my '05 broke down

[seasidetraveler]

:| Well, this past weekend I bit the bullet and drove the 7 hr drive from my house in Tollhouse CA to Las Vegas NV. My 2005 did very well going to Vegas, and all around. It was very hot, and no signs of a weak AC system or anything. I probably would have gotten better mileage- but I was in a hurry- so my mileage averaged 45.

On the way home, the car did well again, until I got into Fresno, CA which is about 35 min. from home.
My low fuel light came on, and usually I can go quite a ways- so I knew the gas station that I go to was coming up in a few miles, and i wasn't in a great area of town- all of the sudden all those crazy lights came on, and the gas engine shut down... luckily i was in the right lane, because i was about to change freeways. I was going 75, and dropped down to 40 real fast- almost got rear ended by some stupid Honda tailgating me- even though I put my hazards on.
My first thought was I ran out of gas, even though I didn't think I could have that fast. I exited the freeway running on my last few battery bars- the offramp climbed up a hill, and that was is it- no fuel!!
So I pull over to the side- still blocking traffic- and call AAA.
While waiting for about 10 minutes- and almost getting hit several times, I tried to start again, when much to my surprise- the gas engine fired up and I drove to a gas station- still thinking I was too low on gas- I only put 10 gallons in!
So then I come on here, and read about other people having their Prius die while freeway driving.
So I call the local dealer- finally get someone to call me back- they have never heard of this problem, and found no recalls on my car- so I just hope that it doesn't happen again!!! I bought a Toyota for reliability!

Just needed to vent! Thanks for reading

[galaxee]

Heck, 10 gallons is more than I can usually get into that tank and I also have an 05. Maybe due to the low fuel condition something went awry?

[seasidetraveler]

Nope- I have gone lower than that before, and nothing happened...

[narf]

Nope- I have gone lower than that before, and nothing happened...

I'm guessing you've read all the posts about fuel gauge variability and variable tank size due to the bladder. If your low fuel light went on, and it took 10 gallons, it really is possible you ran out of gas. When my car is down to 1 bar, it takes anywhere between 8 and 10 gallons. Was the dealer able to read any codes? That would probably point to what happened.

By the way, the only time I ran out of gas in a car was in my last car, a 1996 Audi A4. Your description sounds just like what happened to me. The dash lit up like a christmas tree and it felt like someone threw out an anchor. I was doing 75 in the left lane and was lucky to get to the shoulder. Of course I was stranded and since the gauge read 1/4 full I thought something in the engine management had failed. The I looked at the number of miles I had driven on the tank and thought maybe I should put some gas in before I call for a tow. It turns out there was a known problem with A4 fuel gauge senders, and when they fail they get stuck at 1/4 tank. Nice, huh?

[seasidetraveler]

If I ran out of gas, then why did it start back up again?
I haven't taken it to a dealer yet because I work 9-5 and my dealer is an hour away- I used to have to leave early when I owned Ford's Chevy's and Nissan's, I don't want to have to do it for a toyota I know it's stupid... I will get to the dealer soon hopefully.

[Tideland Prius]

The engine will start once more after shut down. That's it. It's recommended that users not shut down and reboot forcing the engine to come on.

[narf]

If I ran out of gas, then why did it start back up again?

When a car runs out of gas, often the first thing that happens is the intake draws some air into the lines and the car dies. If you end up uphill or downhill the fuel may slosh into a different position in the tank and you may be able to get started again.

Just don't discount the possibility until the dealer checks it out. Get the codes read.

[GeekyDragon]

I'm not sure how the bladder work, but I know in my older cars, during especially hot days the gas in the tank would vaporize. If I ran to low, not enough of the gas would remain liquid to keep my engine running. When the car cooled down again I would have enough gas to drive again... At least, this is what I guessed was happening.

[seasidetraveler]

Thanks for the feedback. At any rate- whether I ran out of gas, or my car is defective- I know I will not continue driving once the low fuel light comes on. And when I can leave work early- I will take it in and have them check codes.

[paul16451]

I don't think you broke down because of a low fuel problem. It sounds to me like you have one of the Priuses that has the software glitch Toyota was talking about that makes the engine cut out at highway speeds. The pattern fits...the lighting of the entire dashboard, the sudden drop in speed, the ability to restart after shutting off. There's an extensive post on the subject here, and MSN also put out an article about it today.