No low fuel light in Prius

The omission of the conspicuous yellow, SAE/DIN, low fuel icon is unfortunate. If you look closely, you'll notice that the fuel gauge image is prominent when full and almost absent when low. So just look for the absent fuel gauge image and you'll know you're low. The "ding" helps if you're not playing the radio or riding with your windows open. Another "what were they thinking?".

 

Pilot error both with your Prius and the 777 that crashed.

There's no excuse for running out of fuel in a Prius, it warns and warns and warns. Carrying more fuel has no measurable effect on fuel economy. If you're that worried, loose weight!

BTW, running out of fuel is actually very hard on the car -and- there is a DTC entered in the computer. So if it fails Toyota -may- refuse warranty. It's classed as abuse.

 

Top the tank off a bit and the fuel remaining after the meter says empty is 100 miles of driving nice. You could install a fuel computer if you could find a transducer that can accurately record fuel flow at the low rates the Prius flows

Mike

Mobile on my SGH-i717

 

Fixed that for you.

If you depend on an idiot light to tell you that gas is low, you might be ...

Seriously though, there are many threads complaining about Toyota depending on idiot lights instead of using gauges. Now there's one complaining about depending on gauges and not using idiot lights. Guess you can't win either way.

 

Every other vehicle I drive -- Volvo, Audi, Nissan -- uses the yellow or orange ISO symbol for low fuel. Ford Focus and Fusion do as well. I actually don't know of a currently-manufactured vehicle that doesn't use this icon -- except Prius.

 

And that was me at 16 and I borrowed my sister's 87 Oldsmobile. She will never let me forget it. I agree, gas gauge is all you need.

 

A real gauge would be an improvement. Check VDO catalog for what a real gauge looks like.

 

If I remember correctly from highway engineering, mass factors into the equations of rolling resistance and grade resistance, and not at all to aerodynamic drag. I'm too tired to try to drag out my notes tonight, but it was a linear variable.

Velocity is a far more significant factor, as it is an exponential variable in aerodynamic drag. I for one don't reduce my velocity unless there is no one behind me on the road.

The gas is only about 6 lbs per gallon versus water at over 8 lbs per gallon. The Prius only holds on the order of 11-ish gallons anyhow.

If OP needs specific equations about the fuel efficiency impacts of carrying around a safety margin of 12 lbs of fuel in the tank, then I will dig out my notes later this week.

But I hope that the common sense of protecting a $25K+ piece of property AND ones life will render the exercise unnecessary!

 

In the nearly 8 years since I stopped being an impoverished college student, I think I saw the "gas light" in my Civic maybe 5 times. It gets near "E", and I look for a gas station. For day to day commuting, I drive roughly 85 miles a day and knew I had to fuel up every 3 days. Especially with the constant threat of a 15 minute drive turning into an hour in DC area gridlock, it was never good to be running on fumes. With the new Prius, I'll have to figure out my new routine, but it won't involve running the gauge down to nothing.

 

I'm not saying it shouldn't have the idiot light or that it's not strange that it doesn't. My personal opinion is that it is stupid to ignore the fuel gauge and depend instead on the idiot light (in the absence of evidence that the gauge is not working).

 

Someone could design a low fuel indicator kit. Maybe there is a signal on the CAN bus to trigger a indicator?

Mike

Mobile on my SGH-i717

 

Ah, a back in the day story. This is my second car with low-fuel warning. My Subaru had a low fuel light, but the light stopped working. That is very bad for a girl who is prone to running out of gas (hey, some people don't, some people do, and this is why I belong to AAA).
Me: "The low-fuel light is not working."
Ex: "Oh. Wait, how would you know that?"
Me: "Well..."

 

Better yet--have the car send a text to the owner's cell phone...

 

Irregardless of whether there's a symbol or a gauge to show low fuel, if the intention is to "I was simply pushing the limit and got caught "with my pants down" (post #4), the low fuel indicator will be ignored.

 

Amazing - when I'm driving my Prius, I'm not looking for gauges or indicators that are in my other vehicle or any vehicle I've owned in the past, and likewise when driving another vehicle I'm not looking for gauges and indicators found in my Prius. I use what I've got in front of me. What a concept. The flashing pip IS the low fuel indicator for the Prius.

 

Agree.

 

Not for nothing, the the warning light is right next to the speedometer.

 

Better yet, text the driver's significant other.