Tank on Empty

1. Jon Anderson
   December 17th, 2007 at 1:46 am

   When you put in a car that has had the same name for different models over the last 40 years, the data doesn't mean much.

2. Olaf
   December 17th, 2007 at 2:13 am

   makes me think of episode 11 season 9 of seinfeld when Kramer test-drives a car and convinces the car salesman that they should find out how far the needle will go beyond the E.

3. Jeff
   December 17th, 2007 at 6:12 am

   I get nervous if my car goes below half a tank. Then again, I don't want to worry about gassing up in the middle of a zombie infestation.

4. mikky
   December 17th, 2007 at 9:08 am

   just last saturday, the meter read 1/4 gas left. and my car stopped. so how far would i go? i'd say not very.

5. cuimhne
   December 17th, 2007 at 10:42 am

   Apparently my car will go an average of 39.29 miles after the light goes on! Not bad Though I never let it run with the light on for long.

6. Skipweasel
   December 17th, 2007 at 10:56 am

   Tricky. I put 50 liters in mine on Friday and it's covered just under 500 miles - and the needle isn't back to where it was before I filled up. Trouble is that parking it on a slope really upsets the gauge.

7. Courageous Grace
   December 17th, 2007 at 10:58 am

   My 04 Montero Sport will go for about 60 miles after the low fuel light comes on before it runs out of gas. But then of course, the light only means it has 4 gallons of fuel left. That's a little less than 1/5 of the tank...lol Apparently Mitsubishi makes cars for people who don't like to fill their tanks or something.

   According to that site, it is only supposed to go about 30 miles after the light comes on. The previous votes must have been for an older model. Heh, if I could only go 30 miles on 4 gallons...I'd be getting myself another car! Talk about crappy MPG!

8. Thomas
   December 17th, 2007 at 12:42 pm

   I get about 45 or 50 miles after the light comes on. First thing I do when I buy a used car is give it a quarter tank, drive until the light comes on, and clock how many miles it has until it craps out. I carry a spare 5 gallons of gas of course. Luckily I've never had a car that has to have the computer reset if it runs out of gas.

9. Slippy Lane
   December 17th, 2007 at 12:53 pm

   Little tip, if your car runs on diesel oil, don't let it run out of fuel.

   I let mine run out of fuel once, and it's never run right since, even after having the fuel system cleaned out and repressurised.

10. Sid Morrison
    December 17th, 2007 at 4:44 pm

    @Slippy-
    When you ran the diesel system dry you entrained air in the fuel system. That is the problem from which you are apparently still suffering, not crud in the system or anything that needs "cleaning" or "treating". System cleanings and the like indicate your mechanic is either a quack or a crook -- you need to have the system properly bled.

    @everybody else-
    The trait the blog post refers to is in industry typically called "reserve" or "empty reserve". Essentially, they purposely miscalibrate the fuel level senders to protect stupid people from running out of gas. How much a miscalibration depends upon the manufacturer, but it's all very intentional and all based on buyers like #5, who rate a car higher if it goes a long way when it is supposedly out of fuel.

    The same tricks are pulled for a full tank (except it's called "full reserve" there). A lot of buyers like that they can fill the tank and then drive around for a week with the gauge still above "F". Of course, suddenly it starts dropping really fast, but a lot of people don't get the connection, that it is a purposely miscalibrated gauge. My mother-in-law is *convinced* her car gets better fuel economy when the tank is full. Ugh...

    In a perfect world (for me), when the tank is truly full (usable volume) it would read "F" and when the gauge reads "E" it's about to sputter. It'll never happen because cars are now designed for idiots.

11. Slippy Lane
    January 15th, 2008 at 1:03 pm

    Thanks for the clarification there Sid. Yes, my (ex-)mechanic is indeed a crook. As are most mechanics, in my experience. Not a problem for me any more as I've ditched the car and it's ever-increasing running costs.

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