1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Prius C Shut Off with One Bar of Fuel

Discussion in 'Prius c Main Forum' started by Silver101, May 21, 2013.

Page 1 of 2
  1. Silver101

    Silver101 Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 26, 2012
    15
    4
    1
    Location:
    NC
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    One
    I was driving my Prius C on Sunday. The fuel warning was on and I had one bar of fuel left. I was able to drive about 100 miles after the warning light turned on before. My destination was about 20 miles away, so I thought it's OK and decided to fuel up on my returning trip.

    However, it did not go well as planned. The Prius C shut off before I reached my destination and the fuel gauge is not completely empty yet. I could not start my Prius C and my only option is to call the road side assistance and had it towed to a dealership.

    The dealership examined the car and told me it's running out of fuel even though the fuel gauge is not depleted yet. They put some gas in it and reset the system. The car was back to normal afterwards. The service is not covered under warranty. Fortunately, they only charged me half hour labor plus the fuel.

    The moral of the story is that you'd better fuel up when you see the warning light. Your Prius C could shut off even with one bar of fuel.
     
    #1 Silver101, May 21, 2013
    JMD likes this.
  2. DKTVAV

    DKTVAV Active Member

    Joined:
    Jun 3, 2012
    510
    101
    0
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Four


    Similar thread.
     
    #2 DKTVAV, May 21, 2013
  3. jdcollins5

    jdcollins5 Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 30, 2009
    5,131
    1,338
    0
    Location:
    Wilmington, NC
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    One more reason I refill at 2 bars. Why take a chance? You never know when you may need to take an unexpected trip.
     
    #3 jdcollins5, May 21, 2013
    franathan and MotorcycleGoat like this.
  4. ztanos

    ztanos All-around Geek!

    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2013
    3,339
    1,149
    40
    Location:
    Cumming, Georgia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Four
    The fuel bar starts flashing with the last bar of fuel. That is the last bar of fuel... there is no bars after that. It doesn't show with 0 bars when there is no gas. Even when you are slap out of fuel it will still flash with 1 bar.
     
    #4 ztanos, May 21, 2013
  5. Silver101

    Silver101 Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 26, 2012
    15
    4
    1
    Location:
    NC
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    One
    Well, it does show zero bar. I have seen it before. That's why I thought I could drive a little more. BIG MISTAKE.
     
    #5 Silver101, May 22, 2013
  6. ztanos

    ztanos All-around Geek!

    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2013
    3,339
    1,149
    40
    Location:
    Cumming, Georgia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Four
    I've put over 9.5 gallons in my tank and never seen it completely empty before... you only have ~1.5 gallons after the light comes on, so you have to pay attention to your driving style... I usually only estimate ~1 gallon, but, if you are willing to drive more than that... you should see the thread about the guy who ran out and blamed it on the car... the most I have pushed it is 75 miles after the light came on... that was on my 9.6 gallon tank. So kudos for being able to go over 100 miles with the light on.

    I'm looking at your fuelly and was trying to figure out which tank you ran out on... but I don't see any indication as to which it was. Was it the 5/28 tank?
     
    #6 ztanos, May 22, 2013
  7. Silver101

    Silver101 Junior Member

    Joined:
    Apr 26, 2012
    15
    4
    1
    Location:
    NC
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    One
    I have not updated Fuelly for a long time. That info is from last year.
     
    #7 Silver101, May 22, 2013
  8. R Scneider

    R Scneider Member

    Joined:
    Apr 18, 2013
    86
    37
    0
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Three
    I did 50 miles after the light came on. When I fueled up it was over 8.5 galons 1st click. Never again.
    This car is not like my 09 civic that you can drive with no bars and still have 3 gallons of gas.
     
    #8 R Scneider, May 22, 2013
  9. ztanos

    ztanos All-around Geek!

    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2013
    3,339
    1,149
    40
    Location:
    Cumming, Georgia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Four
    You still had a gallon left. This car has a 9.5 gallon tank.
     
    #9 ztanos, May 22, 2013
  10. Image Group

    Image Group Bounding Overwatch to Grandmothers house we go!

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2013
    73
    21
    1
    Location:
    San Diego CA
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    One
    I have trained myself that at 2 bars...GAS UP! As a new Hybrid owner is scares me to run this thing out of gas. All I read are horror stories. I was curious though if there was some sort of warning when you were low on fuel.
     
    #10 Image Group, May 25, 2013
  11. ztanos

    ztanos All-around Geek!

    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2013
    3,339
    1,149
    40
    Location:
    Cumming, Georgia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Four
    It blinks the last bar and tells you that you have 0 miles left. At this point you still have ~1.5 gallons of gas.
     
    #11 ztanos, May 27, 2013
  12. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

    Joined:
    May 11, 2005
    107,796
    48,995
    0
    Location:
    boston
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    op, how many miles had you driven when it shut off?
     
    #12 bisco, May 27, 2013
  13. Mr Gee

    Mr Gee Member

    Joined:
    Sep 27, 2012
    88
    30
    0
    Location:
    Australia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    N/A
    last week, refilled tank with 34.5 litres. 1.5 litres left?
     
    #13 Mr Gee, May 30, 2013
  14. Netineti

    Netineti Member

    Joined:
    Mar 18, 2013
    98
    36
    0
    Location:
    North Carolina
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    Oh crap, mine came on last night. I'll fill up before work....
     
    #14 Netineti, May 30, 2013
  15. ztanos

    ztanos All-around Geek!

    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2013
    3,339
    1,149
    40
    Location:
    Cumming, Georgia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Four
    Give or take.
     
    #15 ztanos, May 30, 2013
  16. Mr Gee

    Mr Gee Member

    Joined:
    Sep 27, 2012
    88
    30
    0
    Location:
    Australia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    N/A
    give or take. supposed to be a 36 litre tank.

    500km travelled
     
    #16 Mr Gee, Jun 2, 2013
  17. JMD

    JMD 2012 Prius 4 Solar Roof

    Joined:
    Oct 11, 2012
    3,779
    1,282
    0
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    When the bar starts flashing I change the odometer to miles left in the tank and get gas as close as i can. Even I think that is cutting it close.
     
    #17 JMD, Jun 2, 2013
  18. ztanos

    ztanos All-around Geek!

    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2013
    3,339
    1,149
    40
    Location:
    Cumming, Georgia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Four
    and that's smart. We don't need people creating more threads about running out... :D But you have over 1 gallon left, so depending on your driving style at the time, you could go pretty far.
     
    #18 ztanos, Jun 2, 2013
    JMD likes this.
  19. iheartnewwave

    iheartnewwave Junior Member

    Joined:
    May 22, 2013
    10
    3
    0
    Location:
    Midwest
    Vehicle:
    2013 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    I've only fueled up once so far on my new car. It got down to one bar, but there was plenty of fuel left from what I could tell. I'll probably always make a point to fill up before the warning light ever comes on. After reading these posts about people having their vehicles shut off, I'm not taking any chances. I don't see any good reason to just keep waiting longer and longer to get gas. It's much more convenient to stop and fill up than to have your car shut off and have to have it towed to a dealer and pay to have it reset. Not like we have to fill up every week anyway unless driving tons of miles. ;)
     
    #19 iheartnewwave, Jun 2, 2013
  20. ztanos

    ztanos All-around Geek!

    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2013
    3,339
    1,149
    40
    Location:
    Cumming, Georgia
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Four
    Which some of us do... ;)
     
    #20 ztanos, Jun 2, 2013
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)
Page 1 of 2