pemarsh

Capacity is 24.6 gal i believe

Three times i have let my fuel electronic display "range to empty meter" go to less than 3 miles before empty. Of course my display reads low fuel warning, etc.

But all three times i filled up, i only was able to put only 20 gallons of fuel in. Its hard to believe that there is nearly a 5 gallon reserve. Note, i never topped off...when the gas shuts off, i stop filling.

Any ideas??

trusso

I'm wondering if we will see a "fix" or recalibration on the fuel level indicator..
I was driving and was 1.5 "notches" off of full (and thought I hadn't driven that far.) Sure enough, only had 15 miles on that tank.
I usually round the pump up to the next couple of dollars.

Thursday, my wife called me during a lunch meeting. She needed to explain how to find the gas door release tab and "wheres the gas door?"...."right side!"
First time she filled it since we bought it (December)....funny

tigmd99

That is the standard. Most big SUVs (e.g. my G500), when the fuel light comes on, you have about 5 gallons left in the tank...they call this "reserve fuel".

As for your MTE (miles to empty) indicator, i would NOT trust it. Like your indicator, my Sienna indicator is waaay off. It scares me though when MTE = 0, yet when i fill up, i still have a few gallons left. Just think of MTE as your mother warning you of low gas.

ggebhardt

I have never had a Lexus or any other vehicle that ran out of gas when the gauge shows empty or zero miles left. 5 gallons in reserve is less then 100 miles which can come in handy.

trusso

we are taking a Disneyland trip (about 450 miles) soon and I'll get a great take on the gas situation then. I used to be able to get there (in the 470) and have plenty to spare...I would fill the heck out of the tank though.

Cruising at about 80-85

tigmd99

Don't top off though....

ggebhardt

Went to Fernadina yesterday and filled up just before I got on 95 and got 20.5mpg doing about 70. Good enough for me and very happy.

trusso

why do you say that?
I always happen to top off as much as I can

tigmd99

I used to do it until i read more on it.

It is bad for your car...and does absolutely no good. See this thread about saving gas: http://www.toyota-4runner.org/showth...ht=topping+off

Here are some good links:
http://ask.cars.com/2007/07/gas-top-off.html
http://enviro.blr.com/display.cfm/id/48985
http://www.beatthegaspump.com/mistake.html
http://www.epa.gov/donttopoff/

I would just stop when the pump clicks.

ggebhardt

It says: "Avoid topping off. When you purchase just a bit of gas at the gas station the pump doesn’t have enough time to really activate, resulting in short bursts of fuel that may short change you from the amount of gas that you are purchasing."

I do not understand this reasoning. Activate? I can see if you only were buying a few dollars but the activate thing does not seem valid.

trusso

I think the "activate" part means that the $$ rings up faster than the gas gets to the pump but I would tend to believe that the County seal showing the "weights and measures" label means that the amount of gas hitting the tank is what you are being charged for.
I think it's a county (at least here in California) agency that certifies that the amounts are correct.
I don't care so much if it charges me more as long as I can go farther between fill ups. I'll "chalk it up" to a luxury

tigmd99

Maybe it means that when the pump clicks (thus stop) and then you restart the pump again, you're not getting much gasoline into your tank because the pump has to start the pressure to push the gas...by the time that the pressure builds up, you're already done pumping. My theory...not sure if it makes sense.

trusso

I just got back into town....

$4.59 / gallon !!!! (for the good stuff)

tigmd99

This is why my G is now my permanent house guard dog...it will faithfully stay at home.

ggebhardt

I have watched the "weighs and measures" people and I think they are only filling a 2-3 gallon container to test for accuracy.