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What was your MPG in your 2021 Sienna?

What was your MPG in your 2021 Sienna?

102K views 563 replies 113 participants last post by  DadWagon 
#1 ·
Hey guys, I'm planning on buying a 4th gen Sienna but one major cause for concern is the discrepancy between the EPA estimated and what most people are reporting (which seems to be ~30MPG)

I'm wondering what kind of mileage you guys are getting in your 2021 Siennas. It would be helpful if you can include:
  • FWD or AWD
  • Trim Level
  • What kind of temperatures/road conditions are you driving in
  • Would you describe yourself as a conservative, normal, or aggress..."Spirited" driver? Lol.

Though not an owner I've rented a 2021 FWD LE from a local dealer that had 1,000 miles on it. Over 3 days, I put 275 miles on it doing stuff like commuting to work on the highway, helping to haul and move, and driving my family around in 50-60 deg F weather at sea level-ish. On the highways I cruise 70-75MPH and would describe myself as a "normal" driver (I'm not trying to hypermile the car). In the end, according to the trip computer I averaged 37.8 MPG.

What did you guys get? Thanks!
 
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#102 ·
We just got home in our brand new XSE AWD travelling from Phoenix to Grand Junction, CO with a layover in Sedona (with the usual snail-pace traffic it is famous for) and side trips to trailheads and lunch at Adriana's in Old Cottonwood (great authentic family Mexican food.). 687 miles total now mostly taking it easy. 1st fill-up registered and calculated 27.9 mpg basically all uphill out of Phoenix, then topped off during the 420 highway miles going home as the DTE looked too close for comfort. Fuel gauge showed just under half tank remaining, pumped 10.8 into the tank. Computer showed 29.7, we calculated it at 30.1. The trip home we were pretty heavy.

As far as fuel, I always try to find Top-Tier gas, and it is often found at the less expensive stations like Sinclair and Valero, but not Sam's or large grocery chains. See a list here: TOP TIER™ Gasoline Brands
Consumer Reports loves Top-Tier for the quality engine cleaning additives and we love CR. Costco fuel has it and we love Costco too.
And the GasBuddy app is an essential money-saver.

I wonder how much of a difference there is in MPG between 87 octane vs 85?
 
#105 ·
Had to change my vote, now I’m getting 37 mpg. Partly due to warmer weather of course, but over the last few days I’ve been using Predictive Efficient Drive and got a 10% boost to fuel economy.

Also, just finished a round-trip 3,000 mile highway drive, and averaging 73mph i got 35 mpg! Only had to fill up every 500 miles, it was a DREAM road trip van!
 
#106 ·
Update : Another Tank with about ~31MPGs.

FWIW: Here is my full log so far.
Tank 1: 27MPG : ~500 Totals miles , Cold weather
Tank 2 : 25MPG : Under 1K Total Miles, Cold weather
Tank 3 : 25MPG : Under 1.5K Total Miles, Cold weather
Tank 4: 30.66MPG : Around 1.5K Total miles, Cold weather -> warming up.
Tank 5 : 31MPG : Mostly spring weather. Some chilly days. ~2250 Totals miles on Odometer. On one Windy day on interstate, I saw DTE Dramatically drop from 70 to 30!

Btw, I have backed off from trying to max MPGs (aka hypermiling). In the grand schema, looking at all of MY personal energy usage, trying to get extra 10% out in MPGs makes me feel like I am being "Penny wise and Pound Foolish ;)".
 
#107 ·
Our second fill up today on our Platinum AWD came out to 32.3 MPG when manually calculating it and 31.6 on the computer.
Our driving is about 75% highway/25% city. Mostly 1 or 2 people only.

I have been driving 99% in ECO mode. I feel I am driving like a grandpa most of the time while I watch those darn gauges and also test out Lane Keeping Assist on the highway and other roads.

We are in Maine so we have the winter gas mix still.

I am very happy with 30+ for a vehicle this big, roomy, and comfy.

I agree with @Sienna9816 - I'm not sure I like driving like a Grandpa...
 
#108 · (Edited)
Maybe this is just me, but I find normal mode to be equal or better than Eco mode. Our family owns multiple Toyota Hybrids as well (Camry and Rav4, potentially a Venza coming into the mix) and we have all done the Eco vs Normal bit. Eco can end up being worse off bc at time you are forcing the engine to kick into high(er) rev mode when you take off vs normal smooth acceleration which burns more gas. Not sure if my explanation is valid or not, but from how we drive, Normal has been equal or better to Eco.
 
