# 2013 LT - Fuel tank filling to 3/4



## gt_cristian (Apr 7, 2012)

Hi,

I just filled my gas tank for the first time on my 2013 LT, just a little after the light came on. I put 11 gal which I found weird because it is 15.6 gal tank. The fuel gauge showed 75% and I could not fill more than that, no way to get it to full.

If I am not wrong, an LT should have a tank of 15.6 gal and an ECO 12.6.

Must be a wrong vent valve. What else could it be?


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

How do you know the tank was full? I ask because sometimes gas pumps will have so much turbulence in the fill flow that they generate early click off. It appears the only way to get a Cruze's tank full is to use the slowest pump handle hold setting.


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## iCruze2 (Dec 16, 2011)

59 gallon tank??? You sure you're not driving a semi-truck???? It's a 12 gallon tank buddy


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

All Lordstown Cruzen sold to the general public have a 15.6 US gallon tank. The ECOs have a bushing that closes off the main tank vent three gallons early.


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## gt_cristian (Apr 7, 2012)

iCruze2 said:


> 59 gallon tank??? You sure you're not driving a semi-truck???? It's a 12 gallon tank buddy


Sorry, I meant 15.6 gal.


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## gt_cristian (Apr 7, 2012)

obermd said:


> All Lordstown Cruzen sold to the general public have a 15.6 US gallon tank. The ECOs have a bushing that closes off the main tank vent three gallons early.


I know the tank was "full" because the pump handle clicked and I assumed the tank was full. But I only put 11 gal. So I tried again and it kept clicking. Either the fuel gauge is off by 25% or the vent valve is wrong.

I assume an ECO vent valve was installed on my LT. I've filled at that pump a few times on a 2011 and had no issues with it.

When I bought the 2013, it had 75% in the gas tank. I think the dealer filled it and it clicked at 75% like it happened to me. I will try different pumps tomorrow.


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## Jordy927 (Jan 4, 2013)

gt_cristian said:


> I know the tank was "full" because the pump handle clicked and I assumed the tank was full. But I only put 11 gal. So I tried again and it kept clicking. Either the fuel gauge is off by 25% or the vent valve is wrong.
> 
> I assume an ECO vent valve was installed on my LT. I've filled at that pump a few times on a 2011 and had no issues with it.
> 
> When I bought the 2013, it had 75% in the gas tank. I think the dealer filled it and it clicked at 75% like it happened to me. I will try different pumps tomorrow.


Only way to test that is run the car dry, than fill it up. Take a couple gallons in a gerry can to get you to the closest gas station. If it takes 15 gal, than your gauge is off...if it takes 12 you have the wrong vent valve.
Not big fan of running a car dry though.

Or bring it to the dealer and ask why you can only get your tank to 3/4 full. Sometimes things happen, wrong parts get put on.


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## spaycace (Feb 9, 2012)

iCruze2 said:


> 59 gallon tank??? You sure you're not driving a semi-truck???? It's a 12 gallon tank buddy


I think someone's been hitting the ethanol a lil heavy :th_coolio: ... who said anything about a 59 gallon tank? (I know, you corrected it already, but it was funny)

Anyway ... To gt_christian, maybe your gas gauge is incorrectly reading your fuel level (i.e. maybe your ECM was programmed incorrectly) or perhaps someone in a factory made a mistake and put the wrong fuel pump assembly into your LT. I'm still looking around at junk yards already to find a totaled cruze (other than Eco) so I can take the tank and fuel pump assembly and put it on my Eco so I can fill up the tank fully WITHOUT it taking 20 minutes to get 3 more gallons in the tank as it is now! 

In other words, it's under warranty and is basically brand new. Take it back to the dealership to have them look into the problem ASAP because I've also seen threads on this forum where people have actually run out of fuel shortly after their idiot lights came on (and I'm not calling any of them idiots) yet they should have been able to go at least 30-45 more miles. You don't wanna be left stranded somewhere because of something that should be easily remedied.


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## chevycruze2012 (Nov 13, 2012)

gt_cristian said:


> Hi,
> 
> I just filled my gas tank for the first time on my 2013 LT, just a little after the light came on. I put 11 gal which I found weird because it is 15.6 gal tank. The fuel gauge showed 75% and I could not fill more than that, no way to get it to full.
> If I am not wrong, an LT should have a tank of 15.6 gal and an ECO 12.6.
> Must be a wrong vent valve. What else could it be?


