Anyone else's gas gauge ever do this? - Page 2

00 Deville · #16 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 02:53 AM

If it's only happened the one time... maybe wait and see if she acts up again before you throw money at it.

Shouldn't you be out roaming the streets in Dalton at this hour... looking for some Psycho to try and run you over with his car?

ga_etc · #17 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 03:02 AM

Was planning on waiting to see if it does it again. Just thinking about getting a rough estimate.

Trying to get rid of me?

00 Deville · #18 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 03:17 AM

Sounds like a plan...

How are you going to ever top that last story if your not out running the streets on a Friday night.

ga_etc · #19 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 04:08 AM

I didn't know I was supposed to be trying to top that story... And all of my friends were doing their own things tonight so I sat at the house and played it safe. On a day to day basis my life is pretty boring. It gets more interesting when my friends are involved. We got away with a few crazy things in our high school years after we got out licenses. My best friend and I still laugh about the day I about hit a cement mixer head on, on the way home from school one day. It was scary as hell, but made for an entertaining story.

submariner409 · #20 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 04:24 PM

This is a shot in the dark, but it has worked for some fuel sending unit level indication problems: Buy a 20 oz. jug of Chevron TECHRON at a large parts store. Dump the entire jug in the tank and fill with Chevron, Shell, or Texaco 93 octane.

Google "top tier gasoline" and "chevron techron" to read up on why this may work for fuel sending unit sensor cleaning.

ga_etc · #21 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 06:22 PM

All I use is Shell(where I work) or Chevron 91/93. Think the Techron will still possibly help?

00 Deville · #22 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 07:35 PM

The Techron is worth a shot. It's possible the Techron could clean the contacts on sending unit up a little to cure the open circuit that you are experiencing.

It's good stuff I put a bottle in mine every 5,000 miles or so to keep the fuel system clean. I buy it by the case at Costco.

chacenbra · #23 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 07:52 PM

When mine went out I filled up and reset my 'fuel used' portion of my DIC it worked quite well. Might wanna try that out until you get it fixed.

ga_etc · #24 (**permalink**) 10-24-09, 10:05 PM

I always reset my trip miles, avg fuel econ, and fuel used at every fill up so I keep an eye on it anyway.

ga_etc · #25 (**permalink**) 10-28-09, 02:31 AM

So far it is working properly. Maybe it really was just a fluke.

tateos · #26 (**permalink**) 10-28-09, 01:36 PM

I have kind of the opposite problem:

I notice that if I try to really top off the tank in my '97 ETC - really jam in as much gas as possible, I will sometimes have problems where the fuel gauge keeps going down to empty and then back to full - until I get down to about 3/4 tank actual - obviously the contacts are dirty way up in the "over full" area of my sending unit. Lately, I just let the automatic shut off on the pump work as intended and then stop pumping and remove the filler nozzle. Yeah, yeah, yeah - I know that's what you're supposed to do in the first place! I know I am dating myself, since topping off is a bad habit of mine dating back to when you paid cash for gas (anyone else remember that?), AFTER you had pumped it (Wow - anyone else remember that?), and didn't want to deal with paying or receiving back coins.

Personally, if I were going to drop the tank to replace the sender, I would replace the entire cartridge, meaning including the fuel pump, unless it had already been replaced fairly recently.

ponyboyt · #27 (**permalink**) 10-28-09, 02:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ga_etc

The tank size on the Eldorados is 20 gallon. Unless I'm under more strenuous driving conditions I can go 300 on a tank.

I just can't pass this up.... how big a tank in mine? 97 STS. I havent tried on the new engine as i only haveabout 5000k on it, but my old engine i KNOW i have gone 700+ on a full tank.... give or take.. seems like a big difference. Unless im bad at math and theres 10 km's in a mile. But those trips were mostly out of town in 80 zones.

Just curious. I know at 1.05 a litre its about 65-70 bucks to fill it.

hmmm

/calculator

aparently 70 litres is:

70 L = 18.4920 gal(US Liq)
OR 18 gal(US Liq) and 3.93 pt (US Liq)

ga_etc · #28 (**permalink**) 11-08-09, 07:30 AM

I wanted to wait to update and tell what's going on. I have used two tanks of gas since the problem started. This most recent tank I added a 20 oz. bottle of Techron (at $13 no less) and I still have the issue. I can fill up and the gauge works properly until I hit 1/8 of a tank, then it starts rising again. If I stop and turn the car off, long enough to go in a store, and restart it the level will show accurate, then start rising again. Guess I'm going to have to have a fuel level sensor when I can afford it.

chubbyranger · #29 (**permalink**) 11-08-09, 09:20 AM

Bad part is that you'll have to drop the tank on Eldo. I decided to just change the pump and sender since Rockauto is blowing some Delphis out for cheap money. They show one for your car for $92 but it looks like you need to know whether you have refuel vapor recovery. The sender is listed separately for $113.