfort. However, I was underwhelmed when I finally hit the highway. I was under the impression this V8 with 270hp would be a beast on the highway, but I felt it struggled to maintain a top speed at 80mph. It was also tough getting through the Grapevine - for those that know it, I can be painful.

Since I'm new to this community, I'm probably not aware that this is common. What's everyone's speed limit when driving long distance?
 
It pulls fine when you use the shifter vs the gas. I pull these no problem. Sometime I see 3500rpm but hey! That's why I have the exhaust, cooling, trans and such mods. 35" tires lol.
 
Should I look under the hood for performance issues? The seller gave me an almost 2” stack of maintenance records so he wasn’t a neglectful owner.

I feel like I was also being conservative when driving because it didn’t know how it would
perform during a 5-hour drive.
 
I just came back from a camp 3-1/2 hrs away. 80 mph the whole way. About 80 deg out. 17.8 mpg avg. Between 700-850 ft altitude. 93 premium

I kept waiting fo the RPMs to drop. I did not feel underpowered.

My GX is stock and I had approx 700lbs in the cab.

What kind of gas were you using?
 
I have a 2003 with less horses and don’t have your issues
 
Mine pulls fine at any speed I feel safe taking it to. It is not as quick as my GTi or wifie's GS430 but for a heavy girl, she can move just fine (the GX, not my wife). I use 89 octane fuel and have 33" tires (stock gears).
 
Ya...computer is always way off. Don’t depend on the miles left to empty.
 
What kind of gas were you using?

It was half full when I took ownership and filled it up with 91. He said he regularly used premium. I filled it up again with 91 when we spoke halfway thru.

I also want to mention it’s all stock.
 
You have a 2005 IIRC, which has the VVTi motor. I have a 2005 too and it goes just fine although it wont set any land speed records. The transmission and diff gears are well matched in stock form so let the transmission shift as needed to get you to whatever speed you need and dont be afraid of revs. If it isnt throwing a code, it is probably running within spec.
 
I usually try to keep mine 70 or under. I havent done any long trips at a single speed to get good mpg numbers though.
My estimate using the display (which is usually showing .5-.9 mpg better than actual)
Stock 2007 GX 470 *These are rough observations*
70 mph - 16-17 mpg
65 mph - 18-19 mpg
60 mph - 20-22 mpg
50 mph - 22-24 mpg

I usually average 15-17 on a tank (calculated) of mixed driving.
 
Drove the GX470 from Monterey to Los Angeles yesterday and kept it below my typical highway speeds. When I picked it up and hit the surface streets, I was extremely impressed with its power and comfort. However, I was underwhelmed when I finally hit the highway. I was under the impression this V8 with 270hp would be a beast on the highway, but I felt it struggled to maintain a top speed at 80mph. It was also tough getting through the Grapevine - for those that know it, I can be painful.

Since I'm new to this community, I'm probably not aware that this is common. What's everyone's speed limit when driving long distance?

I drove my 05 from Sac to LA on Sunday morning. No problems over the grapevine. I was cruising 70-75 MPH for most of the trip.

Monday afternoon drove from LA back to Sac going roughly 80 MPH on I5. No issues.

Speed and power is subjective. Everyone has a different opinion.
 
I know it's a completely different vehicle but my 4th gen 4runner with a v8 can hold 80+ over the grapevine if needed.

Downshift it and get the rpm's up. Gas mileage will suffer but if you want to keep that speed
 
I pulled monarch pass at speed limit heading home from Ouray to GA. I was passing people. If you aren't scared of RPMs and your cooling is proper...give it hell.
 
When i visit my parents in Socal i go up and down the grapevine... In my GX (285s/Metal Bumper + Winch/ Armor/lift) it struggles when im in D however if i get out of overdrive its fine... My average going from Bay area to Socal is about 17 mpg cruising at 70mph GPS (65mph dash).. above that the wind gets pretty harsh on the MPG.

Check your tire pressure, clean your MAF if you havent yet... maybe check the plugs if they are still in good condition.
 
When i visit my parents in Socal i go up and down the grapevine... In my GX (285s/Metal Bumper + Winch/ Armor/lift) it struggles when im in D however if i get out of overdrive its fine... My average going from Bay area to Socal is about 17 mpg cruising at 70mph GPS (65mph dash).. above that the wind gets pretty harsh on the MPG.

Check your tire pressure, clean your MAF if you havent yet... maybe check the plugs if they are still in good condition.
17 MPG is really good with all that you have on. Did you manually calculate the MPG?
 
17 MPG is really good with all that you have on. Did you manually calculate the MPG?

yea manually calculate it with the 7% factor for oversize tires. Also to note i fill with 87.

Good MPG in the GX really boils down to being patient and not accelerating fast or abrupt... patience is you being in the slow lane lol... and only passing when you dont need to accelerate past 70.

Ive averaged 18.5 before with the same setup on the same highway but i was definitely testing my patience...
 
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yea manually calculate it with the 7% factor for oversize tires. Also to note i fill with 87.

Good MPG in the GX really boils down to being patient and not accelerating fast or abrupt... patient is you being in the slow lane lol... and only passing when you dont need to accelerate past 70.

Ive averaged 18.5 before with the same setup on the same highway but i was definitely testing my patients...
That's really good. I had a heavy foot this past weekend so patience wasn't my thing. I averaged about 17-17.5 all stock, loaded with wife + 2 kids, luggages and all. I could've got another 1-2 if I wasn't going so fast, passing everyone up.
 

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