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Post by workingclassdog on Jan 25, 2019 14:47:46 GMT
I never have ran out.. come close but so far so good knock on wood.
Once I was driving to work and forgot I needed to fill up before I left (low light thing on already).. I was merrily driving along and about 6 miles or so from work (25 miles from home to work), I happened to look down at my gauge and it was WAY below the line by then. I freaked. I thought for sure I was going to run out. Of course I was sitting in traffic with no where to go. I turned off everything, even the radio, put it in neutral and sat and inched my way to the nearest gas station.. I probably had literally a drop left by the time I pulled into the station.
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iowgirl
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 4,134
Jun 25, 2014 22:52:46 GMT
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Post by iowgirl on Jan 25, 2019 14:52:46 GMT
I hate getting gas....my Explorer has some weird thing that causes the pump to shut off every. five. seconds. SO annoying! Sometimes it works fine and sometimes it doesn't and when it happens, it makes me so frustrated! The fix is $150 and I'm too cheap to get it done. ha ha I had the same issue on my Expedition. DH, who never fills it, used it once time and took it in to get it fixed, because it took forever to fill. I can't remember what the issue was, but if I recall, it cost more than $150. I live on a gravel road, so stuff gets clogged up. It still does it a little, but mostly with my pump at home. When I go to a gas station, it works better. I need to buy a higher quality pump handle for home. I tend to coast into the pumps at home on fumes. And occasionally, the bulk tank is empty. Then i'm screwed, cause it's 15 miles back to any gas station. I usually just call my bulk guy and have him come fill the tank, and he usually fills my truck too, cause it's sitting there - lol
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Post by originalvanillabean on Jan 25, 2019 14:55:23 GMT
I RARELY let my tank get below 1/2 a tank. One because I hate to get gas because I need to, and prefer to get it when it is convenient. Two, I have preferred places to go (usually Costco because they consistently have the cheapest premium gas, in my area).
My father would say "it's that midwestern upbringing". In the winter, the rule was "don't let your tank get below 1/2 and always have food in the house".
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Post by crimsoncat05 on Jan 25, 2019 15:16:15 GMT
The low fuel warning light comes on in our car with approx 15 gallons of gas in the car. It's really expensive to repair so we live with it but we are meticulous about setting the trip meter and fill up weekly. Ah? What are you driving? My truck only held 18 gallons. someone probably already answered this, but I think she means it's an error... not that her gas tank is REALLY HUGE... lol. So the low fuel indicator light isn't any help to her. I have a low fuel indicator light, AND the 'miles to empty' thing. But sometimes I just don't realize how fast the fuel level is dropping there at the end-- and it depends on how bad the traffic is. I drive about 42 miles one way to/from work, and it can say I have more than 50 miles worth of gas at the beginning of my commute, but it drops like a rock on the highway, and I'm just praying that it makes it until I get into town to stop. I'm also guessing / assuming that even when the trip odometer shows '0 miles to empty' that there really is a bit of reserve gasoline in the gas tank... I just don't know how much.
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lurkyloo
Full Member
Posts: 284
Dec 5, 2018 6:53:08 GMT
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Post by lurkyloo on Jan 25, 2019 15:41:21 GMT
We live in a state where you don’t even have to pump your own gas. No excuses, right?
Last week my gas light was on, and I had 11 miles left. I needed to drive to the main city, so I started to pull in to one of our town’s two gas stations, and I spotted That Guy who is super nice but also super chatty, asks me the same ten questions every time, gives my dog an uncomfortable amount of face petting by reaching into the car, and just generally....
Yeah. I drove on by, 6 miles to the next one. I made it. Pathetic, maybe. I wasn’t up for it that day.
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Post by Susie_Homemaker on Jan 25, 2019 15:46:58 GMT
to the peaps that like living on the edge- You're welcome!
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Post by crimsoncat05 on Jan 25, 2019 16:03:48 GMT
either the Kia Soul info listed is wrong, or I've been extremely lucky. My light comes on when the display shows approximately '50 miles to empty' and I've driven past the point where the display says '0 miles' of driving / gasoline available. Not on PURPOSE, mind you, but I have done it, and I've always made it to the gas station.
