How to properly fill gas tank?

couple things to consider... with CANVIEW the gas gauge is displayed in percentages. i have run to the blinking bar twice so far. first time it started blinking 2 miles after the tank went from 17 to 15%. the 2nd time, it started blinking just after the tank went from 15 to 12%. the first time i filled it up 6 miles after it went to 2%. the 2nd time (SCARY) i filled it 3½ miles after it hit ZERO percent...realize the tank reading does fluctuate a bit...so i guess the zero percent was actually between zero and 2% (thankfully)

so the blinking bar probably says you have about a 1½ gallons or so...give or take.

 

You are brave!

 

no not brave... actually stupid comes to mind...for first time in probably 5 years at least, forgot my wallet. had to go home and get it then go to gas station...

 

I have overfilled twice. I do love to see that the first bar after fill-up stays there until close to 100 miles. I do try to gauge by how far I have gone and then add that extra trickle after "burping" the line. The vapor thingies here in California really have an effect on filling most any car. It still takes a lot less time to fill up the prius than it did to fill up my 22 gallon tank on the Sport Trac!!

PS to DanMan; Do you just have that crazy need to push it and have you ever gone all the way and ended up stuck on the side of the road??

 

If you have only gone 128 miles on your tank, why are you surprised that you can put only 1.2 gallons in it?

 

My car seems to have about 1 1/2 gal left when I get the flashing bar. But I have found by running out it is not consistant as to where it thinks it is empty. I treat the 1/2 gal as unusable fuel. Where it goes dry depends on hills and acceleration etc a bit I think.

Some have reported here running out and then being able to restart and run for a few more miles!
I won't try that, but is another indication the empty point is not a fixed point that only happens when the tank is really empty.

So after the flash I either have a spare tank of fuel with me, or I plan to fill up within about 25 miles!
Then I fill it really full till I see fuel or hear the gurgle or some other sound change.

I relieve the pressure every 0.2 gal and fill slow at the end listening close to the sounds. Only time I got a burp of fuel was when I tried to rush or there was too much noise to hear the sounds.

If I fill at the flash I can generally get in 10 gal. min.

My biggest fill up was well over 11.9, 12.4 I think it was! I miscalculated how close the next gas station was that would be open, and was running on fumes I thnk.

 

Just thought I'd share my first fill-up experience. My 06 came with about half a tank of gas and 4miles on the odometer. I filled up this morning with 1 bar left on the gas gauge. My odometer was at 201miles. I was able to pump 9.1gallons without doing any topping up. So, it looks like everything is normal, and I didn't have any issues on my first fill-up. The MPG average for me was 46.9MPG. (very easy driving both highway and local).

 

Bummer dude. You should have gotten a full tank of gas when you bought it.

 

The Prius was my second Toyota bought at that dealership and my previous purchase (Camry), also came with 1/2 tank of gas. However, they always give me a voucher to fill up myself at a station around the corner. I guess they are shortstaffed or just lazy.

 

Agreed, I think I'd go kick the dealer in the shins for not handing the car over with a full tank.

Terry

 

In plain English, you are blaming the car for your behavior.

 

On a related note here... though this thread is a little stale by now. (I'll confess I haven't read the whole thread, so if it's already addressed I apologize)

When filling I almost always buy gas at the same Chevron station. Range is so good I can usually make it home from most of the places I travel to.

To be aware of when cut-off happens most effectively I use the same side of the same pump each time when possible.
Admitidely I got some nasty looks from a big redneck guy in his supercab dualie pickup when I pulled in closer than he would have liked. He'd pulled his big monster right up to the front door of the convenience store which put him fairly close to the pump.

I just smiled and waved as he pulled away from the front door using more fuel to start his truck and get out of the parking lot than I would burn for the whole day.

 

One would think this was the beginning of a Blonde Joke....

 

I have 6,800 miles on my 2006. I put the nozzle in just enough so no gas spits or leaks out. I fill on automatic on the lowest setting. About 99% of the time my computer MPG matches the manual way. I never fill after the 1st shutoff. B)

 

I've had problems filling my gas tank on my 05 Prius.

After inserting the nozzle, the pump would click off time and again. When I took the car in for routine maintenance, I mentioned the problem to the service writer, they adjust some kind of fuel tank sensor and the problem is gone.