How many MPB (miles per bar)?

[otterhere]

Seems to me that I get lots of miles with my first bar, a little fewer with the next, and so on until those last few bars before the last one starts blinking for a fill-up go sluuuuuurp, GONE! You, too?

Also, since inflating my tires to the CORRECT pressure, I'm so far doing much better on my first bar; over 60 miles this tank, and still it hasn't disappeared.

:smile:

[33OH]

If you're like me and keep fueling even AFTER the gas pumper clicks that its full, yeah you'll get more miles on that first bar. :wink:

[smacky]

I only fill up until the click and the same thing happens to me. I generally get around 80 on the first bar and it decreases a bit for each bar until it is a bit lower than 50 for the last couple bars. But it's never very consistant. The bars aren't a very precise indicator of fuel used or miles per gallon.

[33OH]

I only fill up until the click and the same thing happens to me. I generally get around 80 on the first bar and it decreases a bit for each bar until it is a bit lower than 50 for the last couple bars. But it's never very consistant. The bars aren't a very precise indicator of fuel used or miles per gallon.

Yeah very true. I didn't mean it like it won't happen unless you go past the click, I just mean I always do and then you REALLY notice it. :wink:

[otterhere]

80 miles on the first bar? Highway or city? Dang; I thought I was doing well with 60... Now I'm depressed again...

[PreciousPups4U]

Same here close to 75 - 80 on the first bar. Then somewhere between 40 - 50 on the rest of the bars. Three bars is about half the tank and then the other five bars are the last half of the tank or at least that's how it seems to work for me.

Mine is pretty much all city driving.

[PreciousPups4U]

80 miles on the first bar? Highway or city? Dang; I thought I was doing well with 60... Now I'm depressed again...

Yours is still pretty new. Give it some time. Depends on lots of things, too. Like terrain and how close traffic lights are together and such.

[Havana]

I hate those bars. I've gotten over 90 miles on the first bar and as little as 15 on the second to last bar. To me, it's almost useless as a fuel gauge. How can it show around 300 miles travelled at "half a tank" and only get around 85 more miles from the other "half." Answer: 50% of the bars gone does not indicate half a tank used or left. All that gauge tells is that I have some gas more or less.

[Split]

its so inaccurate.. the first bar is like half the tank.

[nemelek]

I get 75-80 on the first bar. Most cars that I have owned are inaccurate. I use well over 1/2 a tank by the time the gauge hits the mid point.

[smacky]

80 miles on the first bar? Highway or city? Dang; I thought I was doing well with 60... Now I'm depressed again...

I'm usually driving about 75% highway, that helps a lot. But my first bar is sometomes around 65 miles but my scangauge doesn't reflect FE that's too much lower. The bars are not accurate. Get a scangauge if you can, I think it's money well spent.

[1stToyota]

It's about as accurate as it can be, seeing that it's pretty hard to find a car with a perfectly square tank...maybe a '69 Chevelle with a fuel cell mounted in the trunk.

I can usually go 100 miles before I hit 7/8ths, about 300 miles before I hit 3/8ths.

[otterhere]

Seems you should be able to do the math: first bar's mileage times 7 (bars) divided by 10 (gallon tank), but that doesn't work, or I'm just bad at math.

:help:

[1stToyota]

Or Toyota isn't going to get excited enough about the Yaris fuel tank and dash cluster to factor in float drop vs tank shape? When it's full I know I got a long ways to go, when I'm down to 1/4 I start huntin for gas pumps.

[Forrest]

If you're like me and keep fueling even AFTER the gas pumper clicks that its full, yeah you'll get more miles on that first bar. :wink:

There is a warning on the gas cap not to try and fill once a pump has clicked off. Something about check engine light may come on.
Also, bars are a rough indication of gas usage, but not totally accurate.

[1stToyota]

There is a warning on the gas cap not to try and fill once a pump has clicked off. Something about check engine light may come on.
Also, bars are a rough indication of gas usage, but not totally accurate.

