Fill up at a 1/2 tank! or pay $159.12

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mdescher @ Aug 6 2006, 08:13 PM) [snapback]298767[/snapback]</div>

Well that just burns my backside! You want to see a group of uneducated people who speak before they know what they are talking about, talk to the sales people at Toyota that sell the Prius but don't own one. The sales lady told my wife she had to get the oil changed at the dealer because it is a hybrid. BULLSHIT. The first 2 times they did mine, they over filled, the second time by 8 oz. They now get 3.5 quarts in 3 bottles from ME to put in the car. I suspect they pass the oil change cars to the lowest grease monkey on the tree who doesn't know a hybrid from a bicycle.
There is more ACCURATE accumulated knowledge on this board than your dealer can ever hope to find anywhere. Plus, we have Galaxee to hit up DH (the Prius Tech who DOES know Wth he's talking about) with the 'hard' ones
That 1/2 tank line is the biggest pile of manure I've seen since I helped my dad muck out the barn and it was at least 18" deep. I NEVER get gas before 1 bar flashing unless I'm going on a long trip. Winter and Summer. NEVER had a problem - 2 years, 22K miles.
ALL Prius owners have this problem?? Only those that go to THAT dealer and get BAD information from THEM.

There is something related to making sure the gas cap is on tight, but darned if I can remember what it is. Just make sure it is And, as another poster mentioned: Push and hold the Power button for 5 seconds or so, then release. Then try to start the car. Kinda of like forcing a PC to shut off by holding the Power button in.

If they don't give you back your money, I think it is time for a picket line at Northridge Toyota if for no other reason than all the bull they've been telling you, and apparently every other Prius owner that comes through. How many of them don't hang here and will never know they've been lied to? Worse, how many will REPEAT that crap to others with all the authority of "The Toyota dealer said".

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bruceha_2000 @ Aug 16 2006, 01:33 PM) [snapback]304212[/snapback]</div>

I wanna do a picket line! lol. taht'd be so great... drive a couple dozen prii up to the dealer and circle the cars around. i can see the signs now "Clean the environment! Stop feeding us bulls**t!"

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eagle33199 @ Aug 16 2006, 12:02 PM) [snapback]304229[/snapback]</div>

Well, eagle, I'm up for it if you are...only slightly under 400 miles for me--about 1900 for you, courtesy of MapQuest. Need a roadtrip?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daronspicher @ Aug 1 2006, 02:18 PM) [snapback]295777[/snapback]</div>

Nope. I've had 18 fillups since I got the car in April. 9 fillups over 10 gallons, 6 0ver 9.5 and three between 8.5 and 9 because I filled up a bit early before leaving on a long trip. I've only seen the flashing pip onceand it took just over 10.5 that time. No problem filling at the highest pump speed either.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(PriusRos @ Aug 6 2006, 01:49 PM) [snapback]298653[/snapback]</div>

Well the high tech solution would have been to pull to the other side of the pumps.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jburns @ Aug 17 2006, 12:17 AM) [snapback]304484[/snapback]</div>

True. And since I'm very technical that way, I did!

 

For what it is worth, there have been lots of running out of gas stories by the Prius knucklehead club here at Prius Chat and never heard of the re-boot or half a tank comment but I'm a semi-rookie.

I ran out of gas on just the third tank in my 06 and batteried into a gas station. I was stoked that the battery helped me out like a lifeboat all the way down to zero bars, but no problem after gassing up and starting. And then later no problem detected at the 5000 check up.

 

Yes, we are warned not to let the fuel run too low. HOWEVER, that's what the blinking last pip is all about. The fuel gauge tells us when the car must be filled. When the last pip starts to blink, it means "fill up soon." This is an implied warranty of serviceability: The fact that the gauge has a "fill now" warning, is an implied promise that nothing bad will happen before, or very soon after, the warning appears.

The fact that your last pip was not blinking yet means that either (1) you were not too low on fuel, or (2) the gauge is defective, because did not warn you, therefore the problem is due to a defect in the car. In either case, any repair must be under warranty.

Had you actually allowed the car to run out of gas through negligence, the repair would have been your own responsibility. But if you did not run out of gas, or you ran out because the gauge failed to give a correct reading and give its proper warning, then the repair is not your responsibility.

The fact that the dealer told you to fill up when the tank is half full casts great suspicion on the dealer.

I suggest you stress, when talking to Toyota Corporate, that the gauge failed to warn you; that it in fact said that you still had a reasonable amount of gas (anything more than a blinking pip) and that the amount of gas you were able to put in was consistent with what other drivers are able to put in when there is still one pip showing.

It is true that the bladder affects capacity, but Toyota is still responsible if the gauge fails to report that you need to add fuel. They cannot demand we fill the gas at some given level if the gauge fails to tell us when we are at that level. And at 110 degrees ambient temperature, the tank will hold MORE, not less, and the fact that you only got 9.2 gallons in means you still had plenty of fuel.

