# Fuel Gauge



## jbruns2012 (Dec 30, 2012)

2014 LT here.

Anyone experience their fuel gauge reading full but 3-4 gallons have been consumed?

Sounds like a stuck float for me.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

How full did you fill your car? If you topped it off to the point where you're seeing gas in the filler neck this is very possible.


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## jbruns2012 (Dec 30, 2012)

Regardless, float should not stick in the full position.


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## ChevyGuy (Dec 13, 2014)

If you've filled the neck, the fuel level hasn't gotten below the float - yet. The float is in the tank, not the neck.


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## jbruns2012 (Dec 30, 2012)

Already have used 3-4 gallons. We are way beyond any normal operation.


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## NickD (Dec 10, 2011)

Another darn good reason to use ethanol free gas. Use to use a nichrome coil with a very stiff wiper, now a piece of ceramic called thick film with some carbon baked on it. And the price tag is way out of range even if you change it yourself. Have to drop the tank to even get at the darn thing with practically no means to drain it first.

This is what we are talking about.










Always treat a quarter full tank as empty on these things, need that gas to cool the fuel pump or that dang thing will burn itself out.

This POS fuel pump made of plastic is well over 200 bucks, plus and arm and both legs for labor.










Ha, like the old days better where I could make an engine driven pump like new again for a buck and about 20 minutes worth of work.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Nick,

Yes, the gas pump is cooled by the gas, but not the gas around it. It's cooled by the gas being pulled through the pump. Dropping below a quarter tank isn't an issue other than the tank drops real fast at that point and you risk running out of gas if you don't pay attention.

OP,

Did your gas gauge ever start dropping? I know my ECO MT, when filled to the brim, can go over 270 miles before the needle will move.


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## revjpeterson (Oct 2, 2013)

I'm not sure how it goes for Fords or imports, but every GM and Chrysler car I've ever owned has had a considerable amount of flexibility at both ends of the gauge. The Chryslers are more dramatic at the low end, and the GM vehicles are more dramatic at the top of the gauge. 

When the fuel light goes on in my Jeep, I've still got 4 gallons remaining and when I'm pinned out at the E, I still have 2. My '96 Olds and '95/'00 Luminas would go 100 miles (at 25mpg) before the gauge came off the pin. My 3 Grand Prixs weren't quite as bad, but still very noticeable. 

So, I think it's just a "GM thing." In my experience, you can burn up to 20% of a tank on many GM vehicles before your needle will move, and if you've topped off, then it's even more. 

My Cruze is a Diesel, so it's not comparable to the situation here. We can hold 2.7 extra gallons after the pump shuts off on us, so if I've filled right up to the top, I've gone 300 miles before the needle comes off of the max. If it's 100% highway, I can drive most of the way across the state of Iowa before my needle will even move.


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## revjpeterson (Oct 2, 2013)

obermd said:


> Nick,
> 
> Yes, the gas pump is cooled by the gas, but not the gas around it. It's cooled by the gas being pulled through the pump. Dropping below a quarter tank isn't an issue other than the tank drops real fast at that point and you risk running out of gas if you don't pay attention.
> 
> ...


The only issue with the low tank would come on long-run trips with the tank low. Since the return fuel is hot, and the pump produces heat in the tank, the fuel in a low tank will get very warm and not cool the pump as efficiently, while a full tank will remain cool and supply cooler fuel to the pump, cooling it more efficiently, since it takes more heat to warm up `16 gallons of fuel than it does 4.


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## boraz (Aug 29, 2013)

NickD said:


> Ha, like the old days better where I could make an engine driven pump like new again for a buck and about 20 minutes worth of work.


you make this claim time and again, yet you continue to use _modern _devices


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

1LT here too. I think mine stays at the full mark for a while, but not that long.

Usually 100 miles into a tank on city driving, I've dropped to just above 3/4.

My car drops FAST once below the 1/4 tank marking.

Oh, and I only fill to the first click, or sometimes the closest dollar/half dollar. I don't stand there and fill it til it tries to overflow.


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## boraz (Aug 29, 2013)

my fuel gauge seems to not move for the first hour or so

i dont top off my tank.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

boraz said:


> you make this claim time and again, yet you continue to use _modern _devices


That's because he got tired of repairing the older technology.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

obermd said:


> That's because he got tired of repairing the older technology.


They don't make many parts for 1932 Cadillacs anymore.


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