My cap says tighten 1-click or check engine light may come on; EVAP leak.

[Krusher]

The reason for not overfilling the tank after the auto-shutoff is due to getting liquid into your EVAP canister(s)... Those are expensive and only suppose to see vapor... but it's like a 10% chance you'll end up screwing the canister up one fill-up... not a big risk and you won't see it happen very often.

I don't fill beyond the auto-shutoff....

[firebird1999us]

About 80 on the first bar, 70 second, and about 60 for the next few. I'm at the bar that tops out right at half a tank and I've went about 250+ miles so far...about 90% highway:wink:

[Kaotic Lazagna]

I think the bars aren't all the same because the gas tank is not a perfect cube. For me:

First bar: 70-90
Second bar: 117-135
Third bar: 170-200
Fourth bar: 210-250

I generally fill up at half tank, but I've reached a "quarter" tank left at 335.

*numbers are what is shown on the trip meter, not of individual miles per bar. If you want that, do the math. LOL.

[SilverBack]

I'm getting about 60 miles first bar because I top-off to the next dollar or gallon, whichever comes first. Next bar I get 50, and then 40 til the next fill-up. 350 per tank on average, not too bad :smile:

Other times my tank sometimes gets between 375 and 400 under same conditions and speed, not sure why:iono:

[Inspector14]

up here in the snow and the cold my new yaris (1300mi on it) gets about 40 on the first bar, 215 miles total to the tank. its 100% city though.

[Inspector14]

up here in the snow and the cold my new yaris (1300mi on it) gets about 40 on the first bar, 215 miles total to the tank. its 100% city though.

[Kioshi]

reaching down to the 8th bar, when it starts blinking, like its on crack I've managed to get 407 miles. Just just basic math to calculate it. Mileage at start of fill up, subtract final mileage w/ start mileage, and divide by 8 i think.~

First bar, or equally each bar, gives me about 45-50 miles, but that does not correlate w/ the above i mentioned. I'm doing about 70-78 on Hwy 101/280 up to Daly City, so not so high for me i guess...stupid school~

Kaotic, i dont know how you're getting 70 on the first bar, damn yo!

[otterhere]

Kaotic, i dont know how you're getting 70 on the first bar, damn yo!


Really; say it ain't so, Kao!!!

I still get about 60 on the first bar; not so spectacular.

Okay, that's YET ANOTHER reason to prefer my old Suzuki Swift; that gas gauge wasn't "fancy," but it was dead-on...

[KCALB SIRAY]

Really; say it ain't so, Kao!!!

I still get about 60 on the first bar; not so spectacular.

Okay, that's YET ANOTHER reason to prefer my old Suzuki Swift; that gas gauge wasn't "fancy," but it was dead-on...

http://cnreviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/for_sale_sign.jpg

[ztrack157]

As with all gas tanks the fuel gauges gets more acurate the lower the fuel level. Typically you should get 50 miles per bar with the first bar being anywhere from 60-85 maybe even higher depending on fuel level and driving style and about 220 at half way. I have gotten 143 out of the first bar and on that tank I had 479 miles with probably 30 to spare before fill up. Standard driving with out any real lead foot should get close to or just over 400 miles with filling up to the first click. My experience is that the tank can actually hold over 13 gallons of gas. Our car can go over 500 on a tank if you know how to do it properly. As for me I'm thinking about doing a custom tank that holds 20 gallons.

[1stToyota]

The reason for not overfilling the tank after the auto-shutoff is due to getting liquid into your EVAP canister(s)... Those are expensive and only suppose to see vapor... but it's like a 10% chance you'll end up screwing the canister up one fill-up... not a big risk and you won't see it happen very often.

I don't fill beyond the auto-shutoff....

The gas cap says "Tighten" 1-click (not "fill" to 1-click) because if you don't click it the fuel tank pressure sensor voltage will read high and the PCM will assume that someone is driving around with a loosened or removed gas cap.

