"X miles before empty"

Haha!

Digital at that.

 

Those numbers can never be accurate because the amount of consumption will change when the engine is being driven hard or easy.

 

There's an image of the owner's manual above, although I think it's slightly incorrect. The image shows "please refuel" but says it means there's less than 3.2 gallons left, but it would be more accurate to say 2.2 gallons left at "please refuel".

 

Third gen is a 3 gallon “reserve” so the fuel pump can stay submerged, cool, and happy. It’s not recommended to use that “reserve” regularly because it could lead to severe damage to the fuel pump

 

Citation? You'd think if it was critical for the fuel pump, they'd design the tank to have an unusable area.

 

That’s how a fuel pump works, it is submerged in the tank. The pump can’t be in an “unusable” area of the tank. Even if it was in an “unusable” area, there still needs to be gas flowing through it to keep it cool so it doesn’t get damaged so running it dry would still damage it

 

Nobody is suggesting to run it dry, and obviously there could be an unusable area of the tank, if they designed the pump intake and tank to do so. The fact that they don't means it's probably ok for the pump body to operate unsubmerged at least some of the time. The pump isn't gonna over heat if you go up / down a long grade or something.

Running the tank empty won't cause a catastrophic failure of the fuel pump. Accelerated wear, maybe.

 

It’s not going to cause an immediate failure, no. But if you keep doing it over and over, it will. That’s why Toyota designed it like that so people will fill up before the tank is actually empty

 

So you think they took the trouble to design it so that normal behavior (run until the gauge hits E, gas light comes on) could cause wear, but couldn't be bothered to design it so it's idiot proof and never could be unsubmerged?

 

You two and your bickering are so cute

 

Bored and every so slightly hungover, but it's lunch time so I'm about to solve all those problems!

 

Im counting down the hours until I can start creating a hangover

 

if you are going to run it low like that for test or whatever,
at least carry a full gas can with you. i keep a 1 liter bottle
im my bed glove box for the hell of it. i usually just fill up when im at around
1/2 tank and its convenient

 

Anyone around that was driving back in 1973/4 remembers the gas lines and got in the habit of filling up your tank when you got to the halfway point, since you weren't sure you would be able to find gas to fill up the next time you needed to!

 

Man I hated that gas shortage fiasco.

 

Yeah, thank you Jimmy Carter.

 

Odd or even.

 

I’m not sure you understand how difficult that would be... a fuel pump requires fuel flowing through it to be properly cooled, so if you run that pump dry it will cause damage. You’re hung up on the idea that it only requires to be submerged to be cooled but that’s not the only thing it needs. People can still run it dry and cause damage

 

mine is 420 till empty when filled up, shaking truck to get the last drops in..

 

I went to 4 miles to empty.. it took 18.6 gallons even with a 10 second burp and trying to add more..