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Gas

C

CrashDummy

CEG'er
Joined
Mar 23, 2004
Messages
40
Location
CT, USA
I have a friend who keeps telling me that it is bad to drive my car when the gas gets below 1/4 tank, and especially when the gas gets very low. He says that there is all sorts of crap that settles to the bottom of the gas tank and it gets sucked up by the engine when the car is low on fuel. Any truth in this?
 
There is some truth to that but that is why vehicles come with fuel filters and why you should change them every 30k or so.
 
Tell your friend to know what he's talking about before running his mouth.....

Don't let your gas tank get nearly empty or accumulated crud from the bottom of tank will get sucked up causing fuel system problems.

MOSTLY FALSE!!

The pickup screen for the fuel pump is at the bottom of the tank and ALWAYS pulls from there. Particularly in cold climates, however, it is wise to keep the tank relatively full so there is less exposed surface area inside the tank where condensation could occur to contaminate the fuel with rust particles and water. Running out of gas is stressful to the in-tank electric fuel pump in modern vehicles as which relies on fuel for cooling and lubrication.
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Its still nice to keep some fuel in there. Running a car empty means there is no fuel left to cool the pump :shrug: Which could result in premature failure.
 
partly true, I dont like to run my car below a quarter, but occasionally I will do it just to make sure I keep clean gas in there, also I add a bottle of fuel stabilizer occasionally just to be sure.
 
My returnless Mystique has gone through 2 fuel pumps since i've had it. My returnless SVT is on it's 2nd pump. But, I replaced it with the newer redesigned fuel pump from Ford. This pump is basically a Focus pump with a little different style mounting. It's a much better arrangement.

I'd try to avoid running below 1/4. Although, i'm not sure how much I believe that it makes a difference, it's definitely not good to starve the fuel pump. Also, knowing that the returnless cars can be finicky about fuel pumps better safe than sorry!
 
I always have driven all of my cars until the tank is nearly empty. I have never had a fuel related issue or a fuel pump failure. My RX-7 has over 300,000 miles and is still on the original fuel pump. My Contour has over 126,000 and I drive till empty. Usually about 300-340miles. My wifes Rodeo has almost 60,000 miles and it is also driven to empty on nearly every tank. No issues there.
 
I have 160,000 miles on my SVT and always drove it to E and then filled up and never had a problem. I do the same thing with my Focus and haven't had any problems on that car either.

I do replace my fuel filter about every 30,000 miles and I only run Shell, Mobil, or BP fuel. Shell being my first choice, go V-power.

I do know that on the early Foci there was a fuel pump problem with the pickup in the take. I don't remember 100% what the problem was, but I think the opening was too small and would get filled with dirt. After about 20,000 or so miles the car would loose power, fuel, below 1/4 tank. My brother had a 2000 Focus and had that problem, new pump replaced under warranty.
 
Both My 99 Stique and 00 SVT had problems, thanks to me driving around with less then 1/4th of a tank. I don't recomend doing it.
 
I have to ask....to those that do so, what's the point of driving around until your gas tank is empty? Is there some rational reason for doing so? I can't think of any offhand. Even waiting for reasonable prices isn't much of a excuse, IMHO. Gas prices are never going to be reasonable again. I think it's asking for trouble in more ways than just burning out a fuel pump. The first time you have an emergency like driving someone or yourself to the ER, you may wish you had more than fumes in your tank.
Karl
 
I've seen my fuel light come on a lot in the past. I also replaced my fuel pump at around 140,000 miles after it died on the Interstate. I try not to let it get too low now, since I understand the fuel pump is cooled by fuel.
 
98SVTC said:
I have to ask....to those that do so, what's the point of driving around until your gas tank is empty? Is there some rational reason for doing so? I can't think of any offhand. Even waiting for reasonable prices isn't much of a excuse, IMHO. Gas prices are never going to be reasonable again. I think it's asking for trouble in more ways than just burning out a fuel pump. The first time you have an emergency like driving someone or yourself to the ER, you may wish you had more than fumes in your tank.
Karl
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Fewer trips to the gas station. If you drive 10,000 miles per year and fill your tank every 200 miles then you visit the gas station 50 times per year. If you wait until 300 miles it drops to 33 times per year. That is 20 fewer times to the gas station. Normal time at a gas station is about 10 minutes. That saves 3.3 hours per year not putting gas in the car.