[b_hickman11]

I get 75-80 miles on the 1st bar for practically every tank. The most I have ever got on the 1st bar was 120 miles, when I was on a long road trip. I got the 120 in the middle of the summer (about 100 degrees outside) and with the AC running the whole time.

[Krusher]

The gas cap says "Tighten" 1-click (not "fill" to 1-click) because if you don't click it the fuel tank pressure sensor voltage will read high and the PCM will assume that someone is driving around with a loosened or removed gas cap.


Ok, time to dumb it down a bit... the CEL comes on for more than just the gas cap being off... or loose.

When the ECM goes into self-check it will run the evap system... if the pressures/volts do not fall within a specified range then the CEL will trip.

The gas cap not being installed or being loose has nothing to do with the evap canister... which can become soaked with fuel when topping off. This also has the potential to trip the CEL. Odds? Probably 1 in a million (est) cars will end up having to prematurely replace the canister due to overfilling.

Lesson? Read the entire post before commenting... and don't top off your tank... that extra squirt or 2 is not worth the cost of a new evap canister.

[1stToyota]

Ok, time to dumb it down a bit... the CEL comes on for more than just the gas cap being off... or loose.

Yeah, we'll dumb it way down. The cap reads "Tighten 1-click" or PCM may trip a code, not "Fill until nozzle clicks once"

When the ECM goes into self-check it will run the evap system... if the pressures/volts do not fall within a specified range then the CEL will trip.

MIL

The gas cap not being installed or being loose has nothing to do with the evap canister...

Evap **system**...How do you expect the fuel pressure sensor to read right with a loose or malfunctioning fuel cap? Out of spec readings = PCM storing a code. Cap warning is all about the cap being tight and has nothing to do with fuel top-off.

which can become soaked with fuel when topping off.

How?

Fuel filler pipe and vent has nothing to do with the cansiter, vent and purge solenoids, or EVAP hoses and lines. When you're filling the tank the filler tube and vent go straight into the tank, they don't spill over to other components. Most filler pipes/hoses now have the vent hose built within the filler hose itself, older designs had the vent hose opening up near the top of the filler pipe, but the vent hose still dumped into the fuel tank, about 2-3 inches from the filler hose inlet at the tank.

This also has the potential to trip the CEL. Odds? Probably 1 in a million (est) cars will end up having to prematurely replace the canister due to overfilling.

Overfilling will soil your pants or shoes, it won't run down the vent tube into the canister, especially when most of those canisters are at the other end of the vehicle and the hoses and/or canisters are above the tank level.

If overfilling ruined the EVAP system then I guess there would be warnings about never parking a vehicle on a slope.


Lesson? Read the entire post before commenting... and don't top off your tank... that extra squirt or 2 is not worth the cost of a new evap canister.

Lesson: Read your cap. The instructions are simple enough to follow.

Canisters get damaged while the car is running, running improperly and a faulty EVAP system, has nothing to do with topping off a fuel tank.

[CTScott]

^Good write-up - It's like an episode of Mythbusters.

The one thing that I find a bit annoying with the whole inaccurate fuel bar issue is that the bars are driven by the microcontroller that runs the instrument cluster. It receives the direct input from the fuel level sender and turns on the appropriate number of bars based on that data. So, it would have been incredibly easy for the SW Engineer to add a fudge factor so that the bars behave in a more linear fashion.

[Krusher]

MIL (Malfunction Indicator Light) = CEL (Check Engine Light) I know it's hard to believe... but it's true. Why do I call it a CEL? Because that's what the domestic industry calls it... that's what I'm used to... oh well, get over it.

