Hi all,

I have read all the discussion on fuel economy for TS magna 4 cycl efi (which is what I have bought recently for $5400- top dollar but A1 condition). I do not accept that any car should preform around 30% worse on fuel economy than what is specified for the car if in good condition. My car is in excellent condition with only 58 000KM on the clock. The car has been serviced and engine checked by an excellent mechanic... so car is mechanically A1. Getting 15L per 100 km (thats around 430 km to a 63L tank) out of my car is unacceptable. I will look into changing O2 sensor and get my mechanic to check other sensors. I will also try premium petrol. If nothing works and I don't get around 11-12L per 100Km city driving I will sell the car. I also have a 94 camry with 3 times as many km and I always get 11 L per 100Km under same driving conditions- recently I got 8L per 100KM highway driving. So far I think Camrys are a thousand times better than Magna's which is what I already knew (I hope this doesn't upset anyone on this forum)... I bought it because it was cheap and I can't get a camry in the same condition for that much money.

What do you guys think?

4cyl TR/TS magnas are notorious for high fuel consumption (especially if its auto) expect anywhere between 11-15l/100kms.......u should consider yourself lucky that u even get over 400km a tank....some ppl on here dont. Personally i get around 450-550 (depending on what sort of driving) off a tank, running premium unleaded with advanced ignition timing.
Definately get your o2 sensor changed if its still the original, check your air filter, check spark plugs get yur ignition timing checked out.

Although put them on a highway for a period of time and they use f*ck all fuel.....i once did 380km's on about 30litres....having said that i once did 380km's on a full tank (leadfoot) :bowrofl:

i got an older model, but same engine pretty much. I notice highway runs 100k's + i get 10L/100km, (auto gbox) and medium runs usuallya bout 13L/100km, but short runs generally 15L/100km. thats why i try to avoid short trips :cry:

Thanks for the reply.
If I had come across this site before I bought the car and read the threads I would not have bought the car. I did do a great deal of internet research and what I mostly read was that TS magna is a good value buy. I am disappointed in myself that I did not find the magna club site. This is the kind of place you get correct and thorough advise by people who have experienced the cars for years and not just test drove once and wrote an article.
Why do you guys accept fuel economy that is much worse than specified? I don't think car owners of other makes would accept this (e.g. camry owner).
If I only spent $1000 on fuel per year I would be flashing $300 down the toilet. I can't afford to waste money like that.

I guess I didnt consider it at the time, it was cheap so i got it. could have bought some type of domestic 6 i suppose, but i was worried about other condition of cars etc, this one was good as it was in the family. The rego for a 6 would be made up for by the 4's fuel economy :P But yer, if i wanted fuel economy i would have chosen something different, but i guess that wasnt the priority. Later models seem to have better economy however

I don't know if this will help or not, but I have the V6 version of the TS (95) and since switching to 98ron fuel I am pretty much getting 600km per tank. It's manual, I don't really know how the auto version would go, having never driven or owned one. Sure it's a later model however before I was on pulp I'd be getting 100-150klm less than on premium.

Of course there are many factors affecting my driving style. Try switching to premium if you are running on regular and see if that makes a difference. I worked out my economy to be at around 11L/100Km.

Thanks again,

I will definitely be using premium from now on. I didn't know premium made so much difference but from what most people (who know) have told me it would end up much cheaper buying premium. I am surprised it is not more popular. I guess it is psycological... people see regular as being 5 cents cheaper and go for that not realising that it will be cheaper in the end to get premium.

I am surprised that no one has said anything good about TS magna. Is it really that bad and do people only buy it because it is cheap. In that case shouldn't running cost be considered.

Is anyone prepared to defend the TS magna 4cycl 2.6L auto. Any good points.

Is anyone prepared to defend the TS magna 4cycl 2.6L auto. Any good points.

Well, you could say that you're less likely to put yourself into a pole in a 4 pot auto TS than a VL commo. Mind you, the VL would probably break down en route to hitting said pole.

Good lumbar support?

Is anyone prepared to defend the TS magna 4cycl 2.6L auto. Any good points.

the GEN 2 magna, body wise had pretty good build quality and fit and finish for an aussie car of it's age, Look at VN and VP commodores and EB fords. The Camry is a damn good car and it has a far more modern engine than the old 2.6L Astron fitted to the Magnas this is reflected in the resale values. TS Magnas can run reasonable fuel economy, I had a manual one that had 265'000km on it but had been looked after and was impressed with the improvement in performance and economy it had over TR manuals I had previously owned.
I have also seen big differences in economy between different Auto TR 4cyls I have owned all had been tuned and repaired and were running well. The major difference was wear and loss of compression in the poor economy engines.
The astron isn't a low friction engine and do wear unless regular servicing using good oil is kept up to them.
If the base ignition timing is retarded then the car will still run ok but it will effect the economy and performance.

Hi all, on my KS Verada I got 510km on my last tank of regular unleaded (80% highway use @ 90km/h), and I filled up with BP Ultimate 98RON on Monday night, and I've since done 310km with still more than half, so I'm hoping to get 550km or perhaps even a bit more from this tankfull, which more than makes up for the higher price of premium unleaded.

Justin

Can the TB be flowed in the 2nd Gens? Any breathing mods you can do will help fuel economy. I seem to recall the 2.6L air pickup being INSIDE the engine bay gulping spades full of hot air. A quick CAI will help immensely.

TR/TS Magna's have a really good build quality, just that the Astron 2.6L 4cyl was notorious for bad fuel economy. Even the optional V6 was far better in fuel economy and in power. This is my big reason for buying a 3rd gen (TH) because they had much better fuel economy (My 4cyl TS would do at best 450km out of a tank, my TH has done 600+).

My '92 TR 2.6 EFI manual happily did 530-550Km per tank day in, day out for 5 years, even when I sold it with 210,000Km on the clock. I think there is something wrong with your car.


I seem to recall the 2.6L air pickup being INSIDE the engine bay gulping spades full of hot air. A quick CAI will help immensely.

I think I remember mine coming down beside the headlight.


(My 4cyl TS would do at best 450km out of a tank, my TH has done 600+).

Don't forget the tank is 10L bigger.

My TR(manual) is consuming on average 9.5-10l /100k and my old auto tn used to drink 13 at the most ,if its higher then that than the factory quoted figure then you have a problem somewhere ,usually worth starting with all the igniton bits . A faulty O2 can make it worse as well but necesserily that much. 15l is what older fords drink on a bad day and they havent been known for amazing fuel economy either.

also though remember it's a big and heavy car for a four cyl. If you are accelerating a lot (eg from lights) then you will have worse fuel ecconomy than a short but steady trip. That said having the auto box does make it chew through the fuel a fair bit more than the manual.