When to fill up on gas?

JNK

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I normally fill up at a quarter tank. I have a longish commute (80 miles highway round trip) and if I get stuck in traffic with low gas on the way home it causes me undue stress :)
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MrBudha

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I usually fill up when my range hits about 30 miles.
 

Krispin

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Don't know if this was mentioned (too lazy to read through all the pages)

You should never starve a turbo. Running out of gas is a baaaaaaad thing to do for a turbo. At least that is what Subaru has told me about my XT.
 

Brettjod

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But the turbo stops getting gas as soon as you shut it off. Don't think it's much different.
 

dick w

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But the turbo stops getting gas as soon as you shut it off. Don't think it's much different.
The turbo never comes into contact with gasoline.
 


Balto

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The turbo never comes into contact with gasoline.
Technically there is gas vapor in exhaust gas, since fuel doesn't burn 100% inside the cylinder.

I'm just pulling your leg, dickw.

Dick is right, running out of gas will do no harm to the turbo. However, running out of oil on the other hand...
 

Rook3300

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One thing that hasn't been mentioned here is that fuel pumps get hot, and it's the gasoline in the tank that acts as its coolant. Having a near-empty tank means that the fuel pump is no longer submerged and may therefore run hotter, possibly resulting in a shorter lifespan.
This is only applicable if the fuel pump is housed inside the gas tank. Not all of them are. The gas passing through is still used as a coolant of sorts as any heat higher than the temp of the fuel passing through it will be transferred on its way out of the pump. Plenty of fuel pumps are designed to operate for years and year well within the temp window of ambient air temp underneath the vehicle.
 

dick w

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This is only applicable if the fuel pump is housed inside the gas tank. Not all of them are.
The 1.5L has two pumps. The one that does the heavy lifting is not in the gas tank. It's in about the hottest place it could be under the hood.
 

Farcry1010

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This is only applicable if the fuel pump is housed inside the gas tank. Not all of them are. The gas passing through is still used as a coolant of sorts as any heat higher than the temp of the fuel passing through it will be transferred on its way out of the pump. Plenty of fuel pumps are designed to operate for years and year well within the temp window of ambient air temp underneath the vehicle.
True. But also I didn't mention in my other post is that like most hydraulic pumps (which fuel pumps are) they are not meant to run dry they will spin super fast and burn out in time. so whenever you are empty or near empty and let's say you are making a long left turn such as an off ramp, making gas surge the right side of tank and perhaps your fuel pump is located on left side of tank, this will cause the pump to suck air and doing this repetitively this will prematurely wear out the motor. Some have the pump pickup located in a little holding tank (like a well) just for this reason it might hold a few ounces of fuel. This way when car straightens out the fluid is now level in tank again refilling the well. Just don't go below 1/4 tank is what I go by and if it's in winter I dont go below 1/2 if I can help it.
 
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rickkonk

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That's is not true at all. Just fill up when the light comes on, like any other car. The only time you *may* suck up dirty gas is if you run completely out of gas but even in this scenario it's very unlikely as there's still a bit of gas left in the tank with a screen over it to protect the engine from debris.
How did you add the Fuelly information to your reply? looks like you a have red one also.
 

Boz

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I always refill with 1/4 tank left. Never had no problems.
I always refill after being on empty for about 20-ish miles. Never had no problems.
 

Boz

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There is an advantage to keeping your tank filled vs mostly empty, especially in a humid or wet environment. As you draw down fuel, the tank fills with humid air. The water vapor in the air condenses in the tank and the water collects at the bottom of the tank. Over time, you get a puddle of water at the bottom of the tank. Keeping the tank fueled up keeps the water vapor out of the tank.
How could that happen? Are the people that posted that the fuel flows out of the very bottom of the tank wrong?
 

Boz

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I'm not sure why so many people will wait for the light to come on to fuel up. If you end up in an emergency situation and have to go to the hospital or something then what? I don't see why it's so hard to fuel up at like half or a quarter tank. I'm not sure about everyone else but I sure don't like running out of fuel. You don't gain anything by waiting that long lol. I usually try to fill up around a quarter tank.
You DO gain...a lot of non-wasted time stopping for gas more often than needed. Over a lifetime of driving, that adds up!
 

Boz

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I always fill up at half tank, is that bad?
No, it's not "bad". The only thing you lose is time, by stopping at a gas station twice as much as you need to, which, as mentioned above, leads to a LOT of wasted time over a lifetime of driving!
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