Flashing Gas Light = 3 more gallons?

HyDee, what I think a lot of people are trying to say is, you got 312 miles on your first tank because that's how much gas was in the tank, influenced by your driving style. Did the dealer give you a "full tank" of gas when you got it with 4 miles on the odometer? Probably, but what does "full tank" mean?

The dealer probably took the cold car (can't warm up in 4 miles) and put the gas nozzle in the filler tube. When it clicked off automatically, the dealer said the tank was full and delivered the car to you.

Who knows how much gas you had? 11.9 gallons? Probably not, since you only got 312 miles, though you may not have been optimizing milage as a new driver. When you read the threads about gas/guess gauge, one thing you may notice is that some people think the bladder gets more flexible with use; a new bladder might not readily expand to the full 11.9 gallon capacity.

The other thing people are saying is, when your Prius asks for gas, give it gas. Next summer, when you have driving experience, when the bladder has been stretched by many tanks of gas, when the gas has higher energy content, and when the air is warmer, you may experience a 500 mile tank.

But miles per tank is a shibboleth. What's important is how far you go per unit of fuel. Keep track. Don't worry about a 312 mile tank, it means nothing.

 

Yup, I'd go with the suggestion that the dealer stopped filling when the pump did it's auto-stop. When the pump shuts off, I can always get at least a gallon more of gas in there... usually around 1.5 gallons. Depending on your fuel consumption (which I haven't seen mentioned anywhere in this thread), and assuming the dealer does the dealership classic style of 'full' then it looks like your gas guage is working just fine.

When the fuel warning light comes on, it means there is 7 litres of gas left or around 1.8 gallons. I have ran this car to empty a few times to verify this info. The only variance I had was in the summer when it got really hot and I had 2 liters less than I estimated which can be attributed to the fuel bladder.

 

Bill, you just saved me a load of typing, well said.

I was going to point HyDee to the search feature and my experiences with this but that part of the site has been giving errors all day. Look in My posts if search is flaking out for you as well.

And HyDee, there is some levity on this site, I think your a bit quick on the trigger.

"People should think before they speak / write."

Yup, your right.

So is Bill Merchant.
B)

 

Got a great life and a sense of humor... hopefully you can find yours and take some time to learn more about your car. I think we all have adifficult time filling this car up fully and it is never the same. Just listen to the car.

 

Personally... I stop filling at the first click. At full service stations... I give the instructions "no top off". This prevents damaging the charcol canister which I understand is an expensive repair... and can severely impact gas mileage. I really am not sure what I charcol cannister does to be honest.

My plan is to always fill before i get to 1/4 tank. This prevents fuel pump failures in other cars... and I have heard that the Prius also has an "in the tank" fuel pump... so I would suspect that this practice will save me from such a repair in the prius.

I honestly could not care less how many miles I get from a fill up. I think it is a ridiculous exercise to see how far you can go per tankful. YMMV.

/Jim

 

I agree. People SHOULD think before they speak / write.

But Salsawonder did also write, “Poor starving Prii......†:lol:

Should Salsawonder have taken into account total lack of humor?
Should he have considered the reader would be one who is so politically correct that they are socially inept?

Thinking before speaking or writing. Nice concept. Try it sometime.

 

Some combination of
- poor fuel economy (high average speed, many short trips, cold weather, etc.)
and
- less gas in the tank at the beginning than you expected (the fuel bladder is flexible, so "full" does not mean the same thing every time, and almost never means 11.9 gallons).

The techs no doubt meant well, but it's pure foolishness to assume that *any* particular amount remains in the tank when the last pip start flashing; last-pip-flashing means "buy gas now, dammit".

 

Here's a good laugh.. My '05 did exactly the same thing on me on the first tank and on the 2nd one also. Stupid sales person at the cheating scummy dealership obviously tweaked the gas gauge and put some in his own vehicle. bas___d!

Oh wait, I sold this Prius to myself and filled it up myself. :blink:

I believe now that I am more intimately involved with her that the initial tanks are very very variable. Since then it blinks, I fill, almost exactly on 10.2 gal.