How Deep Is Your Tank ?

[clanixion]

Filled up the Bling with diesel the other day and (aftedr running it for 20+ miles wirth the low fuel light on) and it only took 46 litres. Filled it up today when the light came on and it took 48 litres. The handbook says the tank should hold 60 litres - I get nowhere near that. How does everyone else get on ?

[pork_pie]

The low fuel light is not accurate whatsoever.

If you read my Xsara postings..... (to cut a long story short)

Light comes on when 6 litres is left supposedly.

How come then I can get 120-150 further miles and still only get to fill the tank with at least 50 litres rather than nearly the full 54?!

Fuel gauge respose is never linear due the odd shape of tanks.

[hertsnminds]

In the Pluriel you can make the fuel level go from 5 lights back up to 6 by parking sideways on a hill. This does sort itself out by the end of the tank but is disconcerting at the time.

There have been a couple of car magazines that have done some run them till dry tests on various diesels in the last 6 months. In all cases the cars ran several miles past trip computers indicating zero miles in the tank.

AutoExpress got 661.1 miles out of a diesel C2, 71.6mpg (they got 41.96 litres into the 41 litre tank) and 813.1 miles out of an Audi A8 but that was returning 40.6mpg (92.18 litres went into the 90 litre tank).

See the 7 July 2004 issue for all the figures.

Ian
Orange 03 Senso

[pork_pie]

Maybe the fuel pumps arent calibrated right!!!!!

I smell a rat.

Maybe the bas tard government fool us into thinking we putting in more fuel than we first bargained for!

Its a ploy to conserve a finite resource.

41.96litres in a 41 litre tank?
92.18 litresin a 90 litre tank?

Would not suprise me if that was true.

"Every little helps"

Autoexpress are reckless in driving a diesel until empty. At least they had someone who can prime a diesel fuel circuit.

I for one dont know how to do it but its no way as simple as in a petrol engine. Anyway what about sedimentation at the bottom of the fuel tank? Seeing as AExpres are so a anticitroen, they would not do anything unti the car belched fire.

[PhilW]

I just put 55 lires in mine this aft - it was showing one eighth on the gauge and the light hadn't come on.
As for priming - surely it isn't too difficult these days - most new diesels are self priming and even on my old BX (and later Xantias) it could be done with the plunger on the fuel filter or the rubber bulb thing.
Sludge at the bottom of the tank? Where from? - tanks are now plastic so should be no rust, or are you suggesting that the fuel is "sludgy" as supplied??!!
I once completely emptied the tank on a ten year old BX that I scrapped and that had been in my garden for a further 3 years. Fuel was as clear as a bell.
Since the question of sludge cropped up on another forum I was interested to note that the fuel tank on my lawn mower last week - a mower that lives under a hedge (my sheds are full of other junk!!)- was as shiny as a new pin with no sign of any sludge. Mower is 12 years old and not only mows my lawn but in an emergency has been used on a cricket field!!

[clanixion]

For information porpoises only, according to the handbook the low fuel light indicates that you have about 30 miles of fuel left. I reckon that's roughly about 3 litres of diesel.

[tronboy]

My low fuel light comes on with about 100miles range left in the tank, thus rendering the feature fairly useless. A software Fix by the dealer altered nothing. I think the light should officially come on with 5 litres remaining.

[hertsnminds]

The AExpress article specifically states that they called all of the manufacturers before running the cars dry and were told by all of them no damage would be done to the cars by doing this.

So now it's a question of...do you believe what a car manufacturer tells you?



Ian
Orange 03 Senso

[pork_pie]

"The AExpress article specifically states that they called all of the manufacturers before running the cars dry and were told by all of them no damage would be done to the cars by doing this.

So now it's a question of...do you believe what a car manufacturer tells you?"

No mate, I dont.

Before the server went tits up, on this site, there were several postings from motorists who had driven their diesels until the tank went dry.

After priming the circuit, the cars were not running smooth and the dealership claimed that running the tank dry does not do the car any good at all and the warranty claim is deemed to be invalid.

[Oxymoron]

[quote name='clanixion' date='Oct 16 2004, 10:39 PM'] For information porpoises only...... [/quote]
Hi,
I had an information Dolphin once...he was a mine of useful information.... mainly about fish though! :unsure:
Cheerz. :unsure:

[Terry1100]

AFAIK, this phenomenon is particular to Direct Injection diesels such as the HDi.

Ignoring the issues of bleeding/priming for a minute which hasn't really been a problem for 20 years or more (although I remember having a right "Steffi" trying to start a recalcitrant old market trader's Transit when I was on the AA - 24 volts, cracked all injectors, half a can of easystart, spun the engine for minutes at a time....).

Sorry I was miles away..... Anyway, generally, DI engines use the fuel itself for lubrication of the injection pump - so running out of fuel would be technically a "bad thing". By the same token, putting petrol in an HDi is a big problem compared with older diesels (when 15% would not be terminal) as petrol has no lubrication properties - in fact it washes oil away.