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Fuel Tank Capacity

21K views 37 replies 24 participants last post by  jwmkm 
#1 ·
I did a search and came up empty!

My fuel gauge read just under 1/4, so I stopped and pumped in some $2.75 - 93 octane. The pump shut off at just over 12 gals. If our tanks are 20 gals, should I presume a faulty gauge?

Thanks
 
#2 ·
Nope, that's about par for the Z. It's 20 gallons. Even if your display shows --- for DTE, you'll never put 20 gallons in.
 
#3 ·
Originally posted by SmoothZ@Aug 25 2005, 09:45 PM
Nope, that's about par for the Z.  It's 20 gallons.  Even if your display shows --- for DTE, you'll never put 20 gallons in.
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WTF? So - when the gauge reads 1/4, it still has 1/3?

Is there a TSB on this one? I'd like to have a good idea of what's left in the tank.

Gas stations east of me are few and far between!
 
#4 ·
The design of the fuel tank is such that many owners have trouble filling the tank all the way. If your gauge shows full when you fill her up, you're o-k. If not, and mine does this, I have to turn the nozzel upside down to completely fill the gas tank.

On the DTE I don't know...the aftermarket engine management devices I have are screwing with the ECU such that my avg MPG is 33...which I know is not correct.
 
#5 ·
Just watch your tank range. In other words, you know you're going to get at least 300 miles on 1 tank of gas, close to 400 if you're driving mostly on freeways w/o stopping too often. I think most gas tanks are built in a way that you still have a couple of gallons in reserve even though it registers empty.
 
#10 ·
Originally posted by Jetpilot718@Aug 26 2005, 12:00 PM
Weird..  why not just make the gauge neutral instead of pessimistic??  I'd rather know the exact amount than have a guage that in all intents and purposes is inoperative.
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I imagine it was done because people love to drive until E. And if you had no gas at E that's bad. If, however, you really had 3 gallons, you're in pretty good shape
 
#11 ·
WHOA! There are a couple things going on here.

First, your issue. It is true that the gas neck on the Z tank is a little touchy. Often times the pump shuts off to early because of the neck shape. However, over time you will get used to how to properly place the hose in the neck. I don't have problems with this anymore.

If for some reason your are running until the empty light comes on and you can NEVER get in more than 15 gallons, then you have a secondary issue. One of your fuel sending units may be bad. Yes, the tank has two sending units and one pump because there is a hump in the middle fo the tank to let the driveshaft pass by. I had a sending unit go bad on me. Over time, the empty light would come on and I would get less and less fuel in at fillup. Eventually, I was only getting in 12 gallons. The test to determine if the sending unit is bad is obsurdly easy, so a dealer will find it if it does exist. Another side effect is of a bad sending unit is a moving fuel guage. Lets say your guage reads 1/4 tank. Then you turn a corner hard and it now reads empty or 1/3 tank. That is a moving gauge. This is caused by the fuel rushing from the side of the tank with the bad sending unit to the side with the good unit or vice versa. Just think about this and keep it in the back of your mind just in case.

True, DTE and the empty light are based on 17 gallons, but the tank is 20. Furthermore, there is a really, really, really good reason for this. The car is built for racing. The tank is even baffled to help keep gas near the fuel pump pickups. However, no amount of baffling will help you if there is not enough fuel to trap in. So, the computer "fools" the driver into getting more gas early. This keeps you from taking a hard turn with too little gas, uncovering the pickup and running lean. Of course we all know lean means PING, CLUNK, BOOM!

As a side note, this is also why most race cars and some street cars (i.e. MacLaren SLR) have a surge tank for the gas. You can run the main tank as empty as you want and ditch the baffles. The extra surge tank will prevent the gas pickup from ever coming uncovered. However, it does require two fuel pumps.
 
#14 ·
Originally posted by DiRN+Aug 26 2005, 09:16 AM-->
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@Aug 26 2005, 01:14 PM
I bet that hurts AAA's business a little bit :lol:
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:clap: Good. AAA can suck my nuts. No, you know what, they aren't even good enough to do that
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hahaha true that true that
 
#16 ·
I actually ran out of gas the other day. I put whatever I had laying around for my lawnmower into it just to get it to the gas station. 52 dollars later, I had put 19.68 gallons in.

Definitely 20 gallons.
 
#17 ·
Originally posted by cedusett@Sep 1 2005, 11:31 AM
I actually ran out of gas the other day.  I put whatever I had laying around for my lawnmower into it just to get it to the gas station.  52 dollars later, I had put 19.68 gallons in.

Definitely 20 gallons.
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52 bucks, thats a bargain.
 
#21 ·
If it makes you feel any better, the capacity for the tank can reach 400 miles if not more. I got 409 miles on 1 tank of gas once. If you are unsure about it, then I would stop more often for gas. But my experience is that I constantly watch the gas gauge to see what kind of mileage I'm getting on the trip. When it gets lower than 1/4 of a tank, I pretty much know how many miles I have left and measure out when I should get gas next.
 
#23 ·
Something just ain't Kosher here!

Assuming 25 mpg on the highway - and 19 gallons of fuel, we should be able to drive at least 475 miles.

With all the high-tech goodies on the Z, why is this an issue? :doh:

Race car tank or not - we should have reliable data on miles to empty. I have yet to put more than 14.5 gallons in my Z at the pump. :doh:
 
#25 ·
Well, maybe it's because your're "runnin a hundred!" :rolf2:
 
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