Take a charcoal canister and soak it in fuel... it will get.... soaked... Why can the canister get soaked? Ok... I'm going to go a little bit into the system:

For the evap system self-test: Using the engine's vacuum, via the intake, the tank will be brought to a vacuum. If it is unable to pull a vacuum a code will set off the CEL. (Either small or large leak, depending on if the tank can pull a vacuum but not hold it, or not pull a vacuum at all... this can happen by the purge/vacuum valve sticking open/closed (checked by either forcing PIDs and/or plugging the vent per pinpoint tests), the gas cap o-ring not sealing the fill pipe(checking the condition of the cap or doing an actual pressure test on it), or an actual hole in the system(smoke testing... my favorite)) If it is able to pull a vacuum and hold it for a specified period of time it will release the vacuum into the charcoal canisters by sending a 12V signal (or completing the ground, depending on how the system is designed) to the purge valve solenoid which will open the tank to atmosphere. This line is typically vented to the fuel fill area. Now here comes the physics lesson...

Pull a vacuum and then let it go... what happens? 14.7# air will push it's way into the tank. Ever blow onto a liquid? What happens? It moves, doesn't it? Now put your face closer to the liquid and do the same thing (simulating putting more fuel into the tank)... get it close enough and your face will get a little wet... Now do this over the course of 8 years or 80,000 miles (epa mandated emissions warranty). My guess is that your face will be wetter then if you pulled your face away a little bit.

Your charcoal canister is getting the same thing... They are not designed to last forever... they do have a operational life since they are supposed to see a minimal, and engineered, amount of fuel vapor. If you put more liquid into the canister it will shorten it's life... by how much? Unknown to me, but if you're keeping your car don't you not want to spend about $300 for a canister until you really have to?

Although it seems that some people don't think that an eye dropper can fill a bucket one drop at a time...

If overfilling ruined the EVAP system then I guess there would be warnings about never parking a vehicle on a slope.

This is an engineering concern and a fuel tank, if you notice, has been designed to eliminate that concern.

Canisters get damaged while the car is running, running improperly and a faulty EVAP system, has nothing to do with topping off a fuel tank.

Guess what... when you top off the tank and you start the car... I know it's hard to believe, but the car is running... and your evap system will be conducting it's business with more fuel than was engineered to do so until you drive for a while!

Unfortunately I actually dumbed it down so that I didn't have to actually go into the operation of the system and just plainly say that overfilling the tank can cause problems... but since you found it necessary to try and "dumb it down" further by being technical I find it necessary to correct you.

Again, read the full post.

^Good write-up - It's like an episode of Mythbusters.

I find this amusing since the write up was written "Yeah, we'll dumb it way down." Mythbusters uses technical procedures to either prove or disprove a theory. They don't dumb it down...

Waiting for your reply...

[1stToyota]

MIL (Malfunction Indicator Light) = CEL (Check Engine Light) I know it's hard to believe... but it's true. Why do I call it a CEL? Because that's what the domestic industry calls it... that's what I'm used to... oh well, get over it.

You're trying to sound smart, eventho' you confuse the gas cap instructions, so use the modern term.

Take a charcoal canister and soak it in fuel... it will get.... soaked... Why can the canister get soaked? Ok... I'm going to go a little bit into the system:

For the evap system self-test: Using the engine's vacuum, via the intake, the tank will be brought to a vacuum. If it is unable to pull a vacuum a code will set off the CEL. (Either small or large leak, depending on if the tank can pull a vacuum but not hold it, or not pull a vacuum at all... this can happen by the purge/vacuum valve sticking open/closed (checked by either forcing PIDs and/or plugging the vent per pinpoint tests), the gas cap o-ring not sealing the fill pipe(checking the condition of the cap or doing an actual pressure test on it), or an actual hole in the system(smoke testing... my favorite)) If it is able to pull a vacuum and hold it for a specified period of time it will release the vacuum into the charcoal canisters by sending a 12V signal (or completing the ground, depending on how the system is designed) to the purge valve solenoid which will open the tank to atmosphere. This line is typically vented to the fuel fill area. Now here comes the physics lesson...

Vacuum? As in engine running or applying vacuum with hand pump? Doesn't happen while filling tank at gas station.

