So, we all know that the 2nd gen. prius gas tanks are a disaster. I shortly learned after purchasing my 2004 pre-owned prius almost 3 years ago that the tank was finicky and the fellow at the dealership who sold it to me reassured me that filling up with only 6 gallons was going to be pretty typical. Yes, on average after driving between 200-250 miles my tank would only ever take between 6-7 gallons, even when the "add fuel" warning would come on this was still the case. Whether I was filling the the tank from "empty" or from 3/4 of a tank (after 170-200 miles) I would fiddle with the gas pump as it would kick off frequently before it was "full". Once, on a very hot summers' day I was able to fill my tank with a whopping 8 gallons. This has been a mystery to me knowing that the tank supposedly holds 11.9 gallons but being a new-to-prius owner I made it work and didn't ask any other questions. Well, now the issue is that the gas pump, not matter how slow or fast I try to fill it, will kick off with less than 1 gallon in the tank, even after driving over 200 miles. A few days ago, I fought with it to take at least 4 gallons before fuel started flowing back out of the reservoir. I took it to my Toyota dealership and they supposedly ran some tests that led them to conclude that I need a completely new gas tank system to the tune of $2000. They asked that I drive my car around until my guess gauge reads closer to empty then bring it back in to run the same tests again to determine whether or not that is their final recommendation. Has anyone else had such a drastic issue occur? Should I bother getting a second opinion from a shop other than a Toyota dealer?
My second opinion, open the tank first before paying, and put the nozzle in upside down. If that works, it is less than $2000 worth of advice.
No, but if it were me, I would fill up a 5 gallon gas can, turn the car on and leave it on until I ran out of gas (either by driving or simply leaving in the driveway), then disconnect and reconnect the 12V battery, pour in the 5 gallons and drive to the gas station and fill up. I'm telling you this as a last ditch effort to save you $2000. People after me will say I'm giving you crazy advice but they will offer no solution. There should be absolutely no reason to replace your tank. There is something I read on this problem that comes from consistent overfilling but, IDK how much value I place on that. The idea behind why I'm telling you to do this is, sometimes the guess gage can get way off and you really don't know how much gas is in your tank. Your gauge could be showing empty but have 4+ gallons left. This will ensure your tank is empty. Disconnecting the 12v, resets the memory and now you start fresh. Will it work, only you will be able to tell us. Take care to ensure your hybrid battery is not at its lowest level when you run out of gas so you have plenty of power to start the car with. This is accomplished by keeping the battery force charged (Put in "D" and press the brake and accelerator pedal at the same time while monitoring the "Energy" display). This is very important to ensure enough battery power to restart your car.
Are you aware of the rubber bladder in the fuel tank? It's supposed to expand and contract according to how much fuel is in the tank to reduce emissions and is the cause of your problems. When it's cold out, the bladder doesn't like to expand as much. Like Jimbo said, open the gas cap as soon as you get out of the car to allow air in to help relax the bladder for a bit before you start pumping fuel. The most gas I've ever fit in mine after getting the low fuel warning is 9 gallons on a warm day. In the winter I usually get 5 or 6 gallons in when I have 2 pips remaining.
you have read all the posts about the gas tanks so just spend the money if it will make you feel better, it will fix nothing.. by forcing gas into the car you are doing more damage then you are able to understand.. crazy idea, just fill up when needed like any other car and forget about the non sense .. you have a 12 yr old car that's only worth 2500 bucks at most..so why worry about it?
You might also try filling slowly (on the first click of the pump handle, or maybe even slower). Filling it fast doesn't give the bladder a chance to expand much, and it also forces air up the fill neck, causing the pump to click off. Ah, never mind, you said no matter how fast or slow you fill it. Hmm, never had any trouble, myself.
