hellomian

You know how our cars tell us how many miles we have left before we run out of gas? whats the lowest you've gone? I went to 0 for the first time today LOL

mmarshall

For several reasons, it's usually not good to let your tank get below 1/4 full, especially in cold damp weather.

blacksc400

iTrader: (4)

Especially when you have in-tank fuel pump, it would greatly shorten the pump life. I never let my gas run below 1/4.

geko29

-12 on my old E46, which was pretty accurate (at zero I could pump in more gas than the tank capacity), so pretty sure I only had whatever was in the lines.

-35 or so on the Lexus, which has about two gallons left when it reads zero.

I don't make a habit of it (try to fill between 40-60 MTE), but it's happened a small handful of times in 300k + miles.

corradoMR2

Never ran out of gas but lowest was less than half a gallon left which was at least 30 miles beyond when the computer said 0 miles were left. This was our 2RXh on a road trip looking for the next gas station!

Lil4X

Very true. In-tank pumps are explosion-proof, to keep a stray arc away from a potentially explosive mixture. With that feature, they are submerged in the fuel at the bottom of the tank, using the fuel itself as a coolant - but if you let the fuel level fall to within a pint or two of empty, the cooling effect is lost and the pump can easily overheat shortening its life. Replacement is a real pain, so it's just easier to refuel before you get too low.

corradoMR2

Never knew that. Makes sense.

As an aside, a lot of NX owners (including myself) have pointed out a concern with taking several cranks to start the engine. It turns out this happens when the tank is less than a quarter full and/or on an incline. This makes me think about how much harder the fuel pump (and starter for that matter) is working at startup - all the more reason to keep it above a quarter! Thanks!

Stroock639

for every reason mentioned above, i also try to never let my tank drop below 1/4

but i've also never been able to put more than 20 gallons in the tank, which is a 22.5 gallon. even when the needle was beyond the bottom of the scale, about 20.2 gallons was the most i've ever seen it take. annoyingly once you drop below like 25 miles of range it just says low fuel and stops giving you a number

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

-10 on '08 IS
-15 on '03 Explorer

Wandl

I've gotten it to a gallon left in the tank before - not advisable but was just in a dry stretch of road in arkansas somewhere.

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

Until I was stranded at the side of the road.

The Harley gauge said I had 15 more miles until empty. LIAR!

Aron9000

Yup. I remember it starting to sputter going uphill, losing speed. Got to the top of the hill and going downhill, the fuel sloshed around and it ran normally. Got her up to 90mph going downhill, then it cut out. Coasted up the next exit ramp and had to stop at the end. Was about 200' from a gas station, got lucky that time. Apparently 1 bar of gas in that old Cadillac meant no gas. After that I just filled it up at 1/4, it would usually take 18 to 20 gallons.

1111GS

I was running low the other night but didn't want to get off in that area so I kept going. I read on CL that someone drove the same model another 20 miles after it shows 0. So I wasn't too worried going.

ECL

Also in hot weather, especially the kind we have here in Tucson. Gas in the fuel tank keeps the fuel pump cool.

I ran out of gas only once, in 1972 with my TR-6.

alexulan

16 years in this car I only ran out of gas once.

In 30 Years driving that was still the only one time.