STILL NO Fix for Gas Fill-up Problem???

Stage II Vapor recovery is being phased out, due to ORVR becoming commonplace.

Also note that cutting the gasket can be a federal offense, though it's unlikely anyone would ever notice.

 

When you top off you risk saturating the charcoal canister that's doing the onboard refueling vapor recovery (ORVR) referenced above, and screwing up the emissions system of the vehicle.

 

I had this same problem with my new 2010 on the road trip I just took. The two times I had to fill up were my first two trips to the pump. Different stations. At the first, the pump would auto-shut off every half-gallon or so. On the second, it pumped a little over five gallons before auto-shutting-off. Both times I would end up 3 pips from full! I haven't had a chance to get a feel for how much gas each pip equates to, so I didn't want to mess with topping off, since I didn't know how much gas was still in the tank. Each time there were two pips left. A little annoying, and something I never really experienced with my previous vehicles. Maybe just luck of the draw, 2 out of 2 faulty pumps/stations/what ever? I'll keep an eye on it, hopefully it won't happen the next time I fill up!

 

Do you fill it with the pump in auto and on the lowest setting? If not try that.

 

I do not have nor have I had this issue in my Gen 3. Just an FYI.

 

"Pump in auto." I don't understand this phrase; I've never notice that a gas pump has any kid of user selectable options, like "auto." I just squeeze the pump and put the latch to the widest open notch, so as to pump the gas fastest. These are all things done at the level of the hand pump; nothing more interactive or user-configurable than that. I'll try it on a slower, less open, notch. That might help, and is a good suggestion. I also want to see if I can reproduce this issue, of course. Hopefully it was just a pump issue, and nothing more major than that.

 

By auto i mean just what you said, locking the pump handle in a notch on the handle. Try it at the slowest fill setting on the notches and i think you'll see a big difference.

 

I just filled my 2010 for the first time the other day and did notice one thing....when inserting the nozzle from the pump, I put it in at such an angle that it did not go far into the filler neck, and shut off a couple times, after inserting it deeper into the neck I never had another problem with the pump, and I also don't use the Latch feature on the handle since it takes no time to fill 9-10 gallons in it. I probably was about half speed filling and had no further issues.

Just wanted to post my 1st experience.

 

I've never had any sort of fill issue with any vehicle other than the GenII Prius. The GenII and GenIII both have closed vapor recovery systems, so they are more prone to this sort of problem than older vehicles. What they really need is some sort of bleed valve for when there is a fill problem.

Hmm...I think I might have a solution that would accomplish the venting without damaging the gasket. Might be patentable.

 

I might be wrong, but I think all cars built in the last at least 20 years have had vapor recovery systems. I believe even my 1971 VW's did.

 

Not at all the same as they aren't sealed while you are filling. During operation is another matter. The problems occurring with vapor recovery during the fill are because they are trying to control the tank venting during the fill--hence that rubber gasket in the nozzle hole. I've never had one of those in any other vehicle. The amount of vapor can be quite variable and depend on many things.