Filled up today.. when the pump clicked off I pulled the nozzle out and suddenly about 2 pints of gas shot back out of the prius and onto the ground... seemed to be under pretty good pressure too! anyone else ever had this happen?
Yes, and it will probably happen to everyone at least once. Best advice is to pump at the slowest setting and stand by the tank. If you hear gas in the fender shut the pump off yourself.
had it happen twice. First time wasn't bad, I just got gas on me. Second time I was smoking at the time .................... JUST KIDDING !!
BGT Syndrome. Barfing Gas Tank. When the pump clicks off, don't try to put more in. This forum is rife with speculation why, but it does happen when you overfill, and you can actually ruin the fuel tank. It has something to do with the rubber bladder that actually holds the fuel, and does not entirely fill the metal of the gas tank, it can expand or contract with temperature, thus the refill quantity of the tank varies. I recently read that there is a rubber gasket that seals the gas pump filler when inserted. Maybe the air relief valve closes or gets filled with gas so that the tank pressurizes and then barfs a gallon back out? More speculation!
This forum WAS rife with speculation. We now have access to the Toyota Diagnostic manual which describes how the fuel system works: 1) Make sure to power off the car before attempting to fill. When the car is on it is not in the proper state to receive gas. 2) Use the lowest speed setting on the pump. 3) When the pump clicks off do not top off. Topping off is bad you can read all about it in the document linked to here http://priuschat.com/forums/care-maintenance-troubleshooting/42356-fuel-tank-top-off-bad-im-now-believer.html
Once. A maladjusted costco pump. Quick thinking, I screwed the cap on, saving probablay a pint. smoking while gassing up? (shaking head)
Pearl has only spit out once, but has tried several other times. Every time the tank was overfilled, either intentionally or because of a misadjusted filler nossle. If you suspect this might happen, once it clicks off, hold the nossle securely and press it down so the rubber gasket leaks at the top of the nossle. It will release the air slowly that would otherwise spit out the fuel. If fuel does come out it will do so slowly enough it will drain back into the tank, and if it comes out too fast you just let the rubber gasket seal again and try again once it settles down.
This whole gas delivery system discussion is really quite interesting. I wish the dealer would have educated me on this. I've read a number of the threads on this topic, including following the embedded hyperlinks. It isn't clear to me how you would know that you screwed something up by overfilling. Exactly what symptoms do you look for that indicate you have a problem Thanks,
The car will sense fuel in the space between the bladder and the metal tank. It will put up a warning light and enter a code in the computer. The fuel may damage the parts that inhabit this area (which include the vapour recovery components). I suspect it's also there to warn of fuel tank bladder failure. -I- believe the fuel wouldn't be forced to overflow through the vapour recovery system -unless- you fill up to the top on a warm day. Then the fuel expansion will force the fuel through the system unless you use it faster than it expands (which, in a Prius, is unlikely ). In winter the fuel would normally shrink, meaning an overflow would be unlikely. This is caused by the cool fuel, stored underground at perhaps 50F, expanding when exposed to warm ambient air, perhaps 80F. The expansion occurs over about an hour period, and adds about 1-2 quarts of volume to the tank. If you filled it all the way there is nowhere for that to go, except through the vapour recovery system, which is small, according to Galaxee (who should know as he has seen it firsthand). Be aware, the expansion can occur faster, for example, by being warmed by the fuel already in the tank.
funny this week i went for my firts tank of gas and the same thing happend at the firts click it already overflowed.. second click... came right out off the filler.
Wednesday I filled up and tried something new, only using the first catch on the fueling nozzle, the slow fill speed. I waited, and waited, and waited, then walked around the car a couple times, found a cumfy spot on the rear quarter to sit against, then waited some more. When it was time, I removed the nozzle and HEY there was gas coming back out at me, ALOT. I figured maybe there wasn't enough pressure to turn the pump off when it got full. When I use the high speed fill setting that never happened.
It has happened to everyone and if it hasn't happend to you yet.....................Just wait...It will.
When it happens regularly, and you hold a match near the opening ... Old college trick ... oh never mind ... someone WOULD take it seriously