#109 · (Edited)
Maybe this is just me, but I find normal mode to be equal or better than Eco model. Our family owns multiple Toyota Hybrids as well (Camry and Rav4, potentially a Venza coming into the mix) and we have all done the Eco vs Normal bit. Eco can end up being worse off bc at time you are forcing the engine to kick into high(er) rev mode when you take off vs normal smooth acceleration which burns more gas. Not sure if my explanation is valid or not, but from how we drive, Normal has been equal or better to Eco.
Agree, more experienced Hybrid drivers probably don't get much benefit from the driving modes.

The driving modes really only adjust throttle responsiveness, Eco will limit the HVAC system to slower fan and compressor speeds, but if you keep the HVAC in "auto" at reasonable attainable temp settings (72-78 summer), it will do that automatically. I'll pop it into sport mode when I foresee a passing situation on two-lane roads to maximize throttle up quickly otherwise it stays in "normal" mode.

PS: Driving mode setting will impact how quickly the cruise control will adapt to increased speeds of traffic in front of you - think low, medium, and high in this regard. So that may factor into your preference in setting as well.
 
#112 ·
Just checked Fuelly.com. There are 15 2021 Siennas; 81 fuel ups; 32,855 total miles; 30.92 avg mpg. The median is also about 31 mpg. Some of them have real wild swings in mpg. There is a mixture of city and highway driving. It would be nice if more people signed up so we would have a bigger data base.
 
#113 ·
OK so just filled up for the first time in 3 weeks. Actual mpg was 40.02 vs. Computer showing 40.6mpg.

Computer showed 40.6mpg across 626.5 miles pulling up to the pump:
49735


Filled up 15.655 gallons. I only topped off to the next dollar after the pump stopped on its own. Don't remember exactly where it stopped initially.
49736


This was a mix of highway and around town driving. Passenger loads only for this entire tank. You can see the miles to empty plus trip adds up to around 667 miles, but the tank is showing 1/8 fuel remaining. If I'd kept going I have no doubt I would cross 700 miles on this tank before I started to get thst "oh crap I really need fuel" feeling.

Drive mode = eco. On top of that I'd say I can count on one hand during this tank the number of times the needle went past the 2nd dash on the PWR gauge. I was really babying it and driving like my mom.
HVAC = manually set to 70 and fan speed 1-2.
Rear HVAC only on when multiple rear passengers seated.
 
#126 ·
OK so just filled up for the first time in 3 eeks. Actual mpg was 40.02 vs. Computer showing 40.6mpg.

Computer showed 40.6mpg across 626.5 miles pulling up to the pump:
View attachment 49735

Filled up 15.655 gallons. I only topped off to the next dollar after the pump stopped on its own. Don't remember exactly where it stopped initially. View attachment 49736

This was a mix of highway and around town driving. Passenger loads only for this entire tank. You can see the miles to empty plus trip adds up to around 667 miles, but the tank is showing 1/8 fuel remaining. If I'd kept going I have no doubt I would cross 700 miles on this tank before I started to get thst "oh crap I really need fuel" feeling.

Drive mode = eco. On top of that I'd say I can count on one hand during this tank the number of times the needle went past the 2nd dash on the PWR gauge. I was really babying it and driving like my mom.
HVAC = manually set to 70 and fan speed 1-2.
Rear HVAC only on when multiple rear passengers seated.
Wow. Gas there is pretty cheap. Just filled up at costco 2 days ago with 15.3 gallons of 87 for $55. Happy to have a hybrid though with these prices
 
#115 ·
We got 34mpg on our first tank, calculated gallons by miles driven (computer showed 34.5), which was 70% city and 30% highway. Our old 2014 Sienna AWD would have only gotten around 16mpg in that same driving. This is more than double. I expect to save $7k in gas over the next 5 years with the new van.

The best gas mileage I ever got in our 2014 Sienna AWD was 23mpg sticker, straight 300+ mile highway trips.
 
#124 ·
I've filled up 4 times now since I've had my FWD Limited. Each time, the MTE reads under 600 miles, but the day I drove it off the lot it was 620ish.

