Fuel tank

[elecblue]

I'm wondering if anyone else has seen this...

I've run out of fuel twice now in my Prius. The last time was on a major expressway, in the express lanes, no less, where it's about 1-1/2 mi. to the nearest exit. The car switched into electric mode where I traveled for about 1 mi. at 55mph until the shoulder was wide enough to pull over. The state police and an IDOT truck came to my rescue and gave me some free gas.

The only reason I've gotten into this jam is because I believed my owner's manual - that the fuel tank is 11.9 gallons. Based on about 48mpg average, I traveled 475 mi. I noticed the last fuel bar was flashing, but I thought I had another 75 mi. or so in the tank. Was I suprised when the car compeltely ran out of fuel at 477 mi.! (I re-set the trip odometer when I topped-off the tank last). I know it was dry because after the battery was nearly drained and I had pulled over, I re-started the car but it would run for only about 10 sec. before dying out.

When I added gas to fill up, the total top-off was 10 US gallons. This happened previously, and I thought it was a fluke. The 2nd time tells me something is amiss.

Has anyone else expereinced this? Has anyone measured the gas tank? My experiences tell me that the tank is 10 gallons and not a drop more. I'm more the wise so I won't run out again.

[LaughingMan]

I have been able to put as much as 11.5 gallons of gas into my Prius... but most of the time I put much less. Usually I fill up immediately when the Add Fuel warning comes on, and usually put no more than 9 gallons in.

The gas tank is flexible... literally. There's bound to be a certain amount of variation when it comes to it's capacity. Even when the pump clicks, it may be possible to put more fuel in.

And also, it is the case that every pump is different, and may stop at different points.

[seasalsa]

Originally posted by elecblue@Nov 2 2005, 06:08 PM
I'm wondering if anyone else has seen this...

I've run out of fuel twice now in my Prius. 
Has anyone else expereinced this?  Has anyone measured the gas tank?  My experiences tell me that the tank is 10 gallons and not a drop more.  I'm more the wise so I won't run out again.

[snapback]149598[/snapback]

What indication did you get from the fuel guage?

Are you driving an 04 or 05?

Some of the 04's had a problem with the guage and Toyota put out a fix.

[rogerSC]

I hate running out of gas. So I don't go strictly by mileage, but will fill up before I'm down to the last "pip". I don't see any reason to try to get the last mile out of a tank of gas.

-Roger

[Graz]

I drive my '05 till the last fuel indicator flashes. Then I set my trip meter and estimate that I have one gallon left. If I am getting 48 mpg indicated, then I assume that I have 48 miles to go while that light flashes. I usually fill up shortly after that. I have NEVER run out of gas. I am told that it is a BAD thing with this car. I have never put more than 10.9 gallons in it, and I am told (on this site) that the flexible gas bladder (wasn't that my nickname for an old g/f???) expands and contracts with the ambient temperature. I doubt that you experience is much different than the rest of us.

-John

[Presto]

The gas tank is the rated size. You just have to keep pumping gas in after the pump auto-clicks off. I can usually put in about 5 liters more after it "clicks".

I've run out of gas twice as well. One time was when I was trying to see how far I could get on a tank. I was at the point where the MFD was switching between 4.4 and 4.5L/100km and the ICE started sputtering for the last bits of gas at 1001km, and I had previously topped off the tank and knew I had a tad over 45 litres... like 45.2L.

[daronspicher]

If for nothing else, you gave the idot guy a story to laugh about with his buddies.

The car that uses the least amount of gas of any on the road and here is a guy that still couldn't find a gas station in time.

Does anyone know if there is any room in and around the tank or filler neck where a mod could be made that would allow for about a 2 gallon extra capacity modification. One idea might be to take the filler hose from the port to the tank and make it out of 3 inch diameter hose or something to get an extra gallon or two.

I'd love the car to consistantly get 680 miles on a tank so that I wouldn't have trouble getting my weekly 650 commute and only have to fill up on the weekends.

My pickup has capacity for 5 more gallons of diesel after it clicks off. Most of it is in the top end of the tank where an air bubble would normally stay. If I slowly overfill the tank, the diesel runs into the top part of the tank via the vent tube. That 5 gallons gets me about 80-90 miles so I can do 4 days on a fillup (530-540 miles). It would be cool to get a prius mod where the filler tube would hold up another 1 to 3 gallons to get another 100 to 140 miles on a tank.

[Trojan]

Originally posted by rogerSC@Nov 2 2005, 06:12 PM
I hate running out of gas.  So I don't go strictly by mileage, but will fill up before I'm down to the last "pip".  I don't see any reason to try to get the last mile out of a tank of gas.

-Roger

[snapback]149634[/snapback]

I ran out of gas a few times at very inconvenient locations in previous cars, so I rarely let my tank get lower than 1/8 full on ANY car, Prius or not. Most of the time I'll refuel somewhere between 1/4 and 1/8.

[Charles Suitt]

It's really difficult for me to understand why some Prius drivers "push" the fuel capacity beyond practicality. Running out of fuel in a Prius can have very unpleasant results (same as ANY car). Consistently, when I get to the last "pip" on the GUESS Gauge, I go ahead and fill the tank, frequently at ~350 miles. Most often, I stay aware of specific stations' posted prices and save what ¢ I can. Having read some forum folks comments that they get better MPG's on Shell fuel, I am changing to Shell whenever possible to observe any MPG's differences. I did NOT have the Fuel Gauge TSB done since many have reported no significant gain in accuracy and I didn't want to temp rattles and other collateral damage from the extensive disassembly required.

Could it be "bragging rights?" As in: "Well... I got over 500 miles on one tank of gasolene!" The manual's 11.9 gallon tank capacity, while a "specification," does not allow for the flexible bladder which varies somewhat depending on ambient temperature.

[Maytrix]

LOL...

sorry.. I have to laugh at anyone that runs out of gas in the Prius. When you ran out, had you previously filled the tank with 11.7 gallons? Unless you did that, how can you trust that MORE than the guage?

I bet everyone that has ever run out wasn't calculating mileage based on their last fillup, but more so on the tank size.

The tank is a bladder and it can fluctuate - it really doesn't matter though - just fill up when you have 1 or 2 bars and you'll never run out.