NO fix for Prius Gas Tank Filling Up Issues

[qbee42]

As for this tempest in a teapot we have going, let me say once again that I don't think hot refueling is a hanging offense. The law most likely dates back to the days of carbureted engines without good air filters, where the chance of ignition was much higher. It's probably not much of a risk today. It is, however, illegal in most jurisdictions. Perhaps this is another outdated law that should be purged or amended. We have a lot of laws like that. Anyone need a project?

In the case of private messages, I like to keep thread related comments in the thread where they can be read by others. Obviously I didn't post your private comments since you expressed an interest in keeping your situation private, although you have since changed your mind.

The pig comment is a metaphor, but apparently it was wasted. We have had many similar threads, and they are invariably a waste of time. You aren't likely to amend a person's fundamental behavior with a few comments on a public forum, hence to similarity to trying to teach a pig to sing. I tend to leave them alone except when a poster is particularly recalcitrant.

Tom

[bedrock8x]

There is always a risk when refueling with the engine on with a hot catalytic converter.
The Prius is no exception as it been pointed out in previous posts that the ICE will start any time.

I personally have driven for more than 40 years and have refueled thousand of times, but it is always a risk for gas spilling. It happened to me two years ago when the nozzle would not shut off. I was cleaning the windshield on the passenger side and didn't see the spill.
By the time I walked around it had spilled more than couple of gallons on the ground and a large puddle under the car. If I had the engine running it would have burst into flames.
I was so scared that immediate shut off the nozzle and then pushed the car forward from the puddle without starting the car. I then told the attendant about the faulty nozzle but he gave me a shrug and didn't say a thing. It appeared to me that they knew the problem.

It is statistically very small chance that a gas nozzle will malfunction causing a spill,
but by Murphy's law it could happen to anyone.

[Worknclassbug]

Hey guys. I've been just looking through this thread. I'm having the same problem out of my '08 as some others. When it gets to empty (last flashing pip) it will only take about 6 gallons before the pump shuts off and the fuel gauge shows full. It didn't always do this but does it every time now at any gas station. I'm hesitant to take it in to the dealer but I'm approaching 30 thousand miles and getting close to the end of the warranty. Should I just accept this as a flaw and deal with it?

[qbee42]

Originally Posted by Worknclassbug

Hey guys. I've been just looking through this thread. I'm having the same problem out of my '08 as some others. When it gets to empty (last flashing pip) it will only take about 6 gallons before the pump shuts off and the fuel gauge shows full. It didn't always do this but does it every time now at any gas station. I'm hesitant to take it in to the dealer but I'm approaching 30 thousand miles and getting close to the end of the warranty. Should I just accept this as a flaw and deal with it?

If this behavior is indeed new, it could be that the inclinometer calibration is off. The dealer can run a simple procedure to reset it on a level surface. Alternately, you can do it yourself. Instructions can be found on this site.

Tom

[jayman]

Originally Posted by qbee42

Remember the DC-10 that crashed on takeoff in Chicago? That one lost an engine.

Yep. Everybody in a big fire rush to service parts quickly, do shortcuts, and folks had to die as a result. Is anybody ever held to account? Or does some union step in and threaten a walkout?

The DC-10 suffered from a series of problems, not all of them due to the airplane itself. However, combined those problems were enough to stop production of the aircraft

Consider the Swissiar MD-11 (A newer derivative of the DC10) that crashed off Peggy's Cove, it had nothing to do with the actual aircraft systems

Swissair111.org The Crash of Swissair 111

but revealed a much larger fleet-wide problem with Kapton wire insulation and wire bundle shorts/fires. You would have to ground in excess of 50% of the current fleet to get away from that problem

The earliest DC-10 series had problems with the cargo door. One blew open in flight over Ontario, that plane landed safely. Another cargo door blew open over France, all perished

The DC-10 cargo door was a fairly new design, it opened out instead of up/in. It could be serviced improperly, and latched improperly on the ground, to blow off in flight. A similar cargo door design is used on the 747, and almost all new airliners

Of course, that United 747 also lost a cargo door shortly after takeoff from Honolulu. The explosive decompression resulted in 9 passengers being ejected, and the force of the decompression also destroyed the emergency oxygen system

The debris from the explosive decompression caused severe damage to #3 engine, and damage to #4 engine. Human remains were found shredded in #3 engine, which I suppose was a quicker death than plummeting 23,000 ft in freefall to smack on the ocean below

The DC-10 that had the fan hub fracture, causing an uncontained explosive event in the motor, also didn't have anything unique to that plane

http://www.airdisaster.com/reports/ntsb/AAR90-06.pdf

Other airliners have had uncontained fan/rotor hub failures.

http://www.ntsb.gov/publictn/1998/AAR9801.pdf

The MD88 that suffered this failure, the blades penetrated the fuselage and killed a couple of passengers. It was probably instantaneous for the passengers. That airplane never left the runway, they did the RTO procedure and stopped safely

There is a sad history of improper/lazy maintenance and procedure that has resulted in injury and death. It's like playing Roulette, eventually the stars align and the stats catch up to you

Consider the Embraer turboprop that threw a blade, causing severe damage to the airframe and nacelle

http://www.airdisaster.com/reports/ntsb/AAR92-03.pdf

Say what you want about foreign aircraft, Hamilton Standard screwed the pooch. Badly

What I found most disturbing when I participated in forensic engineering analysis, is that these failure modes were entirely predictible, and entirely preventable

[ETP]

Originally Posted by bedrock8x

There is always a risk when refueling with the engine on with a hot catalytic converter.
The Prius is no exception as it been pointed out in previous posts that the ICE will start any time.

I personally have driven for more than 40 years and have refueled thousand of times, but it is always a risk for gas spilling. It happened to me two years ago when the nozzle would not shut off. I was cleaning the windshield on the passenger side and didn't see the spill.
By the time I walked around it had spilled more than couple of gallons on the ground and a large puddle under the car. If I had the engine running it would have burst into flames.
I was so scared that immediate shut off the nozzle and then pushed the car forward from the puddle without starting the car. I then told the attendant about the faulty nozzle but he gave me a shrug and didn't say a thing. It appeared to me that they knew the problem.

It is statistically very small chance that a gas nozzle will malfunction causing a spill,
but by Murphy's law it could happen to anyone.

Same thing happened to me! I was leaning against the car and it soaked my pants and filled my new shoe with gas.