Fuelly Forums - Is three quarters of a tank really three quarters of a tank?

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my gauge does the slow first half tank then really fast on the last part also it might be a honda thing also??

Thanks TomO, that link was quite informative. I found that in my '85 Accord that half tank was pretty close to being an actual half tank. I think I like DaX's approach the gas tank:

Quote:

Originally Posted by DaX

I can typically tell if it's going to be a good gas tank if the needle does not move off the F mark until after at least 100 miles. The first time the needle touches the 1/2 mark is typically a true indicator of half my gas being gone. I watch the gauge like a hawk, and try to make my total tank distance at least twice what the reading is the first time the needle touches the 1/2 mark. Most of the time this works.

I also can relate to the original poster's comment, as I had the same experience with my '85 Accord and with this VX.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nerds Laugh At Me

I notice that my gas guage barely moves untill I hit around 100 miles on the odometer. It drops almost a good 1/4 inch or so the next time that the car is started, but not really all that drastically when I drive a constant trip of over 100 miles. It only seems to just plummet when I take short trips and restart the car every 20 or so miles. ( And I know that starting the car does not burn up that much fuel )
What is causing this ?
Is the float getting hung up on something ?

For instance, my tank dropped drastically the morning after I started this thread.:p

Gas gauges are gas guesstimators!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hockey4mnhs (Post 70185)

my gauge does the slow first half tank then really fast on the last part also it might be a honda thing also??

Nope. It's pretty universal from my experience.
Both my Tahoe and my Saturn get most(about 2/3+) of their miles out of the "first half" of the gas tank. Once they hit half the gauge drops like lead bird poo. Same deal with my Explorer I sold this spring. My Tahoe has a 30 gallon tank and only takes 25 gallons when on "empty". :rolleyes:

Yeah, my gauge is rapidly headed toward half tank as I come up on 250 miles.

ive gone almost 80 miles on the first "quarter tank" but i usually get about 250 a tank, i doubt my gas mileage has improved that much :p

The gauge is not unreliable, it's just inaccurate. It will act the same way on every tank. It's purpose isn't to let you know how many miles you've gone, it's to tell you when the tank needs filling again with a rough estimate of how much you have in there. For this use it's very accurate, because it tells you that you have a little or a lot of gas, and tells you when you need to fill the tank. Run a few tanks through and you'll get a feel for it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by theclencher (Post 70351)

Is there a hole in the tank??? :eek:

I honestly wonder this at times.... Gauge spent less than 50 miles a smidge below the F line to falling to just above half tank after spending 185 miles at the F! All cars do this to some extent but this VX seems significantly worse than other cars I've driven as far as drastic gauge changes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by theclencher (Post 70388)

I meant ez's tank- look at how fast it disappears! :eek:

haha, no. right now im reading just over half tank (mabye a gallon) and im at 95 miles. i dont pay attention anymore until its time to fill up. ive just used "a quarter tank" for 20 miles. not even i get that bad gas mileage. haha.

Well, I've hit a 1/2 tank and am at 295 miles. Going to Worcester today (I'm on the Mass/New York border and Worcester is 30 miles west of Boston. It's about 100 miles each way. So I should be able to get out there and back home again before needing to fill up. That would take me to about 500 miles. We shall see.

In Worcester with 435 miles now. Gas gauge is still above 1/4. 600 miles may just be within reach. Although I may fill up here in Worcester as gas is twenty two cents cheaper. Drove 80 miles on the Mass Pike at 65mph most of the time, dropping to 60 during neutral gear "glides" down hills (engine on) and 70+mph my upper end. The speedo and odometer worked the entire time on the highway. It seems once the car has beening going for awhile it isn't so buggy. But when the engine is cool? or dinking around town it not working for much of the time. I dragged for a total of about ten minutes behind a truck toward the end of the trip. 550 miles at least seems very possible. Rear tires were underinflated this whole time. Put them up to 46 PSI Right before I left to Worcester. They were at 39. They're rated at 44. The fronts are rated at 35 but had also been at 39. So I left them there.