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Distance remaining for pumping gas

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by Hong Kong Prius, Nov 5, 2016.

  1. Hong Kong Prius

    Hong Kong Prius New Member

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    In the panel, there is a distance to show how far the car can run before the next gas filling.

    Is this number reliable?

    Thank you.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  2. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    No. It is merely a simplistic forecast, assuming that future conditions will be exactly like recently past conditions. In real life, this very often doesn't happen, but the car has no way to know how things will be different. Don't expect the estimate to decrease exactly 1 km for every 1 km driven. Sometimes it will drop faster, while in excellent conditions it may drop slower.

    Fuel consumption varies dramatically depending on speed, weather, traffic conditions, driver style, and length of trip. Because of these variations and uncertainties, a significant buffer or safety margin is built in to that displayed distance.

    (Some other car models use different warning schemes, providing no safety margin in the distance estimate, but flashing highly visible LOW FUEL! warnings and blanking out that distance estimate long before it approaches zero.)

    For a more accurate guideline of fuel range remaining when the tank is low, read just the first post of this too-long thread:
    [WARNING] Running out of gas (Gen III) | PriusChat
    Because of the safety margin, you can usually travel a considerable distance after that estimate falls to 0, but don't blame the car if you err and run out of fuel. The car did give you a warning.
     
    #2 fuzzy1, Nov 5, 2016
    Last edited: Nov 5, 2016
  3. Hong Kong Prius

    Hong Kong Prius New Member

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    Thanks.

    It now says zero. Is that any way that i can reset it upon the estimation?

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  4. Robert Holt

    Robert Holt Senior Member

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    Um, consider refueling quite soon?
    I do not know if you can reset the on-board DTE , but here is a suggestion if you really want accurate fuel remaining information:
    1. Purchase a Scangauge II, attach it to dashboard, and plug the connector into the OBD port under the dashboard near the steering wheel.
    2. Every time you refuel, use the menus to choose "other" , then "refuel" and then adjust so that the number of gallons (or liters) so that the display matches what you actually put into the tank. This step is calibrating the estimated fuel consumption data in the Scanguage.
    3. Set the Scangauge display to the "trip" display where one piece of information is fuel remaining. If correctly calibrated, this display will indicate how much fuel you have in the tank. But please don't try to run that down to near "0" because if the estimate is slightly off you may exhaust the fuel and negatively affect the fuel systematic well as require a tow!
    This approach is not cheap , but the Scangauge also provides other fun info like exact engine rpm, cooling water temp, HV battery temp, and speed of the HV battery cooling fan, which are the ones I watch.mother folks watch other parameters.
     
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  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    fill your car with petrol, the dte will reset itself. that's the only control you have. the dye is fairly reliable but not exact. the more typical your driving, the closer it is. but when you do something completely different, like long highway trips, mountainous travel and etc., it will be less accurate. also, weather and fuel formulation will affect it.
     
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  6. Hong Kong Prius

    Hong Kong Prius New Member

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    I refueled it already, but it still says 0km..., what should i do?

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  7. Hong Kong Prius

    Hong Kong Prius New Member

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    The thing is, it said 0km still after i filled up the gas..., is it a malfunction?

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  8. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    yes, i believe so. might take some time to register. have you checked it again?
     
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  9. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    The dte is reading zero, but what is the fuel gauge reading? How much gas did you put in?
     
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  10. Hong Kong Prius

    Hong Kong Prius New Member

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  11. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    13 liters? Why not fill it up?
     
  12. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Silly thread of the day...
     
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  13. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    But the day is still young is some parts of the world:).
     
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  14. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    good call ray, maybe there's a minimum required to register?
     
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  15. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    I think there is. I just did the caliper pins on the brakes a couple of weekends ago and disconnected the 12v. When I reconnected it, it show on the DTE that I had over 600 miles when I had driven 50 miles home the night before on a full tank and what it had learned about my driving style was lost.

    If the op wants to share some additional details like has he replaced or disconnected the battery recently, we might be able to give some more advice. In that absence though, @Mendel Leisk seems to be right.
     
  16. Hong Kong Prius

    Hong Kong Prius New Member

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    Everyone has to go thru different stages to become an expert. I am a beginner to all these Prius thingy. That's why I posted the questions.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
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  17. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    Yeah just fill it up till the pump clicks off, and maybe forget about distance to empty display. Keep watch on the gas gauge, it's simpler. Refill when you've still got 2 bars (at the least), and you'll be safe.
     
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  18. Hong Kong Prius

    Hong Kong Prius New Member

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  19. RMB

    RMB Senior Member

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    LOL Problem solved. But then back to the question of why didnt you fill it all the way up in the first place?
     
  20. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    When the rest of us say 'fill up', we mean all the way, to the top of the tank. Not just a partial fill.

    The car may not recognize partial fills. It seems that the minimum additional fuel to reset the DTE display can be as high as 3 gallons (about 12 liters).

    Without this reset, the DTE will never ever increase, the internal formula requires it to decrease at least 1 mile for every 2 miles driven, even when no fuel is consumed. Yes, I have mountain downhill grades where I can glide many miles with no fuel consumed, but DTE still (slowly) decreases.
     
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