When to fill up?

[EdwardC]

I pump when I have to go to the suburbs, there's a big price differential between the city and burbs here. Usually ends up at about half.

If I don't get out to the burbs, I end up at costco at about 1/4.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: RamFan
This thought just came to mind so bare with me. Is it better to allow your car to get to empty before filling up or to fill it up at the 1/4 to 1/2 a tank marks?

Letting gas get too low can cause issues with fuel pumps, however any contaminants that may be in the fuel will be run through the system in their totality.

On the flip side, filling up with a quarter to half a tank left is better for the fuel pump but may lead to increased contamination levels of gas in the tank, if the contaminants float on the gas surface.

What are your thoughts?


Contrary to popular belief its not running the tank low that might cause a fuel pump issue, its running out of gas as the pump is lubricated and cooled by fuel going through it, not sitting in it.

But you could run a Toyota out of fuel daily and no problem, run an early GM out of fuel once and you may need a new fuel pump.

The fuel pump typically has a "sock" on its intake to filter out anything that might damage the fuel pump.

You would be surprised how pristine a fuel tank looks on the inside.

 

[Wolf359]

Usually I wait til it's about an 1/8 or so. The only other reason to fill up soon is if the price of gas is going up, otherwise now you're better of waiting til the tank is low as the price keeps dropping every few days. Seems to have stabilized a little bit now.

 

[Hokiefyd]

I fill at about 1/4 of a tank. That's the balance I've personally drawn between having enough fuel in the tank to be able to drive 50-60 miles in an emergency if I had to, and not wasting time at a filling station pumping fuel more often than I believe is necessary.

The cost of fuel means nothing to me. My preparedness in case something critical happens and minimizing my time watching Gas Station TV is what counts the most (to me).

But everyone will have their own idea of what the right balance is.

 

[Donald]

Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
I fill at about 1/4 of a tank. That's the balance I've personally drawn between having enough fuel in the tank to be able to drive 50-60 miles in an emergency if I had to, and not wasting time at a filling station pumping fuel more often than I believe is necessary.

The cost of fuel means nothing to me. My preparedness in case something critical happens and minimizing my time watching Gas Station TV is what counts the most (to me).

But everyone will have their own idea of what the right balance is.


+1 - I put high value on my time. I do not want to put in $5 of gas every day like when I was 17. But there have been super cold days when I put in $20 and hope it will be warmer out when I next need gas.

 

[ronbo]

Never like to see my tank below 1/2 full, esp. in winter. We had people stuck on the New York Thruway this year for up to 33 hours. One hour of idle used 3/4 gallon of gas.

 

[Bgallagher]

I usually fill up when the gas light comes on. With my Equinox it is typically when there is 3 gallons left (16.7 is the size of my tank.)

 

[SwampSurvivor]

I usually fill up between 3/4 and 1/2 tank. In every day driving, I use about 1/4 tank a week in the Focus, so it gets filled every week at 3/4 tank.

It's a nice feeling, for the unknown, to have a full tank of gas. Especially in the winter. King Comrade Cuomo now throws his hands up in defeat and pulls ALL of the plows off of the interstate as soon as it start s snowing. Never know when you are going to end up stranded on the highway.

Even if I avoid the closed interstates, I can take surface streets to get home. I remember one particular snowstorm a year or two, where my 8 mile drive home took an hour. A lot of roads were just stopped up from stuck cars - so a lot of time sitting on surface streets.

 

[dlundblad]

I suppose if I lived in a place prone to a lot of snow, I would keep my tank well above half as much as possible. Wouldnt hurt to have in case you get stuck, but the additional weight in the rear end can only help.

The whole gas pump being cooled by the gas and the contaminants in the bottom of the tank are old school ways of thinking IMO.

Back when tanks were metal and prone to rust, it was possibly an issue.

As long as there's gas in the tank, the pump is keeping cool.

 

[Malo83]

1/4 tank, usually fill it up on a friday night on the way home from work, just something about having a full tank of gas for the weekend

 

[GreeCguy]

I've always been a firm believer that since liquid gasoline cools the fuel pump, I try to the best of my ability to keep the tank at least half full.

Then came the soon to be famous "LUV" machine that has, as it's fuel tank, a five gallon bucket behind the drivers seat. The fuel pump basically lays on the bottom of this bucket and I have long ago lost count of the number of times I've run it out of gas. More than that, I've run it more times than I can remember with no more than a gallon of gas in it.

It's been that way for over five years now - so far, so good. Go figure.

 

[cjcride]

Fill at half tank.

 

[Nick1994]

I filled up at 1/8th of a tank today. Usually do it around 1/4. It's crazy that some people fill up at 1/2 or more of a tank. I guess not everybody drives very far, I get about 470 miles on a tank so at 1/2 a tank I'd be filling up every like 4 days. Doesn't sound fun to me.

 

[simple_gifts]

Originally Posted By: Oil Changer
1/2 is the new full.


It is the new empty.

 

[LX289]

I believe that you shouldn't let your car go below the 1/4 mark. That gasoline keeps the pump cool which yields to longer pump life. Contamination of gasoline? You might get some water and dirt but the fuel filter should filter all of the dirt out. There is always some presence of water in gasoline.

 

[anonobomber]

I usually fill up when my car says I have 0-12 miles of gas left. My wife fills up when her car starts flashing '--- miles left'. Never had any problems.

 

[R2d2]

I start to consider filling when the low fuel light goes on, I know on the Accord I have about 2.5 gallons left and the MDX miles to empty seems very accurate.

 

[Vern_in_IL]

Keep your tank FULL when gas is cheap...

Keep the tank low when gas is expensive...


Fill up on Tuedays,Wensdays historically gas is cheapest on these days...

 

[MinamiKotaro]

I fill mine when the LOW FUEL warning dinger comes on. That's usually somewhere between 1/4 and E. If I were on a trip and didn't know when the next gas station would be, I'd fill it up sooner.

 

[Chris142]

Most intank pumps sit in a tub of fuel regardless of how low the fuel in the tank is.