Low Fuel Warning

c41006 · 04-12-2011, 06:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ProfessorDave

When that alert comes on the ugly yellow screen you'd think the car had blown its engine, or the country was under attack, or there was a sale at Harbor Freight!

It freaks me out every time

BrianMSmith · 12-21-2010, 12:22 PM

Your "remaining" range depends on how you drive the car over a long distance. It is calculated from an average and is not valid for only a short distance that is not necessarily representative of the average. Imagine if you are averaging 25miles/gallon on a long highway trip, then exit for the last 25 miles of your trip, with 25 miles on your "remaining" range you then have 1 gallon left. But now off the highway your mileage is only 12mpg, so you run out when the range still shows about 12 miles. I suspect Nissan doesn't want to be blamed if you run out when it still says 5 miles to go, so they blank it out, probably when you have something like 2 gallons left.

JACKPAC · 12-21-2010, 12:49 PM

I know from personal experience that you can drive at 55 mph for 20 miles after your car tells you you have --- miles left. I think I had 1/2 gal. left at fill-up. I wouldn't rec. doing this, but I had no other options at the time.

Jessobear · 12-21-2010, 08:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JACKPAC

I know from personal experience that you can drive at 55 mph for 20 miles after your car tells you you have --- miles left. I think I had 1/2 gal. left at fill-up. I wouldn't rec. doing this, but I had no other options at the time.

That actually sounds about right. When you car tells you you're out of gas, you probably have a gallon and a half left. All cars are designed that way to prevent people from running out of gas all the time. One of the reasons I never fill up until the warning comes on.

The best running out of gas story ever was in college my friend and I were driving my '87 Integra to Lake Havasu. When you cross over from Colorado into Utah on I-70, you see a sign which literally reads "next services 110 miles". For some reason, I assumed that I had enough gas to make it. Finally ran out of gas 20 miles from the nearest town, up in the mountains. As luck would have it, I ran out right at the highest elevation. We pushed the car for about 50 feet, jumped in and coasted the car for 12 miles down the mountain. Then we had to hitch a ride the rest of the way.

Armonster · 04-13-2011, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jessobear

That actually sounds about right. When you car tells you you're out of gas, you probably have a gallon and a half left. All cars are designed that way to prevent people from running out of gas all the time.

I think you are right, but this still annoys me. If all cars ran out of gas exactly when you hit E, then people would just adapt and learn to fill up before that point. Plus, we would actually know how much f'ing gas is in there.

jaedub · 04-12-2011, 06:45 PM

i always wait for the "---" mark lol. I know its risky but It turned into a habbit

WorkinMan · 04-12-2011, 07:19 PM

I have an Xterra that gets spazzed out over getting low on fuel. The Frontier I traded in had a trip computer that was actually pretty good with the math of "miles left to empty", but the guage itself would drop like a Japanese dive bomber once it went past 1/2 full heading towards empty. It seemed to take forever getting to half full, though. I think Nissan lets the dropouts do the engineering on fuel quantity on community outreach?

Mr. Q · 04-12-2011, 08:09 PM

Last Friday I went to go eat at a place that was about 25 miles away from home with a range of 78 miles left, at about the 64 mile range I got a warning light and decided to slow down from 80 to 70 on cruise control. Since practically the whole trip was on cruise control the range started going up and the light went away. I even got a couple of light bars back. When I was almost back home I had a range of 75 miles left.(Free trip!) Also when I filled up it had an estimated range of about 430 miles. I thought I was hot **** when my range read 370 the week before.

sonic370 · 04-12-2011, 08:53 PM

well get this one. once when I took a long trip I filled
up,every stupid orange dot was there. so I'm 200 miles
into my trip and not one dot has moved. So I'm thinking
great fuel Gage busted. so I pull over to take a leak
and when I start the car back up I'm down to less than a
half a tank. it's never happened again. Go figure

spearfish25 · 04-13-2011, 10:26 AM

A local friend just drove 30 miles beyond the --- and filled up with 18.964 gallons. How's that for cutting it close?

UNKNOWN_370 · 04-13-2011, 04:03 PM

1/3 of a tank and I'm filling up. I hope ur not like my bro in law. He goes on empty constantly and only puts $20 at a time in gas. Straight cheapskate status on his part. Kinda corny to have a gas guzzling sports car on E most of the time.

Lol

Armonster · 04-13-2011, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UNKNOWN_370

1/3 of a tank and I'm filling up. I hope ur not like my bro in law. He goes on empty constantly and only puts $20 at a time in gas. Straight cheapskate status on his part. Kinda corny to have a gas guzzling sports car on E most of the time.

Lol

Never understood the $20-at-a-time strategy. You don't save any money in the long run, and its so inconvenient. Although I guess it keeps your car lighter, so that might be worth a few pennies or something.

john2plus8 · 04-14-2011, 05:36 PM

Save here. Just don't go below 1/4 tank

Jack370Z · 04-15-2011, 12:39 AM

How about setting one of the trip meters (I use A for gas and B for oil changes) at zero when you fill up? At 300 miles I fill up and don't have to worry about how many "dots" I have remaining on the fuel guage.