I drive it easy and don't accelerate hard, etc. Mix of highway and city, but maybe slightly more highway driving. I'm consistently averaging over 35mpg (35.2-36.2) per the car's MID. An 18gal tank at that mpg should have an MTE of over 630. What am I doing wrong?
 
#125 ·
I've filled up 4 times now since I've had my FWD Limited. Each time, the MTE reads under 600 miles, but the day I drove it off the lot it was 620ish.

I drive it easy and don't accelerate hard, etc. Mix of highway and city, but maybe slightly more highway driving. I'm consistently averaging over 35mpg (35.2-36.2) per the car's MID. An 18gal tank at that mpg should have an MTE of over 630. What am I doing wrong?
Nothing. That's how it operates. It will adjust upward slowly as you drive thru the tank and your total range for the tank (trip + miles to empty) will be over 600. This is how the system works until you've trained it long enough for it to think that you consistently get over 600 miles to tank.

The reason it read so high before you bought it is because it spent a lot of time in transport and on the dealer lot in electric mode, so it got tricked into thinking that.
 
#127 ·
Mine just dropped to 39.3mpg....bummed, just over 400 miles on it and still on the Dealer's tank of gas.

Actually I figure it will be close to what it is rated for, 36mpg which is great for a vehicle of this size. I'll know more when my company Nissan Rouge is transferred to another employee and I get paid to split my business mileage between the Sienna and my 12 Prius V.

Mostly me with no passengers and the 2 greyhounds a few times a week heading to the dog park. I did notice the MPG drop sitting in heavy traffic (longer stops) and high outside air temperatures in Central FL.
 
#129 ·
Hey guys, I'm planning on buying a 4th gen Sienna but one major cause for concern is the discrepancy between the EPA estimated and what most people are reporting (which seems to be ~30MPG)

I'm wondering what kind of mileage you guys are getting in your 2021 Siennas. It would be helpful if you can include:
  • FWD or AWD
  • Trim Level
  • What kind of temperatures/road conditions are you driving in
  • Would you describe yourself as a conservative, normal, or aggress..."Spirited" driver? Lol.

Though not an owner I've rented a 2021 FWD LE from a local dealer that had 1,000 miles on it. Over 3 days, I put 275 miles on it doing stuff like commuting to work on the highway, helping to haul and move, and driving my family around in 50-60 deg F weather at sea level-ish. On the highways I cruise 70-75MPH and would describe myself as a "normal" driver (I'm not trying to hypermile the car). In the end, according to the trip computer I averaged 37.8 MPG.

What did you guys get? Thanks!
29.x mile per gallon
FWD
XLE
around 72F
I just followed stream of I-35. 95% of driving was by cruise control.
 
#131 ·
I changed my dash to the instant mileage reading where it scores your Start, Drive, Stop behaviors. At the end of the trip I would normally score around 50-60.

It seems that the Toyota scoring method of achieving high mileage is to start very slowly and stay in eco,do not hit the power range. While driving stay in eco, means 70mph or less. More than that the engine revs high, lowering the drive scoring. Then when you stop, press the brakes lightly and coast, maximizing charge, then stop.
In other words,Toyota’s training makes you a slow grandpa driver, annoying the heck out of others and holding back traffic. Yup I’ve had my share of angry drivers speeding around me, but thats how Toyota wants you to drive.
If you drive normally with flow of traffic, your mileage will be around 30mpg.
 
#140 ·
The one improvement I wished Toyota did with the hybrid powerplant is to extend the startup EV mode to a greater speed and engage the ICE when its nearly in coast mode. It engages nearly instantly in a normal acceleration. While that may mean larger battery, they've been using this setup for 10 years. Some improvements in the powerplant would have been nice esp in a van or just go PHEV. They stuffed it in a RAV4. Why not Highlander?
 
#151 ·
XLE AWD in Canada. Right now, I'm averaging 31mpg. Our temps are still around 5C (41F) with the scattered day reaching 10. Heat is still on full, same with heated seats and wheel. Constantly using starter as well. I don't think that's too bad at all. Not quite the 36 advertised, but we don't have the weather for that yet. Curious to see what it's like the summer. All hills where I live as well. Since gas is around $4.50 a gallon, I'm thankful for the 31mpg 😆
 
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