Ran out of gas, I want the tank/bladder replaced. HOW?

The simplest solution is to fill up when it's convenient, not when your predicion says you should. I fill up when I can, but never make it to the blinking pip. If I see the blinking pip, I give myself 5 miles. What "should" be is immaterial if you are left on the side of the road. You burn the same about of gas regardless of how often you fill up. So there's no sense in stretching the range.

I note that you are in California as well. Earthquake preparedness dictates no less than half a tank in your car in case of a serious earthquake. Seems like good advice in this case.

 

You will not be able to get the bladder removed...it is in there as part of emissions control. It is widely known as a "guess" gauge, because filling the tank is dependent upon weather AND the whims of the particular pump you're at (which can make a BIG difference).

Unfortunately, you never know when the Prius is really full, but you absolutely DO know when it's approaching empty. That's why the last bar on the gauge blinks and the MFD sounds and reads "add fuel". There's no telling *exactly* how many miles you'll get once the bar starts blinking, but you usually have 30-100 miles before you have to stop for gas (I have gone over 60 miles on the blinking bar).

If you ignore the warnings to add fuel, then you run the risk of running out of gas. Yes, it's a pain not to know just how full the car is, but ignoring the warnings you get about low fuel is not a smart idea.

 

first... do a search for "guess gauge" and another for "bladder" and you'll see that you're far from alone.

i say you've got the same situation as all the rest of us. when the last bar on the gas gauge is blinking it is a good plan to get some gas... in fact the car will beep and a message will show up on the MFD saying "add fuel" and i don't know how much clearer that can get.

your dealer will tell you the same thing.

i don't intend to be harsh or anything, but this story pops up all the time and some basic common sense would have saved you both some trouble.

though i do like your numbered conclusions, it looks like my lab notebook

 

Hmm, I would NOT want to request such a "fix". I'm sure Toyota would not countenance it under warranty UNLESS you can prove the tank is leaking.

I've never driven until the last pip is blinking. I fill it when it gets to 2 pips mostly. I recently waited until 1 pip showed, but the #2 pip had just disappeared. I had logged about 410 miles for that tank by that point.

So: I assume I have a 400 mile range for city driving, and I don't let it worry me that I only got 8.9 gallons in at that point.

 

With a gas station pump that lets you, I've been able to drip up to ~12 gallons into my tank (if the pump isn't lying) during summer with ~500mi on 47MPG. I'm closer to ~10-11gal during these cold months of winter, and this is a very well broken in Prius.

I say wait until summer, or just drive normally and fill when you need to. As long as you drive consistently, your fillup should be the same.

On a 14 gal tank in a Kia Spectra, I can only get ~380 mi, so count your blessings.

 

What makes you think that any of your previous cars has had a linear fuel guage or allowed you to travel until the last drop of gas left the tank? I would bet that with your previous cars, once the gas guage got somewhere under a quarter of a tank, you would fill it up. I doubt you would have waited until the needle dropped below "E" and the "Add Fuel" light came on, and then look at the odometer and decide you should be able to get another 100 miles out of it.

So, the moral of the story is that when the gas guage gets down to 2 pips, then go fill it up. Do this and you will never run out of gas.

All of the cars that I've owned with needle gas guages have a little peg above the "F" mark. When you fill the tank, the needle would advance past the "F" and stop on the peg. On my Ford Explorer, it would take a significant amout of driving before the needle came off the peg and dropped below the "F" mark. And once it got down to about the half full mark, the needle would move faster. Just like the Prius.

The biggest difference, however, was that there was no ongoing MPG calculation on the Explorer. So there was no way to second guess the gas guage. You had no choice but to simply fill the tank when the gas guage read low. Do that with the Prius and you'll never run out of gas.

 

Here's the thing about dummy lights: they show just what a dummy you are if you ignore them.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Marlin @ Feb 23 2007, 03:15 PM) [snapback]395345[/snapback]</div>

The dealer that I bought from actually told me this when I picked up the car.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(scoot @ Feb 23 2007, 04:19 PM) [snapback]395348[/snapback]</div>

I guess we are suggesting that you fix your partner and not the Prius.

Or how about this. Tell your partner that you were wrong and that the Prius really has a 10 gallon tank and not an 11.9 gallon tank. Therefore, when he tries to do the MPG calculation, he will realize that he is about to run out of gas and will fill it up.

 

<_< Funny... With all the postings about the "guess gauge" inaccuracies, seems like it is unwise to push the tank's ultimate range. I usually re-fill with one "un-blinking" pip regardless of the miles driven, or sooner at my convenience. I rarely pump over 8½ gallons.

The Prius is a unique combination of machine and computers and as such does not lend itself to ordinary logic such as: "The fuel capacity is 11.9 gallons, therefore if I'm getting 39 miles per gallon I should be able to drive 464.1 miles before running out of gas." In addition, fuel consumption is NOT LINEAR but depends on traffic, terrain, temperature, etc. All this tells me, add fuel at my convenience without pushing the issue to an extreme, especially with the Prius.

My 2¢ worth...

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(scoot @ Feb 23 2007, 01:52 PM) [snapback]395318[/snapback]</div>

Harry

 

I'm sorry...but what previous car were you getting more than 460 miles a tank in? How did you handle your gas fill-ups then?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(scoot @ Feb 23 2007, 02:19 PM) [snapback]395348[/snapback]</div>

According to the "Master Diagnostician" at my dealer's service, no. His statement to a bunch of us Prius owners at the service center's open house was that we should consider the Prius as having a 10 gallon gas tank. Occasionally you might get more out of it, but he didn't understand Toyota's spec. He felt that the only way it was 11.9 was in very hot weather with filling the filler neck to the top - and that risked destroying the characoal canister.

You have proven your tank is an effective 10 gallons. It is not unusual that the effective capacity of a car's fuel tank is less than stated. I "proved" that my Audi's 18 gallon tank was only 16.5 in a similar manner.

Deal with it. The other posters have given you excellent advice.

- Tom

 

Sorry for respondng in a rude manner. It is your fault it ran out of gas. When it gets down to 1 or 2 bars, fill the tank. Anyway, running any car on nearly empty is not good. Sediments from the bottom of the tank can be sucked up into into the internal parts of the combustion engine. Not good

Trade your Prius in and get a nother car withou a bladder

Trade your Prius in and get a nother car withou a bladder

 

One other thing to consider, the bladder is still new, adding to the stiffness.