Pull a vacuum and then let it go... what happens? 14.7# air will push it's way into the tank. Ever blow onto a liquid? What happens? It moves, doesn't it? Now put your face closer to the liquid and do the same thing (simulating putting more fuel into the tank)... get it close enough and your face will get a little wet... Now do this over the course of 8 years or 80,000 miles (epa mandated emissions warranty). My guess is that your face will be wetter then if you pulled your face away a little bit.

Your charcoal canister is getting the same thing... They are not designed to last forever... they do have a operational life since they are supposed to see a minimal, and engineered, amount of fuel vapor. If you put more liquid into the canister it will shorten it's life... by how much? Unknown to me, but if you're keeping your car don't you not want to spend about $300 for a canister until you really have to?

My car is covered bumper-to-bumper for 7 years/75K miles (excluding typical maintenance items, carpet, etc...), but that's beside the point. If topping off tanks = flooded charcoal canisters :bellyroll: Toyota and every other manufacturer would be covering about 23,000 (est) warranties everyday...even millions of GM pickups that have their canisters at m/cyl level, located next to the radiator, yes?


Although it seems that some people don't think that an eye dropper can fill a bucket one drop at a time...

It's called evaporation?


This is an engineering concern and a fuel tank, if you notice, has been designed to eliminate that concern.

Flooded canisters was a concern back in 1983 on a carbureted F-150, it's not a concern now. You'll see more converter lockup solenoids go bad than you'll see flooded canisters due to tank topping off.


Guess what... when you top off the tank and you start the car... I know it's hard to believe, but the car is running... and your evap system will be conducting it's business with more fuel than was engineered to do so until you drive for a while!

Yeah, your gas cap and fuel tank sensor will conduct its business so you won't have to panic.

Unfortunately I actually dumbed it down so that I didn't have to actually go into the operation of the system and just plainly say that overfilling the tank can cause problems... but since you found it necessary to try and "dumb it down" further by being technical I find it necessary to correct you.

Like when you dumbed it down with your first reply (your very first posting here?) when you wrote "canister(s)?" ...you confused vacuum reserve tanks as a 2nd charcoal canister?

Again, read the full post.

Read your gas cap again...the MIL concern is about clicking the cap, Toyota doesn't seem to be spooked about tank top-off, just the gas cap's 1-click.

If you're worried about the vapors, don't. Maybe you forgot that fuel vapor from the gas tank is managed by the vehicle's PCM and Canister Purge Valve...I guess if those were defective, then vapors might be a concern...

I find this amusing since the write up was written "Yeah, we'll dumb it way down." Mythbusters uses technical procedures to either prove or disprove a theory. They don't dumb it down...

Waiting for your reply...

Waiting for your only reason to be here. Fetch.

[twowheels]

So, it would have been incredibly easy for the SW Engineer to add a fudge factor so that the bars behave in a more linear fashion.

I've had the exact same thought! (and I'm a SW Engineer) Why couldn't they have compensated for the tanks shape? At least get closer! I notice that my first bar lasts around 84 miles and then the last bars disappear before I even notice that it's that low!

[churp]

I've always assumed it was manufacturer practice to dumbdown for the typical consumer.......can't count how many times I've heard "...my car gets great mileage, my 1st quarter tank went xxx miles!"

[NJBob]

Who pushes the envelope? When I get down to the blinking second bar, I panic and fill up. The book says 1.6 gal. left at slow blink and 1.1 at fast. Who has waited that long or beyond and what happened? :iono:

[Kaotic Lazagna]

reaching down to the 8th bar, when it starts blinking, like its on crack I've managed to get 407 miles. Just just basic math to calculate it. Mileage at start of fill up, subtract final mileage w/ start mileage, and divide by 8 i think.~

First bar, or equally each bar, gives me about 45-50 miles, but that does not correlate w/ the above i mentioned. I'm doing about 70-78 on Hwy 101/280 up to Daly City, so not so high for me i guess...stupid school~

Kaotic, i dont know how you're getting 70 on the first bar, damn yo!

