Your write up is excellent and has inspired me to create my own. I bought an Off road last month and had to travel an absurd distance to get it, but a month in and I love it. This is my first ever truck and love the drive so far!
The tubes are simply too small to deal with anything greater than a drip. I think the tubes need to be 3/8" but darn if I don't want to drill that size hole in my bed. ;)
I have a 6ft Off Road (Premium) and with 1,275 miles I am averaging 19.2 mpg. The best I've seen is 21.1 mpg. I don't know what the break-in period is on this engine but so far I think 20ish is pretty good. I did install the TRD high flow engine air filter (K&N equivalent) and saw some improvement.
I just installed the OEM cover on my 6' OR and can confirm it is beautiful. Installation took me about 2 hours and was straight forward. I placed an online order with a local dealer and paid $1,140. All you need is a T30 bit, 1/2" socket and a screwdriver. Very easy to get done.
The Off Road...