(so far, anyway. <crosses fingers>)
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Post by katlady on Jan 25, 2019 16:09:14 GMT
My light comes on at 50 too, not what the chart shows. I think a lot of it depends on where you are driving your car. If I fill up after a long highway drive, my computer shows I can go over 325 miles on a tank of gas. If I fill up after a lot of city driving, the computer only shows about 280 miles on a tank of gas.
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Post by sean&marysmommy on Jan 25, 2019 16:11:35 GMT
It only ever happened to me once, with a seriously old car, when I didn't realize my gas gauge was broken. It said I had about 1/8 of a tank and I did not. Of course I ran out of gas around midnight, in the rain, in a bad area of town. I had to call my dad to come help me, lol. I was still in college at the time and that was my default way of solving problems.
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Post by aprilfay21 on Jan 25, 2019 16:23:32 GMT
When I was living check to check, I ran out a couple of times. Sometimes I couldn't get gas until I cashed my check, or my direct deposit hit, so I had to fun on fumes and prayers until I had my money. I've coasted to the gas station on fumes coming from the bank.
Oh, and recently I ran out of gas with my gauge showing almost a half a tank. I've figured out I need to get gas when my gauge shows I have about 74 miles left or I'll run out, since we haven't gotten it fixed yet.
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Post by FuzzyMutt on Jan 25, 2019 16:23:39 GMT
I've run out of gas, several times. I seem to have matured out of it in the last 10 years or so. Or I pee more. No, it's got to be matured. I would usually run out of gas on road trips. Not wanting to stop any more than absolutely necessary, I would wait til it got low. But then I'd be in this random part of the country that I didn't know, and (this was mostly before GPS...) I'd hate to turn off the exit because it says "Citgo 24 hours" and then find out it's 5 poorly marked stop signs through a crap shuttered town and now I'm way off route! NO! I'll wait till the next one- you know.. the one I can see from the road? But alot of those you don't see til you've passed the exit! UGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH. Or the time I used the same small gas station in a WVA town for about 5 years of at least 3 trips a year. They had great coffee and would refill your existing cup for .25 (I am a night driver) so I'd literally time it for that spot! AND THEY CLOSED SHOP!!!! Now, I pee more. I'm more willing to pay full price for a coffee (road trip budget isn't down to a $15 or $20 buffer) so I stop more. I also used to know which states had cheaper gas, and would put it off. Now, I'm more likely to pay that extra .25 a gallon to not have to get out of the car twice.
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Post by JustCallMeMommy on Jan 25, 2019 16:30:04 GMT
I have run out before, though it was before cars gave you mileage counts. I'll admit though - I came closer than I like on Tuesday. There aren't a lot of gas stations that I consider safe to visit at night near my work or even on the way home. It was dark, and I was going to an area where I thought I would pass several friendlier and better lit stations on the way, but it turns out, there weren't any. I went home a direction I knew there would be a station, but it was one that I didn't like (dark, not much traffic at the station), so I put in just a few dollars worth and got outta there.
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Montannie
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,486
Location: Big Sky Country
Jun 25, 2014 20:32:35 GMT
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Post by Montannie on Jan 25, 2019 16:31:12 GMT
To the guy on the side of the road, if it's been cold where he is, maybe he's burned more gas than he knew warming up the car? I dunno.
I've never run out, knock wood. Close, but never been stranded.
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Post by Delta Dawn on Jan 25, 2019 16:56:05 GMT
I have never and I don’t drive with less than half a tank. I play the gas game in my head what day to buy will be the cheapest. I don’t care about getting gas either way because I need the security of having enough in the tank.
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Deleted
Posts: 0
May 18, 2024 20:07:44 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jan 25, 2019 18:05:04 GMT
to the peaps that like living on the edge- You're welcome! The traverse one is wrong! Totally wrong
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Post by papersilly on Jan 25, 2019 18:12:30 GMT
i've only run out of gas once when i was 20 years ago. in the excitement of having a new car, i didn't keep an eye on the gas gauge. i ran out of gas across the street from a cemetery but thankfully, AAA came to the rescue. haven't run out of gas since.
i remember my mom would ALWAYS get gas when her meter dipped to 1/4 tank. i wish i had that kind of discipline but now i just wait for my gas light to come on and then i get gas. i don't wait until the cruising range dips to below 10 miles but i do wait for the light.
