I have a new 2009 Prius with 650 miles on it. I fill up the bladder at 1/2 tank. This is my third fill up. I am on 73 miles and the first pip is not gone. On the other two fill ups it was a lot sooner for the first pip to disapear. Does this sound normal? From reading other posts I know the bladder does have some issues. Thanks Love it so far!
Normal. The warmer the weather and the type of driving you do (longer trips) the further you will get on the first pip. However, you won't get that same distance on the remaining pips. Keep in mind that it is just a 'guess' gauge.
Agreed. I've gone anywhere from about 50 miles (in cold weather) to 250 miles (in hot weather) on the first pip.
Thanks everybody. That's was I thought about the pip issue, but I knew this great group of people could confirm it.
If you'd like to see a bit more on the variety of miles people see during the life of the first pip, see the stories and comments posted on this thread from last year: Max Miles on First Pip.
My first tank seemed to drop quickly as far as the gauge. On the subsequent fillups, I get over 100 miles before the first bar disappears. I get to about 250 before the gauge indicates 1/2. Usually around 400 miles by the time it drops to three bars.
mine is doing better again. The first pip right now is going away @ 140 miles or so. I had overfilled last year in the summer and thought I ruptured or ruined the bladder, because my gauge was WAY off..but it seems to have corrected itself over time, and works fine again. I normally fill up when the last pip starts blinking.