Did my bladder pop? 12.4 gallons filled.

[sorka]

Strange day in the Prius. Went to a gas station I don't normally go to because I was about to run out of gas. It has newer pumps yet it put an indicated 12.4 gallons in the tank. My first suspicion was that the pump was off. I'm paranoid like that.

I didn't top off. Never do. But as it neared the end of the fill, I heard for the first time that sound you here when you're filling up an enclosed space and as it reaches full, the acoustic sound changes pitch going from low to high. I've never heard that before when filling up the Prius. I actually stopped the pump myself rather than waiting for the auto shutoff because I was afraid it would overflow based on the acoustic sound.

Then about 10 minutes later while I was driving on the freeway, I thought I smelled gasoline. I closed the vent (recirc) and the smell went away. Then a few minutes later I heard a loud pop. I thought it was a tire. I pulled over, got out and looked. Tires OK. Got back on the freeway. It then occured to me that maybe it was the bladder?

Also, may be related, but last week we ran out of gas while on the freeway with two pips left. We drove about 2 miles to the nearest gas station on the battery alone. Fortunately we were doing 75 MPH with 6 bars on the battery so when the engine died, I coasted to the next exit and got within 1/2 mile of the station before dipping into the battery. We had 3 bars left by the time I pulled in.

[V8Cobrakid]

the bladder isn't a thin piece of plastic or anything. for that matter, it really doesn't stretch all that much either.

I seriously doubt you popped it.... but you may have filled up your other safety systems with fuel.. such as the charcoal canister that's supposed to catch vapor only. and the recirculation tubes that are supposed to transport vapors.

others will chime in. i'm thinking there was some sort of overflow to the system. if the canisters and such fills up, it can bleed itself off. maybe that was part of the vapor recovery system i'm thinking about.

be prepared to see a lot of diagrams

[sorka]

Originally Posted by V8Cobrakid

the bladder isn't a thin piece of plastic or anything. for that matter, it really doesn't stretch all that much either.

I seriously doubt you popped it.... but you may have filled up your other safety systems with fuel.. such as the charcoal canister that's supposed to catch vapor only. and the recirculation tubes that are supposed to transport vapors.

others will chime in. i'm thinking there was some sort of overflow to the system. if the canisters and such fills up, it can bleed itself off. maybe that was part of the vapor recovery system i'm thinking about.

be prepared to see a lot of diagrams

And if the charcoal canister is in the front like other vehicles, it would account for the fumes I was smelling if it filled up and become saturated.

[V8Cobrakid]

it's not.. it has transport lines that go up to the throttle intake.. or.. something like that... most of those systems are under the car/in the rear. there are still several ways for fumes to reach the cabin though. shrug...

i've heard a pop like that before.. i had no clue what it was.. it thought it was a tire but it wasn't... shrug?

[sorka]

Originally Posted by V8Cobrakid

it's not.. it has transport lines that go up to the throttle intake.. or.. something like that... most of those systems are under the car/in the rear. there are still several ways for fumes to reach the cabin though. shrug...

i've heard a pop like that before.. i had no clue what it was.. it thought it was a tire but it wasn't... shrug?

Could have just been something on the freeway that the tire hit. Most likely am just oversensitive to sounds given the previous 15 minutes of strangeness.

[Manksgloob]

I believe there's supposed to be a sensor that can detect when gasoline enters the space between the bladder and the surrounding "tank."

[bestmapman]

I think DiamonLarry filled to 13.1 one time. I have filled to 12.6 once, so I think you are OK.

[sorka]

Originally Posted by bestmapman

I think DiamonLarry filled to 13.1 one time. I have filled to 12.6 once, so I think you are OK.

I guess this means I'm going to get 600+ miles on the current tank

[David Beale]

Yes, if you destroyed the bladder the car would throw a code.

The carbon canister is in the fuel tank -outside- the bladder. There's pictures of it on this site.

It's possible you overfilled, stuck a valve in the vapour recovery system, and the valve released with a pop. Or you were just overly sensitive.

I suspect there is no problem with your car. The new gas station, well that's another matter. Sounds like they need to calibrate their fuel nossles so they shut off correctly. Good job catching it before you had a fuel fountain (if you manage to overfill enough, you get fuel gushing out when you remove the nossle. If this happens, -DON'T PANIC- {couldn't resist }. Press the nossle down to make a "leak" at the top. That will let vapour pressure leak out - the excess vapour is what is trying to force the fuel out of the filler tube. Eventually you will release enough vapour that you can safely remove the nossle.)

[qbee42]

I agree with David. The new gas station has a pump that didn't click off, causing you to overfill. The extra fuel ends up in the filler tube. It's not a great thing to do, but usually not damaging.

As others have pointed out, if you have a tank bladder problem the system will throw an error code.

Tom