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Post by pierkiss on Jan 25, 2019 18:15:01 GMT
I once ran out of gas. I was 18, and out driving my car around town. I noticed it was low, but didn’t think anything of it. Kept driving. It got lower. The light came on. I was still convinced it wasn’t yet time to get gas. I also had some weird anxiety about pumping my own gas and using my gas card my dad gave me. I was always afraid that something would go wrong and that I wouldn’t be able to fix it and would look like an idiot standing at the pump not knowing what to do. (I have anxiety, it’s really weird).
So, I ran out of gas. But I seriously didn’t think that that was what was wrong with my car! 😂. I thought that something terrible had happened with my engine. Hysterics on the side of the road ensued. My parents were out of town, so I called a family friend to come get me. She came and got me, and drove me home. She took my keys, and have them to her husband who is awesome at cars. Later that night he and his son went out to look at the car.
They drove it back to my house. I was completely amazed at their knowledge of cars. I said, “oh my gosh! You fixed it already! You guys are awesome! What was wrong with it?” And with as much of a straight face as the Dad could muster he said “you were out of gas. I put some in it. Don’t do that again” and handed me the keys back. Then they left, laughing and all. 😂
I felt so incredibly stupid. But also really happy that my car was not actually broken. That’s never happened to me again. 😁
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Post by pierkiss on Jan 25, 2019 18:17:25 GMT
I know people that know exactly how far they can drive with the meter in empty and do so. Some people are comfortable living on the edge. My van will tell me the distance to empty (DTE) before my light goes on. When the light comes on I know I have ~20 miles to get to a gas station.
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Post by stingfan on Jan 25, 2019 18:20:26 GMT
As a teenager, I shared a car with my siblings. It was my turn to use the car and whoever had it before me left it on E. I ran out of gas on the way to the gas station. I had to knock on the door of the house it died in front of to call for help. Good times...
That was the only time I've run out of gas.
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janeinbama
Pearl Clutcher
Posts: 3,174
Location: Alabama
Jan 29, 2015 16:24:49 GMT
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Post by janeinbama on Jan 25, 2019 18:37:22 GMT
I have coasted into the gas stations a time or two. The last time I ran out of gas was 25+ years ago and I wasn't even headed to a gas station!!! I have generally filled up at 1/4 tank, but we have moved further out and I fill up as it dips below 1/2.
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Post by jeremysgirl on Jan 25, 2019 18:43:18 GMT
I never run out of gas. I always make sure I have above a quarter of a tank. Why? Because my remote starter won't work if I'm below quarter tank. And you don't want to live in Michigan in winter time without the remote starter. I like my windshield to defrost and the car to heat up a bit before I get in to drive it.
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Post by MichyM on Jan 25, 2019 18:47:18 GMT
I bow down to those of you who don’t let their tank get under 1/2 full or 1/4 full!
My small car only holds 11 gallons of gas :/. Most of my driving is in city, on hills, so my gas mileage is probably 20-22-ish MPG (it’s an AWD which decreases the MPG). If I refilled at a 1/2 tank, I feel like I’d be at the gas station all the time!
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Post by AngieandSnoopy on Jan 25, 2019 19:30:11 GMT
Years ago, my sister ran out of gas TWICE before she realized her new car had a bad gas gauge, her car was EMPTY at one quarter. She learned to fill up at 1/2.
So far, I've never run out except when it was xh's fault. I wanted to fill up in Dallas but for some stupid reason, he wanted to wait until we got to Lake Worth. Well, ran out at the exit just before Lake Worth... all those gas stations we passed and he pitched a fit when I wanted to stop.
Three times, late DH and I nearly ran out of gas but managed to get to a station just in time. The first time was early on, he remembered he was going to get gas right after he picked me up but forgot until we were headed down the mountain and suddenly looked at his gauge. No gas stations anywhere near us. He did a lot of coasting and NO A/C and we were able to get gas before we ran out. He vowed to never forget he was low again!
The second time, it was NOT his fault. We had filled up in Santa Fe since it was a long trip north to Raton where we always topped off the tank before continuing north. We stopped for the night at a rest area (where it was allowed) and parked our truck/travel trailer near some other overnighters. It was a windy night. He woke up, he and one of the dogs heard a weird noise but went back to sleep. The next day, after continuing on to Raton and noticed the gas gauge had dropped to empty when it would have had lots of gas.
