Distance To Empty calc has very decent "cushion"

[WalterMitty]

A while ago, I decided to quit my practice of running my vehicles (truck or bikes) down to fumes before refilling. However, the other day, I got the truck down to 10 or maybe 20miles left, according to the DTE calc.

I have a 36 gallon tank (5.0 Tremor), and tried topping off the tank 2 or 3 times, to make sure it was really full. I was only able to put just a tick under 32 gallons in. A roughly 4 gallon buffer is quite a bit.

I hope to not rely on this buffer, but my old self is going.....hmmmmmm.

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[Bryan Simon]

On a trip last fall with 7mi DTE I put in 32.x gallons
Four gallons left in that tank is not much fuel
Level could not be but 3/4” in the tank
And the DTE is getting info from fuel level.
Still about 2 gallons when my 98 k1500 hits E,
And that is dangerously close to running out on a 20 gal tank

 

[Aron]

If I recall correctly, the fuel pump uses the fuel for cooling/lubrication, so it's probably designed to keep a certain volume in the tank for that purpose.

I'm guessing that, while the fuel tank has a 36 gallon capacity, not all of that fuel is necessarily used in the DTE calculations so that drivers don't get into the habit of draining the tank and potentially burning up the fuel pump.

 

[crazywayne311]

yeah i normally try not to get down to fumes but ive been close. i think the lowest was around 10-15 til empty and only got 32.3 gallons to take.
mainly b/c now i'm spending over $100 for a fill up haha
someone mentioned the fuel keeping the pump cool...i was told that when i had my 93 thunderbird so i'm sure thats common practive in todays time.

aslo, lookin at my fuel log, adding wheels and tires sure hurt me haha just noticed when from 17.2 AVG to 15.25!

 

[Gros Ventre]

These have the pump submerged in a bucket that remains full until the rest of the tank is empty.

 

[powerboatr]

i drove my 2016 expedition to a negative 6 miles to dte once
i got trapped and couldn't get to a station until the next day so i had to drive 12 miles to town on 0
it was a pucker event
only time i ever did that

i have run this truck down to 45 miles dte and was able to put about 30 gallons in.

makes me like having 36 gallons now vice the 29 in the expedition

 

[sbi]

Do not park your truck facing a downhill when the fuel light is on with 50 - or less - miles to go. Ask me how I know...

And yes, the DTE does not really coincide with the actual amount of fuel in the tank, as others here experienced, which brings me to the conclusion that not all the fuel in the 36 gallons tank (which is what I have) is usable.

 

[Pedaldude]

This is old news and a peculiarity of the 36 gallon tank that extends back to the previous generation.

Ford didn’t have their best design the extended range tank and not enough people have complained so that it is common knowledge, as a result; Ford has not fixed the problem.

The last 5-9 gallons in the tank will be useless unless you are on level ground. My truck wouldn’t start after being parked on a slope with a quarter tank of gas indicated. Which is why the 36 gallon tank is calibrated to indicate empty when it still has up to ten gallons of fuel left depending on the average MPG the truck is getting.

As far as I know, there is no tub or significant baffling in the plastic fuel tanks from Ford; like there used to be with steel tanks. My Lincoln Navigator will stall out if I take a roundabout too fast with anything less than 5 gallons in the tank and 60 miles indicated DTE.

 

[CaptainAmericaRob]

A while ago, I decided to quit my practice of running my vehicles (truck or bikes) down to fumes before refilling. However, the other day, I got the truck down to 10 or maybe 20miles left, according to the DTE calc.

I have a 36 gallon tank (5.0 Tremor), and tried topping off the tank 2 or 3 times, to make sure it was really full. I was only able to put just a tick under 32 gallons in. A roughly 4 gallon buffer is quite a bit.

I hope to not rely on this buffer, but my old self is going.....hmmmmmm.

in talking to an engineer on the calibration team, they calculate "0" zero miles, with 1 gallon in the tank. Also, there is roughly a gallon in the lines from tank to engine.

 

[HammaMan]

in talking to an engineer on the calibration team, they calculate "0" zero miles, with 1 gallon in the tank. Also, there is roughly a gallon in the lines from tank to engine.

Where is all the fuel in the lines hiding? A 1/4" ID tube 400' long contains about a gallon of liquid. Unless there's a 9/10 of a gallon header tank / fuel filter assembly hiding somewhere, someone noted the unit of measurement incorrectly.

The larger tanks on slopes is a known issue. I try not to dip into the 50 mile range unless it's planned on the interstate. Other variables usually warrant a stop by then given just how far one can travel with even a 30g tank.

 

[sbi]

Where is all the fuel in the lines hiding? A 1/4" ID tube 400' long contains about a gallon of liquid.

I was thinking the same thing. Doesn't make sense that there is a gallon between the tank and the engine.

in talking to an engineer on the calibration team, they calculate "0" zero miles, with 1 gallon in the tank. Also, there is roughly a gallon in the lines from tank to engine.

Nonetheless, the computer calculates distance based on previous MPG, not based on the amount of fuel in the tank and that's ridiculous.

 

[Pedaldude]

Where is all the fuel in the lines hiding?

I was thinking the same thing. Doesn't make sense that there is a gallon between the tank and the engine.

Exactly: unless this guy installed the fuel system; there’s as little fuel as possible in the fuel lines.

For those not familiar, amongst other things; he’s famous for getting angry with the scrutineers at a stock car race and driving his driver’s car away after they removed the fuel tank.

 

[WalterMitty]

in talking to an engineer on the calibration team, they calculate "0" zero miles, with 1 gallon in the tank. Also, there is roughly a gallon in the lines from tank to engine.

That would account for 2 gallons, leaving 2 more gallons still unaccounted for. Either way, I like the cushion, and probably need to do a better job of filling up when it alerts for the first time.

 

[notabot]

Either way, I like the cushion

Me 3

 

[B-real]

Seems to be pretty widely documented of many people having ~5 gal still in the 36 gal tank when DTE shows 0. I think there is a new post on the FB groups daily documenting this.

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