toyota gas gauges

Hi speed out of fuel on the FWY is a frightening experience, perhaps worse than being shot at. For the 06 Sienna it says 21 gal. I take that to be some sort of target 'air volume' of the plastic (?) tank and in terms of usable fuel out of the tank my wild guess would be say 17-19 gal. Does the fuel pump have a way to sort out fumes and get much closer to

21 gal? Like you suggest an actual trial is the only way to know for sure. My GM experience involved a clogged fuel filter in the tank($20 part, $400 labor) and faulty gauge hardware that the dealer never diagnosed

- even after spending close to $4000.00 for parts and labor replacing just about everything else involving fuel and ignition - multi trips to the shop!!!! I have learned to take an interest now. The only explanation is lack of interest and knowledge.

I have never run out of fuel, at high or low speed, so I am not in a position to comment on whether it is frightening or not. If you make a habit of refueling when the fuel tank reads 1/4 full, you can avoid running out of fuel.

You are assuming and reading too much into the owner's manual. A 21 gallon fuel tank holds approximately 21 gallons of fuel. As I mentioned, when the tank reads 1/4 full, get it re-filled.

The best interest you can take in your fuel tank is to not let it get below

1/4 full.

Running the fuel level so that you are using the fuel at the bottom of the tank causes several problems.

First, you run the risk of being stranded without fuel.

Second, the fuel pump uses fuel to lubricate and cool itself so if you run out of fuel, you run the risk of ruining the fuel pump.

Third, the fuel tank has more of a tendency to accumulate moisture from condensation when it is empty, and engine are meant to operate on fuel, not water.

UNLESS YOU HAVE MECHANIC AND/OR MECHANICAL PROBLEMS AS I DID.\

j

[...]

The gas gauge of every car (9) that I've owned[*] has done that to varying degrees. I'd always assumed it was inherent to auto fuel gauges -- at least, to the extent of whatever time and tech- nology manufacturers are currently willing to invest in their design.

[*] Ford of Germany, Toyota, Honda, VW, Mercedes

Geoff

I've always seen that, even with my Hyundai (Many years ago) I figured it was a simple matter of the physics of where the sensor is vs. volume. Sounds like that's what you're saying, but I don't claim to understand that whole passage.

LOL

Natalie

DAMN where are you?

Natalie

Leave it to a Toyota mechanic to give the most logical answer

:-)

Natalie

Every Toyota. My 72 Carina, my 79 and both 80 Corollas and my current 93 Corolla. Supposedly they all have 13.2 gallon (50 litre) tanks. I can be down below E and the warning light on for 20 miles and the most I've ever put in her is 11 gallons. But then I've never run out of gas, either.

Charles of Schaumburg

The first two vehicles I had with a warning light (80 Corolla with the long back) supposedly came on at 1/4 tank.

Charles of Schaumburg

I calculate MPG for every fillup so that I have a very good idea of how far I can drive on a tank of gas. If you have a vehicle with a faulty fuel gauge, you can use your MPG history to guesstimate how far you can safely drive. Of course, if the odometer does not work, then the guesstimate gets a little trickier.

I guess I'm fortunate that I don't have a mechanic to make me run out of fuel, and I've been fortunate that the 100 or so cars I've driven have never had a mechanical problem that has left me stranded. To be honest, I can't think of a mechanical problem in a modern vehicle that will make the vehicle run out of fuel without warning except for a hole in the fuel system.

If the questions you ask are based on problems you have had with your other vehicles, you will be VERY happy with your new Sienna, as long as you keep up with the periodic maintenance outlined in your owner's manual and don't use the cupholders in the sliding doors for anything but sealed bottles.

Well, it's poor form to run really low on gas for any reason because it's used to cool the fuel pump.

Ray you have lived a sheltered life with all new cars . I have always been reasonable with, driving habits, maintenance and yes never even insulted incompetent mechanics that must have been hired in front of the Home Depot..

As for the Sienna - I'm not only happy but impressed by many of the details that I find. There seems to be a reason and a thought behind everything. My only problem is finding an AC settings that is comfortable. Keep getting hot and cold spots. I'm used to thermostat control - which is the only feature that I'm missing - in spite of being loaded with everything else one can think of - including an excellent sound system. j

Unfortunately for me, the days of getting a new car every 3 months are gone, and not only do I have to buy my cars now, I have to incur maintenance and operating expenses as well. Taking care of most of the maintenance myself helps keeps maintenance expenses low.

Automatic AC is a nice feature to have.

I have a bad habit of running my tank bone dry before I stop for gas.. Well maybe not a bad habit.

Whats that got to do with it?

Actually it is as advantage. You need more accurate sense of how much gas is left when tank is almost empty.

Oops. Actually, the Prius has 10 segments on its fuel gauge, not

1. This makes a mild mess of my earlier maths. Should read:

9 * 4.5 + (5 / 55) * 4.54605 = 40.9 litres

which does _not_ seem right. (But damn it's a pretty display.)

(GOES OFF MUTTERING DARKLY ABOUT USELESS ANECDOTAL EVIDENCE)

Snip

I have generally gotten gas first chance below 1/4 tank and generally before 1/8 in spite of this - the in tank gas filter was totally clogged after 100k miles. I had changed the two line filters myself twice. Most of my gas was ARCO as if that mattered. I don't see what else I could have done. One of my opinions is that dealers only service those things they like to service and never those things that really need to be serviced.

Does Toyota have a policy re cleaning gas tanks and associated parts and filters. What is the approximate labor cost for cleaning or flushing the gas tank? j

A very effective trick to avoiding fuel problems is to purchase fuel from a place that sells a large volume of fuel. The frequent turnover of fuel means that any sediment in the tank is constantly flushed out of the tank instead of accumulating where it can get pumped into a customer's tank.

Keeping a vehicle's fuel tank as full as possible will help limit the amount of condensation in the fuel tank. If the condensation accumulates to a puddle at the bottom of a metal fuel tank, it will eventually corrode the tank, which will contaminate fuel filters more quickly.

The fuel filter in your Sienna does not need routine replacement, and it is unlikely that you will ever have to in 100,000 miles. No vehicle should ever need the gas tank cleaned or flushed as routine maintenance. Again, the need to do so indicates that the vehicle was stored with an empty tank for long periods of time or that cheap gas was put into the tank.