He realized then that the weird noise was someone siphoning gas out of the tank. He said just as well that he didn't get up to investigate since they might have been armed. Boy, we started praying, he drove as gas conservative as he could considering we were pulling a travel trailer and going more uphill. We decided we'd take the very first exit since we thought there was a gas station not far off it. We DID make it with a gas fume or two to spare!
The last time, we had sold the travel trailer and bought a used RV with a defective gas gauge, previous owners did warn us. One time his calculations were off and we put 50 gallons of gas in our 50 gallon gas tank. He was oh boy, we must have coasted in on fumes. We are going to be filling up when I think we have half a tank!
My current DH says it is better for a fuel pump to never let it get below a quarter of a tank so we try to fill up between a quarter and a half or every payday even if it isn't down that low. Only problem we've had was the old truck he had for a while, we knew to fill up when it got to half a tank. I was taking him to work when my van was out of commission and I ran out just as we got into town, about 1/2 mile from the first gas station. He said, no, that can't be out of gas.
Well, I got it started and managed to get to the convenience store and stopped at the pumps. Yep, got there on fumes, it was proven when we saw how much gas the tank took. It was a miracle that I got it started again. We remember that when it is miserable weather and we don't want to pump gas but do so anyway so we won't risk running out!
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The Great Carpezio
Pearl Clutcher
Something profound goes here.
Posts: 2,930
Jun 25, 2014 21:50:33 GMT
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Post by The Great Carpezio on Jan 25, 2019 19:51:42 GMT
I can't explain why someone would run out a lot, but I can think of a few reasons (most stated already) why someone might once or twice have it happen: - Warning/gauge quits working
- Someone else was driving your car down to zero and you didn't notice when you got in
- Or, you are driving someone else's car and they drove it down and didn't tell you
- It is negative bajillion outside (like today it was literally -13 without windchill), and you have magical thinking
- Distracted and don't hear the "bing"
- Forgot you needed gas and are running too late to stop
- Overconfidence that you can "make it"
- No money
- Thought your spouse filled it and didn't check
- Driving a long and low access road in a car you don't realize has a smaller tank than you are used to (rental car/RV etc...)
Basically: procrastination, ignorance, over confidence, faulty mechanics, inattention
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Post by stampinfraulein on Jan 25, 2019 21:11:39 GMT
All right, I'll confess. I ran out of gas 2 summers ago with my daughter in the car, parked in front of a garage sale. My low fuel indicator comes on when there is still 40 miles left and I was only maybe 2 miles from home so I thought I still had plenty. I parked on a hill in front of the garage sale and I think that was enough to tip all the fuel to one end so it couldn't reach the pipe that takes it to the engine. I was SO embarrassed. The man holding the sale gave me the gas in his gas can and I paid him for it but I still felt like a nincompoop. And swore my daughter to secrecy because my husband would NEVER let me hear the end of it!
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Post by crazy4scraps on Jan 25, 2019 21:12:19 GMT
RE: the chart posted above, my Escape will start dinging at me when the Miles to Empty display on the dash says 35. I’ve never tested it on this one to see how far it will actually go after that. I don’t like that it waits until it’s that empty before it starts dinging.
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Post by flanz on Jan 25, 2019 22:39:11 GMT
I haven't read the replies, but I don't understand it either. I had never allowed my tank to go below 1/5 or so back in the day... then we had an earthquake nearby and no gas stations with power to pump any gas. We also live in an area where we need to evacuate due to wildfire sometimes, so I usually fill up when it dips just below 1/2.
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Post by laureljean on Jan 26, 2019 1:20:44 GMT
I have run out of gas once. Only once. I was able to turn into the gas station and coast up to the pump. That was enough for me.
Some of us are procrastinators and have to learn the hard way.
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Post by 950nancy on Jan 26, 2019 4:11:59 GMT
I RARELY let my tank get below 1/2 a tank. One because I hate to get gas because I need to, and prefer to get it when it is convenient. Two, I have preferred places to go (usually Costco because they consistently have the cheapest premium gas, in my area). My father would say "it's that midwestern upbringing". In the winter, the rule was "don't let your tank get below 1/2 and always have food in the house". I grew up in the middle of the Midwest and laugh at that saying. Half a tank? That's 200 miles left to go. I am a rebel. ETA: I am pretty anal about many things. My friends can count on me to be the one to be uber prepared and ready to go. There are two exceptions to this. I pack right before we leave for a trip and run my gas down to the last gallon or so before I fill up.
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