confirmed overfill damage

galaxee you must be a mechanic or something like it. I'm impressed!

 

After reading all five pages here I'm still left with one question. galaxee hinted at an answer on the first page but here goes anyway. Is an overfill from say a small lawn mower type gas can likely to cause damage along the lines of what is being discussed here? From what I've read here it's apparent that a high rate of flow/high pressure fill could cause this type of damage, but I'm still wondering about the gravity type fill. Inquiring minds have to know.

 

I'm traveling in Oregon while reading this, and in Oregon, there is, by law, no self-serve gas; you legally aren't allowed to pump your own.

It would appear that the gas jockeys are instructed by management to eke the last drop possible out of a fillup, as despite numerous instructions to the contrary, they always top off the tank.

So, I'm wondering just how hard this type of damage is to accomplish, since it seems as if this state would be a hotbed of the problem if just overfilling would cause the problem.

 

NJ has the same law. I don't think you'll have an issue if they only top it off, what I've had happen though is that the pump stops prematurely and you really end up with less than a full tank. They have attempted to top off only to have it stop again. Even in NY where I pump my own, I find that I have to keep trying to get it to accept anywhere near the right amount of gas. So, I don't think you'll run into an issue.

 

Toyota recommends NOT pumping low and slow. Apparently the protective valves in the fuel system cannot detect small pressure changes which can then allow overfilling. While I'm no expert, I believe that gravity fill may not be much different than pumping low and slow.

You may find the following document helpful.

 

I've had two over-fills in my 2008 since I bought it in March. Both due to bad pumps at the station that didn't work properly (gas stations admitted it).

Question:

Can the charcoal canister be damaged without getting an error code on my ScangaugeII? No codes so far. I sure hope I didn't do any damage after gas was spilling out on the ground.

 

The dealer just told my wife that she perhaps has a broken fuel filler neck on her '05 Prius, and they want about $800 to fix it. The service guy said she could drive it that way. Does that sound right, or are we looking at possible cannister flooding, pollution equipment getting flooded, etc? The mileage is normal, between 48 and 52 mpg, depending on cold and rainy conditions. I'm tending towards just leaving it as is and driving it.

 

Galaxee, I forgot to say the car was damaged once in that quarter where the filler is, a non-Toyota place fixed it (Russians here in Seattle area), so perhaps it didn't get fixed if indeed the filler neck was broken. Haven't had any strange codes or gas smells or funny performance.

 

Galaxee, no they said they could take it apart and fix if broken, for $800, then put it back and see if the check engine light comes back on.

 

I top off my 2007 all the time, if I know I will be driving it and not parking it (in the sun), but keep an ear to it to make sure the gas isn't coming up the filler pipe. I never count on the automatic shut-offs working, and make sure I am next to it and not off washing the windshield when it starts getting full.
I am not sure how the gas pump nozzle shut-offs work, since when filling my motorcycles, I have to hold back the emissions collar and barely put the nozzle in the tank (since I have to see when it is full), and I am often having problems with it constantly shutting off despite zero back-pressure.

 

I wait for the pump to auto-stop, then add less than a dollar of gas to bring the price to $xx.52, since I was born in 1952. So, far less than 1/2 gallon top-off.

When I get my VISA bill, it's a snap to see which purchases I obviously made; I just look for the 52's.

This works great at hotels when I post food and drinks to my room, too. Adjust the tip so the total is $xx.52. At the end of the week, there are only a few charges I'll need to investigate, rather than accepting an entire list.

Winters in Detroit can be nasty for burping gas all over my arm. Slowest pump speed seems much better than fast speeds when it's cold outside. And in Michigan, we're obliged to "be there" while the pump runs in case its auto-shutoff fails. I sure would like to get back in the car to wait when the cold wind blows . . .

 

I went to the gas station I always go to and the guy behind bulletproof glass said the pumps were running very slow and that it will take some time to fill. What the heck, I had no where to go. I put the nozzle in and began pumping. After about 3 minutes I was on $4.06 so I stood by the car reading the paper. This guy driving a large diesel pickup walked over and we began talking about the virtues of the Prius and also the pulling capacity of a diesel. (My other set of wheels is a 3500 Dodge Cummins diesel) He and I hit it off and we talked for about 45 Minutes.

I walked back to my Prius to find I had pumped 31 gallons of gas into a 10 gallon tank! The nozzle clicked off at 100$. $3.19 a gallon here in San Francisco California. I couldn't believe my eyes... there was 22 gallons of fuel spilled all around the car and a river of gas running down the stations cement, down the street, and into the storm drain. Then, as I stood there dumbfounded, the guy came running out of his bullet proof out house yelling... at me?!? He was yelling that I hadn't been watching and now he has a mess. I couldn't believe I was being held responsible for his fuel not shutting off and I told him so. I made some quip about only paying 30$ but because I hadn't been watching, I'd pay for the gas only. They pay for any damage to the environment or my car. The guy just grumbled and walked away cursing under his breath.

2 days later I get the dreaded check engine light. No symptoms of any kind, just the light. I drove it for a week hoping the light would go out on its own. It didn't. Took it into the dealer and despite having an extended warranty, the repair was not covered. $996 + 30$ disposal fee. Then the real battle began with the gas station. I finally got them to pay for the repair but only after months of problems which finally culminated with my hiring an Attorney. $541 to him to get 1000$ back. In the end, with all the frustration and time, I would have been way ahead to just write off the grand or better yet, to not overfill the tank.

People, it isn't worth the trouble to go another 25 miles. Don't over fill a Prius!
-Paul R. Haller-

 

Thanks for the reminder that it's always a bad idea to walk away or be distracted while refueling.

 

I have a 2010 prius and i always top it off. i dont force the fuel in i just ease it up to the max as to see the fill level before it spills everywhere. I have had no problems but this is making me worry now. should i worry or is this problem resolved in the 2010 model?

 

The bladder issue only relates to North American Classic and 2G Prius. The 2010 Prius has a different fuel tank design so the bladder no longer is an issue.

However, any vehicle (whether Prius or some other model) is susceptible to damage to the charcoal canister if the fuel tank is overfilled and liquid gasoline expands into the canister on a hot summer day.

 

I'm not so sure about that Patrick. The bladder means you can't predict exactly how many gallons will fit in your tank, but you can still overfill the tank by going past the first (or more) click and ruin the charcoal filter of any model Prius (or most modern cars, for that matter).

If you go until you actually see gasoline in the fuel tank neck, you are definitely overfilling your gas tank!

 

you couldn't recoup the lawyer fee?

My car got flooded with fuel at a Mobile Gas station, I was holding the nozzle and saw the digits go up on the pump, it never goes above 10gal, and I look down saw Gasoline is pouring out and it was pouring out for 10min after I stopped the pump. got the error code P0446.
I have a video of the gas pouring out .. wondering if I can pursue it.