OKC Z · 04-26-2012, 06:04 AM

Mine never shows all dots and goes from 1/4 to 0 in about 20 miles. Therefore I only drive 350-360 miles between fill ups.

04-13-2011, 10:26 AM	#10 (permalink)
spearfish25 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Naples, FL Posts: 4,117 Drives: to work Rep Power: 1857	A local friend just drove 30 miles beyond the --- and filled up with 18.964 gallons. How's that for cutting it close? __________________ 2013 Cadillac V-Wagon, RIP Z

04-14-2011, 05:36 PM	#13 (permalink)
john2plus8 Base Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 3 Drives: 2010 Nissan 370z Rep Power: 15	Save here. Just don't go below 1/4 tank __________________ LED Interior Lights

04-15-2011, 12:39 AM	#14 (permalink)
Jack370Z Base Member Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: South Carolina Posts: 128 Drives: 09 370Z Plat SP 6MT Rep Power: 16	How about setting one of the trip meters (I use A for gas and B for oil changes) at zero when you fill up? At 300 miles I fill up and don't have to worry about how many "dots" I have remaining on the fuel guage. Smashley likes this. __________________ Jack 09 370Z

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12-21-2010, 12:22 PM	#2 (permalink)
BrianMSmith Enthusiast Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: secret Posts: 267 Drives: 370Z, Ducati 748S Rep Power: 16	Your "remaining" range depends on how you drive the car over a long distance. It is calculated from an average and is not valid for only a short distance that is not necessarily representative of the average. Imagine if you are averaging 25miles/gallon on a long highway trip, then exit for the last 25 miles of your trip, with 25 miles on your "remaining" range you then have 1 gallon left. But now off the highway your mileage is only 12mpg, so you run out when the range still shows about 12 miles. I suspect Nissan doesn't want to be blamed if you run out when it still says 5 miles to go, so they blank it out, probably when you have something like 2 gallons left.

12-21-2010, 12:49 PM	#3 (permalink)
JACKPAC Track Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Kentucky Posts: 516 Drives: MB 370z Rep Power: 17	I know from personal experience that you can drive at 55 mph for 20 miles after your car tells you you have --- miles left. I think I had 1/2 gal. left at fill-up. I wouldn't rec. doing this, but I had no other options at the time.

04-12-2011, 06:45 PM	#6 (permalink)
jaedub Track Member Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Los Angeles Posts: 906 Drives: 2010 Black 370Z MT Rep Power: 305	i always wait for the "---" mark lol. I know its risky but It turned into a habbit

04-12-2011, 07:19 PM	#7 (permalink)
WorkinMan Base Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: South Carolina Posts: 22 Drives: ARREST ME RED '13 MT Rep Power: 15	I have an Xterra that gets spazzed out over getting low on fuel. The Frontier I traded in had a trip computer that was actually pretty good with the math of "miles left to empty", but the guage itself would drop like a Japanese dive bomber once it went past 1/2 full heading towards empty. It seemed to take forever getting to half full, though. I think Nissan lets the dropouts do the engineering on fuel quantity on community outreach?

04-12-2011, 08:09 PM	#8 (permalink)
Mr. Q Enthusiast Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Texas Posts: 349 Drives: 09 MB 370z Rep Power: 16	Last Friday I went to go eat at a place that was about 25 miles away from home with a range of 78 miles left, at about the 64 mile range I got a warning light and decided to slow down from 80 to 70 on cruise control. Since practically the whole trip was on cruise control the range started going up and the light went away. I even got a couple of light bars back. When I was almost back home I had a range of 75 miles left.(Free trip!) Also when I filled up it had an estimated range of about 430 miles. I thought I was hot **** when my range read 370 the week before.

04-12-2011, 08:53 PM	#9 (permalink)
sonic370 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: May 2010 Location: Orange Texas Posts: 1,574 Drives: 09 370Z Sports PGK Rep Power: 19	well get this one. once when I took a long trip I filled up,every stupid orange dot was there. so I'm 200 miles into my trip and not one dot has moved. So I'm thinking great fuel Gage busted. so I pull over to take a leak and when I start the car back up I'm down to less than a half a tank. it's never happened again. Go figure

04-13-2011, 04:03 PM	#11 (permalink)
UNKNOWN_370 A True Z Fanatic Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: ny'r livn in tx Posts: 8,687 Drives: well over 130m.p.h. Rep Power: 14858	1/3 of a tank and I'm filling up. I hope ur not like my bro in law. He goes on empty constantly and only puts $20 at a time in gas. Straight cheapskate status on his part. Kinda corny to have a gas guzzling sports car on E most of the time. Lol

04-26-2012, 06:04 AM	#15 (permalink)
OKC Z Base Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: OKC Posts: 205 Drives: '09 370z-$old 9/1/12 Rep Power: 15	Mine never shows all dots and goes from 1/4 to 0 in about 20 miles. Therefore I only drive 350-360 miles between fill ups.