Running on Empty.......

Please provide data on the risks. Jimbo as well. Otherwise it is just your opinion.

I have run out of gas, twice, over the course of about 5 years in the 8 year ownership of a 2004. In both instances I drove the car until the traction battery was no longer able to propel the car, with no Mayan Calendar, end-of-the-world damage to the vehicle. None. Those are some real world data points.

Look, stuff happens and running out of gas could happen. It doesn't mean this will result in permanently destroying the vehicle.

I am not advocating making running out of fuel a habit. What I am advocating is stopping some of the well-intentioned misinformation about the magnitude of the risk.

If you have real world data that shows otherwise then post it. Otherwise, please stop spreading paranoia.

Hopefully this doesn't come across as being too snarky --- I wear glasses which could break even in a pillow fight.



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Likewise I'm not dead yet, so I can never die.

Battery failure is a funny thing. When your HV battery eventually dies, we will never know how long it might have lasted without being abused.

The Prius does a pretty good job protecting the battery. I think we have explained that many times in many threads. You have to work hard to damage it. Driving without gas until the Prius shuts down, while not the smartest thing to do, generally won't damage your battery, although it certainly doesn't help it. Repeatedly restarting and driving will cause accelerated wear. In a few extreme cases owners have done this and required the special Toyota HV charger just to get back on the road.

The risks to the fuel system are another issue. These are the same as found with any modern fuel injected car.

Running out of gas happens. I said so myself a few posts back. However, driving without gas doesn't just happen. That takes a deliberate decision. I would do it to get my car to safety, but no farther than that. If you want to do it with your car, have at it. And to be perfectly clear, it's not something I recommend, although you are welcome to discount my opinion.

Tom

I agree with everything you stated after this.

I will continue to pound on those who make blanket statements that are more opinion than fact. It really doesn't serve the newbies well to fill their heads with half truths, or opinions that are passed off as fact.

(Off topic: I would love to have little buttons associated with each post. Something like the frog system:

o Fact
o Rumor
o Opinion
o Guess

And I would add one more:

o BS.)

:focus:

Running out of gas isn't very smart (my opinion, formed from experience with the subject), but it doesn't mean you automatically damage the hybrid battery.

One thing I didn't mention when I technically abused my Prius with malicious intent, is when I refueled and I started to drive I was still on battery no gas engine, so I had to stop and restart the car which proves there is protective circuits that kill the power to the gas engine if it runs out of fuel, so I will let the next 100 posters have fun with this one

haha...lets give em sompin to talk about

:focus:

More pillows!:cheer2:

Be careful what you say because you don't know who reads this board. A person from Prius Protective Services may take your Prius away, and place it with a foster family.

Good to know! Throw us a tidbit here and there, every once in a while! What I especially want to know is when are you conducting your next experiment, and the details of what you are going to be testing!

From the perspective of some of the folks posting it would not surprise me if they have not already reported this abuse to Prius Protective Services.


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It sounds like you were at highway speeds when the gas ran out, did you get any dash or other indication that the engine was not running?

The reason I ask is at slower speeds, our ZVW30 will slip into EV mode with nothing to signal the last of the gas is gone. On the 3d or 4th test, I discovered the energy flow, arrows go away BUT you have to be on that display. It would be great if you at least got a check-engine light.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

ps. When I see flash in my driveway, I put a spare, 1 gallon container in the car. A quick refueling and you've got about 30-50 miles to find a gas station of choice.

The software change has relegated me to 'new member' status, so I'd like to ask a noob question.
What happens if I run out of gas in my new Prius c?

Someone with a 'c' needs to step up, run the tests, and write the report the way Bob did with the previous generations. Would you like to volunteer?

Isn't this whole thread about the OP's experience running out of gas in their c? Or are you hoping for a more extensive write-up?

I'm looking for details:

1. Are there any indications that the engine has finally run out of gas such as a check engine light, other alarm, or even loss of the power flow arrows?
2. How much gas remains after 'flash' begins until it is totally empty?

But I am just curious, without 'skin in the game.' If I had my own Prius c, I would run the tests.

Bob Wilson

No, but I'd like to make an occasional tongue-in-cheek comment.

When I ran out of gas, there was nothing in the way of status lights or other signs from the car saying "your running on empty" for the first few hundred feet in driving, yes on the interstate I didn't even know I was out of gas until I pressed the gas peddle, I was going to say Hit the gas peddle but I didn't want to alarm 60% of the people on here thinking I was abusing my Prius C some more

as I stated earlier in this thread when my gas gauge started flashing, I had around 30 miles before it went empty

Take empty today and ran and additional 40 miles @ 65 MPH in highway, resulting the following photo when refuel. I put trip B from beep to finish my road trip.

Reading this thread got me thinking... How does a fuel tank even work? I mean, everyone has heard about all the 'crap' on the bottom of the tank and what not. And how running a tank dry will suck up all that crap and clog your fuel line/filter/ruin your pump.

I found the above image to be very interesting. With the way a fuel tank works, is there really any credence to running a tank low in terms of the 'crap' you'll inevitably pull through your line?

My first tank started blinking when I was down to one bar, and I immediately pulled into a Shell and filled it up. Took 8.54 gallons. My second tank, I filled up when I still had two bars, but again was able to put in 8.5 gallons, so I'm a little puzzled about the accuracy of the fuel gauge as well. I will probably always fill at 1 or 2 bars, but it would be nice to know, in a pinch, what to expect.

I'm on 2 bars right now at 350 miles. How do you know when the tank is empty? Will a gas light pop up? will the car start beeping?

When you get to the last bar, the car will beep, and the bar will flash.