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Low gas light question

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Old Jul 26, 2012 | 04:04 PM
  #1  
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From: nj
Default Low gas light question

Hey guys, well I got a full tank last week and wanted to run it til the.low gas light came on to see how my gas mileage is because it seems horrible, worse than my old Dodge truck.
The thing is that the gas needle went pass the last quarter of a tank level and the light still didnt come on. When does your gas light usually light up? When its close to the finish the last quarter or after finishing the last quarter?
I got scared that my gas light isnt working and just filled up before i ran out of juice.
Is my gas light not working? When i put the key in the ignition and all the.indicator lights, light up like the check engine, low oil level, etc, i noticed that my low gas light doesnt light.up. Is this normal or is my gas.light bulb dead?
Thanks for any help guys.
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Old Jul 26, 2012 | 04:27 PM
  #2  
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It should light up somewhere the E line. If the needle is close to going under the E line and it still doesn't light up, then it's not working. But as long as the needle is within the E line, you're still good.
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Old Jul 26, 2012 | 06:12 PM
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my gas light is also out.. i have to double check to see if its the actual bolb.
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Old Jul 26, 2012 | 06:30 PM
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just fill up your tank now a divide the number of gallons by the mileage you have gone and it will be MPG. so you dont risk running ur pump too hard or run out of gas
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Old Jul 26, 2012 | 06:47 PM
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Gas light and needle position are irrelevant. The sensor reads different on every car. Generally right on E, but due to the factors of the motors on the needle, sensor position in the tank, and other anomalies such as the incline you are parked on when looking for the light to be on, you can't judge when it is going to come on by the gauge. It comes on when you drop below the 3 gallon mark, period.

One thing however, if you DO get low enough to turn the gas light on you have sucked 1/2 of all the dirt, crud, and silt from the bottom of the tank into your fuel pump screen and through your line into your injectors and have ruined your gas mileage from here forward ..... ironically since you are trying to figure that very thing out. As well you are overheating an old pump with a lot of miles on it.

It's not the smart way to do it by any means, simply DO THE MATH.
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Old Jul 26, 2012 | 08:36 PM
  #6  
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lol i guarantee your gas lights are working fine

the light doesnt come on until your well below the E, then when the light does come on u have like 15 or 20 kilometres left approx,,

its actually pretty cool because if your anywhere above the E line u can be sure uve got quite a bt of gas left in your tank.

but yes ive also heard by doing that it is no good for ur engine and fuel pump ,unfortunately ive been really neglecting my car lately and im seeing that light quite often.
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Old Jul 26, 2012 | 09:53 PM
  #7  
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From: nj
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Thanks.for the info guys! And yeah I just got another full tank from a top tier gas station, dumped chervon injector cleaner, and will seafoam the gas tank soon since im pretty sure the pump sucked up a bunch of dirt everywhere. I was under the E again today and got a full tank and only needed 16.5 gallons to be filled so I guess i havent gotten low enough for the gas light to come on, but I'll stop doing so. Thanks again guys.
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Old Jul 26, 2012 | 10:51 PM
  #8  
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mine comes on when im right on the E
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Old Jul 28, 2012 | 12:10 AM
  #9  
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My light comes on just as the needle drops below 'E'. But even then, I go to fill it up and it takes 60 litres, so it's still 1/4 full.

Dirt at the bottom of the tank isn't the big issue - this isn't the 1950's, gas is quite clean out of the gas station pumps. Besides that, any dirt at the bottom of the tank is next to the filter no matter how much gas is in there. However your fuel pump is cooled by liquid immersion, so constantly running near empty can cause overheating and a shorter pump life.

-=Photon440=-
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Old Jul 28, 2012 | 04:05 AM
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Mine come on at the three gallon mark.
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