prius c the fuel indicator

fuel slushing around in the tank while you are driving and screwing up the readings

but...seeing as fuel is cheaper now and you are also driving a high mpg car...try not to play chicken too much with fueling your car

 

The C's fuel gauge can sometimes be a bit erratic. My 2010 liftback was very predictable, each 'blip' was also exactly 50 miles traveled for me most times. But the C's 'blips' don't really seem to correlate to any linear measurement. So when it says fill, I fill pretty much ASAP in the C.

 

my fuel gauge also seems erratic ,,, i keep track using trip meter A from my most recent fillup ,,, anything over 300 miles and for me itz time to fill up.

 

Your car should still be under warranty.
Take it to a dealer so that the bad fuel sender or loose wire can be fixed.
It could also be a computer board problem but that's a real long shot.

 

the reality is that no gas gauge is going to be accurate at the bottom. how can it be when there is no gas left to measure? just fill it,,, or stick $5 or $10 in just to be safe.

 

It should never go down and back up again that erratically, though. This sounds like a real issue.

 

@ztanos , i agree with you ,,, but i really do not wish to attract the attention of my dealer. i dont want them to have any excuse to avoid a warranty claim. when i had my Scion xB and asked about a knocking noise of something loose underneath, next thing you know is i had to purchase a replacement loose plastic shield undeneath ,,, and oh by the way did you know " somebody was 4-wheelin' it over the lava ?? " because it was scraped and cut undeneath ??? of course it wasnt me i said i would never treat my car like that (and jeapordize any future warranty claims),,, anyway even old cold lava can cut the steel frame like a samurai sword thru butter as the mechanic saw. plus living in a rainforest along with volcanic acid rain makes occasional electrical gremlins a given. so i'll just go the dealer for my free oil changes,,, maybe upgrade to the 2015 c or perhaps the v if i can afford it.

 

That statement strikes me as a little bit ridiculous.......and you are being a bit paranoid........and are looking at two entirely different situations and thinking they are some how the same when they aren't even close.

The situation with your fuel gauge IS a warranty claim.
It is not working right and they are obligated to fix it.
It is not going to get fixed any other way.........unless you wait until the warranty expires and then they will rightfully make you pay to fix it.

Now.....it is possible that they might have to keep it a few days to SEE the problem occur, in which case they should give you a loaner.

 

to be honest my Hawaii dealer is a sweetheart to me and always has been (YAY BigIslandToyota !!!) and perhaps i am the SOB that wants them to fix anything that might end up being big ticket that i broke on my own. then again i would consider running the tank down to zero on purpose as self-inflicted damage. and so the gas gauge is going to make crazy settings because therez NO gas left to measure. remember itz a 9.5 gallon tank on the c, of which 8 or 8.5 gallons is useable, not ten. that makes a beeg difference. for me itz 300 miles, then put gas in or i takes my chances. part of that is from sitting outside in 80 something degree weather with the aircond on for a couple of hours while the wife went shopping or visiting relatives etc. and i waiting in the car. i would do the same thing with my Cadillacs except now i use less gas. and since the last caddy left the real caddy factory in 1986.,,, well now we have toyota,,,

 

I don't understand. If you DID that, especially more than once, then what is the point of your first post anyway ?
Especially without making any mention of that very important fact ??

P.S. Running the tank completely empty can damage the fuel pump too and is just generally NOT a good habit to get into.......if for no other reason than it will eventually bite you in the butt when you run completely out and have to walk or call AAA.

Given all of that, however, you can still take it in for warranty service and not mention your habit of running the tank low.
Does it dance around ONLY when the level is extremely low ?? If so, it might be normal and it might be true that the problem really is YOU !!

 

Wrong... wrong wrong... Running the tank empty will never cause issues with the fuel sensor. It "can" cause issues with your fuel pump if you run for an extended period of time without fuel. The fuel cools the fuel pump and keeps it from overheating. Check my fuelly if you want. I have never had any instances of the fuel gauge jumping up and down.