Drop it down to 60-65 mph and you'll reach 70 miles for the first bar.

[stripey]

Between 60 and 90 on first bar, and between 190 and 260 for the fifth bar to disappear.
Agree that the later bars go quicker, especially the second-to-last, and I reckon that's been somewhat cynically designed in by Toyota to inflate the apparent fuel economy.

[Yaris Hilton]

I think that's simply a matter of a float hanging on a simple pivot. The geometry means the angle is going to change faster as it goes down, if the float arm is nearly level at the top.

[stripey]

I think that's simply a matter of a float hanging on a simple pivot. The geometry means the angle is going to change faster as it goes down, if the float arm is nearly level at the top.
Sure, but it's not hard to work out an algorithm to allow for that and have a gauge that makes sense, surely?:iono:

[Yaris Hilton]

Not hard, but they probably never thought it important to do so. If lots of folks complain to the company, I'll bet they'll change it. I just learned how mine works and adapted.

[AlexNet0]

I usually get around 60-65 miles per bar, not calculating anything, just glancing at it with the trip meter set.

[CtrlAltDefeat]

Who pushes the envelope? When I get down to the blinking second bar, I panic and fill up. The book says 1.6 gal. left at slow blink and 1.1 at fast. Who has waited that long or beyond and what happened? :iono:

I hope the 1.1 gal. at fast blink is correct... When it hits and I'm too far from a station i think " well with the gas mileage I have at least 30 miles left" and I don't worry about it... I suppose what I should do is get a gas can full and test the miles from fast flash to stall, but I hate to think of the sludge in the bottom of the tank getting sucked into the fuel filter...

[Yaris Hilton]

I filled my new sedan within 5 miles of switching to the last bar a couple of days ago. I fill it fast, then when the pump clicks off I "top" it slowly till it clicks off once more, not really topped, for consistency. It held 10.05 gallons. IF it's true that there's 11.1 usable gallons in the tank, I figure there's a gallon left when the blinking last bar appears on mine. I'm not going to push my luck.

[voodoo22]

Between 60 and 90 on first bar, and between 190 and 260 for the fifth bar to disappear.
Agree that the later bars go quicker, especially the second-to-last, and I reckon that's been somewhat cynically designed in by Toyota to inflate the apparent fuel economy.

This isn't the case for our sedan. The first Bar usually takes the longest to go down, but sometimes we get more km's on the second to last bar, which is always the second longest to go down when consistent driving across an entire tank occurs.

I recently stopped keeping track of this, but for the months I did I found:

1st bar 120-160kms
2nd bar 80-115kms
3rd bar 90-115kms
4th bar 90-110kms
5th bar 110-130kms
6th bar 105-130kms
7th bar 110-140kms
8th bar 40-60kms before it starts flashing faster

I never get the high end of the range on every bar. I usually get 100-110kms on every bar except for the first and second last where I usually get 120-150kms and the total per tank is very close to or over 900kms when I fill up just under or over 40litres during summer driving, mostly hwy, getting stuck in few traffic jams and weather is good.

[Bredayaris]

I've done a personal record last time to ''get rid off'' my first bar: 112 miles.

[Tonavi]

I had one of those gas pumps that took 20 minutes + to fill the tank, but the bonus was that the tank gets wayyy topped off. I mean, you could see the gas inside the filler, that's how full it was.

It paid off, too, as I saw my record MPB. I got 112 off of the first bar (no joke), and was at 166 when it went down again.

[scape]

I don't understand why they chose 8 bars instead of 11? or atleast 10.. that way it could make a bit more sense to calculate what you have left. i think they made the first bar out of whack, even the first half, to help sell the car :D
"wow, 220 miles and still a half tank!?"
anyways, I hope the gas gauge isn't a cheap lever and bobber, it'd make more sense to use a pressure sensor.. no?