I also keep track of fuel econonmy on ever tank of gas. The more miles driven on each tank, the better representation of actual fuel economy.

I really don't care about gas price fluctuation. I don't worry if the price goes up or down. I still have to buy gas and the difference in price on one tank is rarely more than $1.

Besides, how can anyone prove that there is a correlation between fuel pump failure and low quantity of gas? I can certainly understand if you have a couple of gallons in a 16 gallon tank and park the car for years. But if the car is driven every day I see very little risk in damaging the pump or tank from driving with less gas.

From my figures I bet that it is the gas station that says it damages things. That way you go there more often and increase the chances of buying more crap that you don't need.
 
2000SilverSVT said:
Fewer trips to the gas station. If you drive 10,000 miles per year and fill your tank every 200 miles then you visit the gas station 50 times per year. If you wait until 300 miles it drops to 33 times per year. That is 20 fewer times to the gas station. Normal time at a gas station is about 10 minutes. That saves 3.3 hours per year not putting gas in the car.

I also keep track of fuel econonmy on ever tank of gas. The more miles driven on each tank, the better representation of actual fuel economy.

I really don't care about gas price fluctuation. I don't worry if the price goes up or down. I still have to buy gas and the difference in price on one tank is rarely more than $1.

Besides, how can anyone prove that there is a correlation between fuel pump failure and low quantity of gas? I can certainly understand if you have a couple of gallons in a 16 gallon tank and park the car for years. But if the car is driven every day I see very little risk in damaging the pump or tank from driving with less gas.

From my figures I bet that it is the gas station that says it damages things. That way you go there more often and increase the chances of buying more crap that you don't need.
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So, what do you do with those 3.3 hours? :laugh: The bit about the fuel pump isn't about the quality of gas, it's about running out of gas which might burn the pump up. That's why I begged the question. If you run each tank to almost empty you run more of a risk of actually running out of gas than if you filled it when three quarters empty. Besides, as has been proclaimed in many other posts, the gas gauge isn't the most accurate so if you're going by that, you just might run out. I too keep track of my mileage but when I'm heading out somewhere and there's between 260 and 300 miles on the trip odometer and the gauge says 1/4, I'm first heading for a gas station just in case the gauge is right for once! :cool:
Karl
 
2000SilverSVT said:
I also keep track of fuel econonmy on ever tank of gas. The more miles driven on each tank, the better representation of actual fuel economy.
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Though I agree, and I tend to fill up at about 1/8 tank or so (JUST at the fuel light), to be COMPLETELY FAIR:

You do not get "better representation", you just get your numbers more readily. If you filled up every 25 miles, you would still (eventually) attain your MPG rating, it would just take you three months to get enough small numbers to get a true average.

Now, you WOULD (technically) get a more "average" rating, because the weight change in gas being carried would be able to decrease throughout the full range versus refilling sooner (you would always be carrying more "weight" in gas, so your MPG would b slightly worse by refilling sooner, but I don't know how much it would affect your ratings
 
98SVTC said:
So, what do you do with those 3.3 hours? :laugh:
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That seems like a perfect set up for a Your Mom Joke. :laugh:

Filled up today when the light came on. (usually does not). Put it 13.003 Gallons and wend 275 Miles. Darned Ethenol.

I rarely drive to the point that I might run out of gas. I normally go to ~300 miles or when the guage reaches the line before the E\.
 
I drive about 600 miles a week, so when I get to about a 1/8 tank I look for a gas station that I want. I hate having to fill up at a cheap station because I am too low on gas.

I now have a Focus as my daily driver and that gets a lot better gas milage in town and I don't have to put 93 oct. in it. However, next summer I will get a tune for it then I will.
 
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