That was embarassing - glad no one was watching.

harringtondav

Commander
Joined
May 26, 2018
Messages
2,438
...so I'll share it with everyone.
Taking the 'ol Durango to gas up. The low fuel lamp flickered once, but went off. Five gallons left. Halfway to the station, surge, sput, die. No start. Wife came with the Cherokee and pulled be home with a tow strap. No codes on the Actron scanner

Head scratch, ponder. MAP sensor?, TP sensor?, Cam Position sensor? But no fault codes. So I grab a gas can and pour in 2-3 gallons. Start, stumble, nearly die, smooth out, rev, vroom vroom. Back to the gas station and add 23 gals. to a 25 gallon tank. Face slap. Bad or stuck fuel level sender.

At least I learned my 2.4L Cherokee - 2000# towing limit - can tow 4300#.
 

alldodge

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Mar 8, 2009
Messages
40,582
My previous 2000 diesel truck ran out on the interstate with the gauge showing above 1/4 tank. So far my 08 has not had the same issue, but I still try not to let it go below a 1/4
 

Tassie 1

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Apr 13, 2018
Messages
581
My son has a 2003 Range Rover Vogue ( you could buy NZ for its new price ) the flash one with the lot,
paid 11k au for 8 months ago,

the fuel gauge stopped working on it after a month or so,
dosen't want to take it to a RR specalist dealer 100k's away..."cost too much"

work is a four min drive...4.5 mins in a normal car.
Runs out of fuel, fortunately on the downhill section of the drive home.

buggerall steering blah blah brakes.
manages to get it home without running over assorted childrens and small dogs.

lucky we live in a small town and the one constable has knocked off for the day.

don't think l'll buy a RR.
 

harringtondav

Commander
Joined
May 26, 2018
Messages
2,438
the fuel gauge stopped working on it after a month or so,

This was the first time I ran out of gas in 40 yrs. I forgot the symptoms. I sold my '95 Dodge Caravan for $600 US. The fuel sender had failed, but I had a spare tank pump/sender in my junk pile, so I threw it in on the deal.

I told the buyer about the non-fuel gage, but I told him to always fill it up and get nervous around 300 miles winter, 380-400 summer. I told him a few bucks of gas at a time wouldn't work for long.

He didn't look like he was flush enough to fill up each time, but he had a mechanic pal that would install the new sender/pump. I silently wished the mechanic luck. I didn't mess with changing the sender because I knew the iffy condition of the top of the fuel tank and the retaining ring. $600 was a buy - mechanically. But the old dog had bad rust cancer.
 

wrench 3

Commander
Joined
Aug 12, 2012
Messages
2,108
I was plowing snow at the gas station that we owned at the time. The truck was low on fuel and I went up to the pumps three times to fill it but the pumps were busy each time. Sure enough, I get half way home that night and run out of gas. So I had to walk to one of our customers houses and explain how the guy who owned the gas station ran out of gas.
 

poconojoe

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Sep 10, 2010
Messages
1,966
Probably 1975 or 1976 was driving a '69 Pontiac Tempest at the time. The fuel gauge wasn't working. I would calculate by the miles driven. Well...I was driving from Brooklyn to Staten Island over the Varrazano bridge. And while cresting over the middle of the bridge I ran out of gas. I coasted into the toll booth, paid the toll and pushed the car to the side. I walked to the nearest gas station. It wasn't close!
Same car...the speedometer crapped out...I calculated speed by the tachometer. Driving upstate NY...you guessed it....got pulled over by a state trooper.
Young and dumb....
 

MTboatguy

Fleet Admiral
Joined
Jul 8, 2010
Messages
8,988
My first plow truck, ran out of the fuel the night I bought it, fortunately my wife was following me home, guy I bought it from, told me he had just put $10 bucks worth of diesel in it before I went to look at it and purchase it, of course at that time, $10 bucks was not much and he put it in the rear tank, which come to find out was bad!

After a two hour trip into town to Walmart to pick up a portable fuel can, then back to where the truck was, the station that was open when I left was not open, fortunately the owner was still there and turned the pump back on so I could get 5 gallons of fuel, so I could get home.

On top of that the dimmer switch on the floor shorted out and I had no lights so was able to jury one of the plow lights to get home!
 

jimmbo

Supreme Mariner
Joined
May 24, 2004
Messages
12,944
The only cars I have ever ran out of gas with were the ones with Low Fuel warning lights.
 

Grub54891

Vice Admiral
Joined
Jun 17, 2012
Messages
5,908
Yeah, low on fuel, had my blinker on, waiting for traffic to clear to make the turn. Poof, stalled. Had to push it into the fuel pump area. On normal days, you were lucky to see 2 cars in town, that day all 20 neighbors went through at once, and it wasn't even a funeral....
 
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