[NJBob]

That first bar seems to vary depending on how much you fill up the filler pipe. You can pump an additional gallon or more. That's why some of us get 112 + - on the first bar. It's all been said on these past 48 posts. The gauges just can't be that precise. It's mostly up to the individual to control the variables.

[Yaris Hilton]

anyways, I hope the gas gauge isn't a cheap lever and bobber, it'd make more sense to use a pressure sensor.. no?

You've got to be kidding. Cheap rules.

[RedRide]

I think that's simply a matter of a float hanging on a simple pivot. The geometry means the angle is going to change faster as it goes down, if the float arm is nearly level at the top.

Yaris Hilton is correct.

Every car I ever had seemed to hang forever at ther first "line" on the gas gauge and then, go down progressivly faster after that.

Gas gauges have always been just a rough estimate for how much gas you have.

[TLyttle]

Not every car I've owned had inaccurate gauges. I had a Morris Minor that was easy to get used to: Filler pipe full, gauge stayed still on full. Down a gallon, gauge bouncing around at full. Near empty, and you could see the float bouncing on the bottom as the fuel swished back and forth. When that gauge stopped moving, you were out of gas. Stupid me, I always thought that is how a fuel gauge was supposed to work!

[R2D2]

IF it's true that there's 11.1 usable gallons in the tank, I figure there's a gallon left when the blinking last bar appears on mine. I'm not going to push my luck.

This mirrors my own line of thinking exactly. The very first tank I ran through my Yaris I drove until the last bar had been been blinking for quite a while. When I filled up I was a little shaken when it took 10.66 gallons until the pump clicked! Evidently the fuel pump will continue to pick up fuel with a very small quantity remaining. Now if I've been driving on the second to last bar for a while I think about gassing up and most definitely by the time the last is blinking.

*** On a side note I just remembered a funny story from my childhood.

I was riding with my Dad in his pickup truck and he said "We'd better get some gas-the gas guage is almost down to 'P'".

"P?", I asked. "What does that mean?"

"Pedestrian!" he replied. ***

[ecnal]

I got 82 on my first bar today! This is the first tank that I have filled. I consider a tank to be from full (pump click +to the next dollar) until the last bar starts to blink.

[scape]

I was riding with my Dad in his pickup truck and he said "We'd better get some gas-the gas guage is almost down to 'P'".

"P?", I asked. "What does that mean?"

"Pedestrian!" he replied. ***

lol!

[ellenbetty]

I never paid attention to how many miles per bar. Some of you must have a lot of free time on your hands.

I was taught that the gas gage averages out the bounces from the fuel tank floot to come up with what to display. Since the gas float bobs up and down with every bump and twist in the road it is impossible to build a 100% accurate fuel gage. The idea that the Yaris gas tank may not be square is something interesting to think about.

The first reason I learned not to top off you tank is gasoline expands as it's gets warm, and you can lose gasoline. I had that happen after parking my Gremlin on a hill. The second reason not to top off is that most gas pumps now have a vapor capture system. The vapor capture system will suck the extra gas out. So you are just wasting money if you top off.

Back when I had a 86 Horizon it's vapor recovery system failed around 50,000 miles. Over filling the tank? Maybe. But the problem was covered by warrenty and a new after market vapor system was installed by the dealer free of charge.

[Yaris Hilton]

The vapor recovery system is why Toyota warns us not to top off.

As a long time topper, I've had problems with expanding fuel overflowing as noted above, and leaks developing in filler hoses. Gas on the concrete floor of the garage fills the house with noxious fumes. My sister had her house burned when such fuel soaked into the garage floor was ignited by a hot pan of wood stove ashes her son set on it.

I no longer top up the tank. I run it in fast till it clicks off, wait a few seconds for the foam to settle, then start it back slowly till it clicks off once more. (Doesn't take more than 1/10 gallon or so extra.) Gives me a consistent enough point of reference for tracking mileage without risking overfilling problems.