Question about the "Low Fuel" Warning

I've had my Prius for about a month now and have gone through 4 tanks of gas. Each one has had the last Flashing bar but I've never seen a "low fuel" or "add fuel" message on the MFD. I've never heard anything either. The most I've driven with the Flashing bar was 24 miles. Do the warnings come some time later?

 

I've only filled up once. I don't recall the Add Fuel display on the 2005. The 2001 displays the message though.

 

i believe the message only appears for a few seconds at the top of the display in the same place other transiet messages appear.

 

I always wanted to say this...

RTFM

:roll:

... just joking.

I don't actually OWN the car yet, but I have a copy of the manual. See attached image from page 115...

Maybe it depends on what screen you are viewing?? The example is the climate screen. Also, maybe it is just at the first warning. Weird that it would stop working.

 

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Thanks for reading the manual. We're usually on a different screen than the climate screen but I suppose it has shown and I never saw it. It seems like there should also be some audible tones when the guage starts blinking.

 

the message comes on no matter what screen you are on. if you were to change the radio station you are listening to, there will be a message stating what the new station is. that location is where the low fuel warning will appear.

 

it only comes on at startup...

 

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Well that's good to know. Most of the time when the bar starts flashing I just head to the next station.

 

My experience in an '04 is a short audible beep/alarm and a very short 'add fuel' on the MFD when the last pip starts nagging. That's over 12,000km and I haven't missed many.

Being anal-retentive can be a good thing!

 

Hmm. I usually wait for the "1 bar flashing" but haven't noticed the "Add fuel" message. I figured it didn't show up until you were closer to 'desperation time". I always get 1 beep when it first goes to '1 bar flashing'. After that I also get a beep when I power up until I get gas.

 

I get the "add fuel" message and blinking fuel bar faithfully on my '04.

If you are driving when you hit the "add fuel" level, you should hear a beep and see the little notice on the screen, the fuel bar will start blinking. Then, if it works like mine, every time you start up after that (I usually drive about 50 miles past the add fuel warning, so it can take me a week) you'll get the beep and message on the screen after the car hits ready (it usually appears after I've backed out of the carport or my parking spot at work).

I'm not sure if you disable the backup beep if it affects this notification too.

I pretty much refuel at 400-450 miles anyway for the tank, so I'm not sure I need the beep notification, just the blinking bar would be fine for me.

 

I have what is probably a stupid RTFM (or search the forums) question, but if you do run out of fuel, can you keep running in EV mode until the computer shuts off that as well due to nearly drained battery?

Al

 

For some sick perverted reason I've kept a log of how far I go with a blinking light.

With my peak tank of 49.8 mpg I drove 64 miles after the blink started. With my current average of 46/47 mpg, I'm hovering aroung 50 miles on the blink.

I know, I know, tempting fate.

 

:iagree

I think i've ran about 60 miles on a blink before. maybe a little more. It's when i wanted to push the tank to see if their was actualy 10 gallons in their, even though when i fill it, it's 9.5 gallons. I think it's hiding fuel.

 

Wait, I thought it was an 11.9 gallon tank? Am I mis-reading the manual? Where are the extra two gallons? I want my two gallons!

 

My most recent fill was 10.041 gallons and that was within a mile or so of the blink starting. A 10gal tank can still have a gallon or two in the fill tubes.

Al

 

I just filled up on Sunday - I drove 423 miles on that tank (42 miles past the first refuel blink) and put in a lowly 7.6 gallons.

Grrrr. I was putting in 8 or 9 gallons before. I really don't know if it's blinking while it still has 3 gallons left or if it is never truly "full" because of the bladder.

Oh well! 400 miles is still about twice the range of my old car!