Low fuel warning came on with 3 gallons still in the tank

[Soylent]

Just in case anyone wonders how that much gas they still have in the tank when your fuel warning goes off, I still had exactly 3 gallons left.

[ecologico]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Soylent @ Sep 12 2006, 08:08 AM) [snapback]318245[/snapback]</div>

Just in case anyone wonders how that much gas they still have in the tank when your fuel warning goes off, I still had exactly 3 gallons left.
[/b]

3 gallons is +/- 10 litres of gas, so can we do 150 km with fuel warning ???

My car is brand new, and when the warning appears, I usually go to next gas station....

Next time , I will start being more easy going on that.

[brandon]

How did you arrive at the conclusion that you had 3 gallons left?

[mcbrunnhilde]

The one time I ran out of gas, I was able to put about 10.5 gallons into it. The variables include the bladder and the individual pump nozzle you use. Because the bladder is affected by temperature and every pump nozzle is different, you NEVER know how much gas you have left!! BTW the reason I ran out was because I had heard of people going 100+ miles after the last bar started blinking. I ran out about 65 miles after blinking.

[tmgrl3]

I don't believe it's good for the car to run too low on gas anyhow....but...

I usually fill up at a certain total mileage...right now I am running 44.6 mpg....so I fill up between 350 and 400 miles on the Trip...usually closer to 300.

I rarely trust gauges. i.e., trying to figure out how long I can wait before filling up.

terri

[Betelgeuse]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Soylent @ Sep 12 2006, 09:08 AM) [snapback]318245[/snapback]</div>

Just in case anyone wonders how that much gas they still have in the tank when your fuel warning goes off, I still had exactly 3 gallons left.
[/b]

I don't believe your number unless:

1. You ran your car until it ran out of gas and then calculated how many gallons you used between the time that your fuel warning light came on and you ran out of gas.

OR

2. You syphoned off the remaining gas when your fuel warning light came on and measured it.

[ken1784]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Soylent @ Sep 12 2006, 10:08 PM) [snapback]318245[/snapback]</div>

I still had exactly 3 gallons left.
[/b]

Please do not believe this 3 gallons number.
In Japan without the bladder, it is about 6.5 liter (1.7 gallons) max.
Yours with bladder is less than that.

Ken@Japan

[Soylent]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(brandon @ Sep 12 2006, 10:05 AM) [snapback]318263[/snapback]</div>

How did you arrive at the conclusion that you had 3 gallons left?
[/b]

Easy. I got the warning, so I went to the gas station. I poured in a little over 9 gallons before it stopped. The Prius holds 11.9 gallons (I rounded those numbers to 9 and 12).

12 - 9 = 3 gallons still in the tank.

[ken1784]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Soylent @ Sep 13 2006, 12:44 AM) [snapback]318339[/snapback]</div>

12 - 9 = 3 gallons still in the tank.
[/b]

That scenario does not work here.
The Japanese tank spec is also 45 liters (11.9 gallons). We can put about 49 liters just after the warning.
45 - 49 = minus 4 liters in tank???
Anyway, ours can hold max about 60 liters when the surface is not flat.

Ken@Japan

[Betelgeuse]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Soylent @ Sep 12 2006, 11:44 AM) [snapback]318339[/snapback]</div>

Easy. I got the warning, so I went to the gas station. I poured in a little over 9 gallons before it stopped. The Prius holds 11.9 gallons (I rounded those numbers to 9 and 12).

12 - 9 = 3 gallons still in the tank.
[/b]

It has been said many times before, but it's clear that it's worth saying again:

You will NEVER fully fill your tank to 11.9 gallons. There are many, many stories on this board of people doing the same type of calculation as you did and running out of gas. Then, when these people fill their tank, they find it only takes 8 or 9 or 10 gallons. Because of the tank bladder, the amount of gas that you can put in the tank is highly variable and depends on things like air temperature and the specific pump you're using.

So, pay attention to your gas guage and fill up BEFORE your last bar starts flashing.