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Prius "Ran out of gas" while having a full tank...

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by JohnRamboJedi, Oct 31, 2012.

  1. JohnRamboJedi

    JohnRamboJedi New Member

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    Hey guys,
    I filled up my tank this morning and everything seemed fine (the tank showed full an everything). I drove 20 miles and the gauge was on 2 bars. I though that was strange so I checked for a leak, there wasn't one so I went to a nearby gas station and filled up again to make sure I wasn't leaking fuel (this full up was for about .2 of a gallon so there was not a leak). Anyway I continued to drive and I recieved the blinking light followed shortly by the dash board lights going off and my car using its battery power up before stopping. Now I can't put the car in "ready" mode and can't drive, it just immediately tells me to add fuel. I believe my car thinks I do not have gas, when I still have a full tank. I have to get my car towed to the dealership now, but was wondering if this is a common problem and/or is there any easy fix for this? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
     
    #1 JohnRamboJedi, Oct 31, 2012
  2. HaroldW

    HaroldW Active Member

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    Three
    Better check your 12V out. If it is reading below 12V funny things happen. Hope that is the solution! H:)
     
    #2 HaroldW, Oct 31, 2012
  3. koolingit

    koolingit Member

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    Disconnect the 12 volt battery for five minutes and reconnect. That should reset the fuel gauge and allow you to make the car "ready."
     
    #3 koolingit, Oct 31, 2012
  4. nh7o

    nh7o Off grid since 1980

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    Not a common problem. I wonder about what other DTC's are are being set, post them here if you can. It sounds like your ICE shut off, so even with fuel in the tank, it was not making it to the engine. There have been some fuel pump failures, which due to the Byzantine complexity of the Prius fuel system means replacing the whole tank. Some people have run out of gas, so the car will try to use what is there even if the tank is next to empty. The fact that the gauge went down suddenly, but things continued to work for a while longer says that it is not a total failure of the fuel system, such as would blow a fuse. But that could be something to check.
     
    #4 nh7o, Oct 31, 2012
  5. richard schumacher

    richard schumacher shortbus driver

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    So what'd the dealer find?

    It's unlikely, but easy, and if you're lucky this will be the cause: check the 12V battery. Dealers get this wrong sometimes (amazing and sad, but true).

    Do you habitually top-off the tank when fueling?
     
    #5 richard schumacher, Nov 10, 2012
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