I would take it to ur dealer and have them check your fuel level sensor. It could be bad possibly. Thats really the only thing that would be off other than the gas pump but it could also be the speedo...its rare that happens. It happened in my cavalier a year ago. I was filling up and i know exacly how much was left in the tank and what i had been pumping, well it never shut iff and the next thing i know, fuel comes pouring out of the filler neck. Had to have fire dept come clean it up and i had to rinse my car off where gas had spilled with water so it didnt eat the paint quickly. Again, this is a warranty thing that i would take advantage of getting free of charge. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any questions.


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## bodeis (Jan 28, 2012)

I had issues on my eco, replaced the level sensor and it is still the same. Only advice I can give is go to the dealer and see what they say.


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## gt_cristian (Apr 7, 2012)

It worked fine at another station, up to 15.6 gal to full.


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## 70AARCUDA (Nov 14, 2010)

...trouble-shooting automotive 'problems' is very much like human diagnostic 'medicine,' ie: _always_ get a *second opinion *_before_ committing to _either_ *surgery* ...or... vehicle problem *condemnation*.


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## GoldenCruze (Dec 18, 2011)

gt_cristian said:


> I know the tank was "full" because the pump handle clicked and I assumed the tank was full. But I only put 11 gal. So I tried again and it kept clicking. Either the fuel gauge is off by 25% or the vent valve is wrong.


Some pumps are more sensitive at the click off valve in the nozzle. A Pontiac I had was like that with a certain gas station brand that I always used. I learned to back the nozzle out by one notch on the spring and then it would fill correctly.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

gt_cristian said:


> It worked fine at another station, up to 15.6 gal to full.


I like simple solutions.



70AARCUDA said:


> ...trouble-shooting automotive 'problems' is very much like human diagnostic 'medicine,' ie: _always_ get a *second opinion *_before_ committing to _either_ *surgery* ...or... vehicle problem *condemnation*.


What he said ^^^



GoldenCruze said:


> Some pumps are more sensitive at the click off valve in the nozzle. A Pontiac I had was like that with a certain gas station brand that I always used. I learned to back the nozzle out by one notch on the spring and then it would fill correctly.


Now that you know it's not the car and assuming the station with the fast click off is your normal station, it's time to figure out how to get this station's pumps to not click off early. First, start by using the first (slowest) click setting to reduce turbulence in the fuel stream. If that doesn't work then I would try GoldenCruze's suggestion. My Transport and Montana mini-vans would occasionally click off within the first gallon, even though the tank was nearly empty. The solution would be to back the nozzle out one or two spring wraps (about an 3/4 inch each on a standard unleaded gas pump) and continue. Doing this changes the angle the fuel is entering the fill pipe, which in turns changes how it flows through the fill vents. You may have to play with it some to get the right position.


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## iCruze2 (Dec 16, 2011)

My car has never filled up past 12 gallons.....


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## spaycace (Feb 9, 2012)

bodeis said:


> I had issues on my eco, replaced the level sensor and it is still the same. Only advice I can give is go to the dealer and see what they say.


You WILL NOT get 15.6 gallons of fuel into the Eco tank, UNLESS you use the "trick method" posted by other members in this forum. The most difficult part is finding a station where you prefer to fill up AND with pumps that you can slowly trickle the last 3 or so gallons of fuel into the tank! Took me awhile, but I've found a couple now. Search through this here Cruze site, and you'll find plenty of discussion on the Eco vs. "Other" Cruze fuel tanks. They are indeed one and the same, but the difference lies in the fuel pump and venting system on the Eco version (according to Genuine GM Parts sites). I'm personally on a quest to find a wrecked non-Eco version so I can swap out the entire tank and filler neck assembly, which would be worth the cost to not have to spend 20 minutes getting those last 3 gallons of fuel in the tank.

I also suspect that this is why the DIC is so far off when it comes to mpg estimates and what the car says you got, compared to what you ACTUALLY got if you are so inclined to check it the old fashioned way ... Miles driven divided by gallons used. Here again, this can be tricky due to the fact that not all pumps kick off at the same time. I'm pretty sure it's more accurate the old fashioned way even with that fact. My Eco is usually anywhere from 3 to 5 mpg different (and it errs on the high side) than what my actual mpg is.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

I put 16.1 gallons into my ECO MT one time with no spillage. It took half an hour of trickling. Normally I let the pump click off and then I round up to the next dollar or two. The DIC's MPG estimates are based on the estimated fuel consumed. The problem is that GM doesn't directly measure the fuel consumed and underestimates by 2-10%. GM has had this problem since at least the 2002 model year.


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