Your dealership is crooked. Fight them all the way; post their name prominently so other CA owners know to avoid them, and go somewhere else next time.

 

it sounds to me like there is a defect in the nut behind the wheel.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ServoScanMan @ Aug 1 2006, 05:45 PM) [snapback]295910[/snapback]</div>

don't forget - you are from texas - everything is bigger in texas - the bladder is 13.7 gallons for prii sold in texas.

:lol:

 

Tons of Bulls s**t.. I hate this kind of Steelers(Dealers)

 

This thread is so long I've forgotten: Has anyone mentioned that there is a blatant low fuel warning text message that appears on the MFD before the moment of doom? If you haven't seen that, then "you've got gas!"

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(genalex @ Aug 18 2006, 06:21 PM) [snapback]305666[/snapback]</div>

I musta missed that one myself....A few days after the 4th of July (on the last leg of our maiden roadtrip, as it were), I was about 20 miles from home and got the flashing pip and immediately started hyperventilating...drove off the freeway at the first exit and wound my way hither and yon until I found a gas station.

Since I NOW have a much better idea of how to deal with the bladder (the car's, not mine...no, I knew long ago how to deal with MINE...oh, never mind...), I won't get into such a situation again. i.e., I KNOW to keep pumping gas for AT LEAST one gallon after the pump decides to switch off...and the tank is NOT anywhere near full if I do NOT.

Glad to know I wasn't in QUITE a dire position as I thought at the time!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(RichBoy @ Aug 18 2006, 09:13 AM) [snapback]305264[/snapback]</div>

I also worry if the wheel holder has a screw loose.

 

Ever hear of a 2nd opinion?

Go to another dealer's service department and tell them the story. See what they say. It is amazing what service competition will do for you.

What do you have to loose? A good dealer will help you get out from under this type of scam. If you find they wont or dont want to help then try another until you find one. Then stay with that dealer forever.

Cheers

 

Here we go again. My experience is different from most others around here but I'll say it again.

I fill my tank to the top. I run the tank down until it is near empty. I regularly fill with 12+ gallons and almost never less than 11. I fill when I'm near a Chevron station and the displayed mileage times 11 or 12 is displayed on my trip meter.

I have 57,000 miles on the car. None of the dire consequences that many warn about such as burning up the fuel pump or reducing my mileage due to topping off has ever happened. I almost never refuel before 600 miles and have at least a dozen tanks of over 700 miles.

If you want to fill up at 9 gallons or when there is 1/4 tank left, that's fine but the dire warnings based on a hunch or hearsay is not helpful. I've read these forums for years now and it just isn't happening. Thousands of people run these cars out of gas and no one is having their batteries replaced as a result. We would know if it was a genuine threat.

These cars are much more resilient than they are made out to be.

BTW, I have driven over 100 miles on the last flasher many times. My wife has brought me gas when I ran out after 16 miles. The gauge is funky but doing the math on the displayed mileage and the miles driven has never let me down. I only get my free car wash when I pump 12 gallons. <<<grins

sorry if I've offended anyone

 

I was very shocked to run out of gas on Saturday. Here's what happened: driving on I-95 the fuel gauge went from 2 bars to 1 to blinking to out of gas in less than 10 minutes! In fact, I only drove about 2 minutes after the bar starting blinking before the car died. I pulled over and shut it off. ! and engine lights were on, by the way. Restarted, engine turned on after 8 seconds, tried to drive, engine turned off. Battery drained very quickly, 4 bars to 1 bar in maybe 30 seconds. Pulled over and stopped again. Walked 1 mile to get gas. Came back and put in exactly 2 gallons. Drove 1 mile to gas station and couldn't pump more than 7.4 more gallons, for 9.4 total. Tried another pump, same thing. So...I had 2.5 gallons left? what's going on here? Normally on a full tank I go about 100 miles before the first bar goes out on the tank gauge, yesterday after "filling up" my "empty" tank with 9.4 gallons, the gauge showed full and guess what, I drove 110 miles before the first bar went out. This all makes me think I did have 2.5 gallons left in the tank when the car decided to stop running on gas. This really threw me for a loop, as I have not run out of gas ever, in 20 years of driving.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(RaleighMatt @ Sep 11 2006, 12:10 PM) [snapback]317873[/snapback]</div>

My Prius' first bar disappears anywhere from 150-180 miles.

For me, with 2 bars... my Prius can fill between 8-9 gallons depending on the station.

Two bars is the minimum I have gone to try not to tempt fate.

 

I routinely drive my '01 until it chimes and flashes the gas bar. It's not any kind of principle, just that I don't really think about gas any more. The car takes somewhere around 10 gallons of gas and I'm good till the next month. No codes, no problems, no nothin'.