Petrol Tank Capacity

[McGeoch]

My understanding is that the fuel tank in the Corolla TS is 43L? Is that correct?

I can never seem to get more than 35L in the tank when refilling from empty. 

[Cyker]

Toyota have a very conservative 'reserve' because they really really don't want you to run out of fuel, which can be particularly bad in a hybrid as if you run out of fuel and the traction Battery gets so low (Because it can't charge itself with the engine), that it can't start the engine then, you're in big trouble as the car will need to go to a dealer and sit there for months while they petition the Mythical Keepers Of The Legendary Toyota Super Traction Battery Charger to lend it to them so they can jump-start the traction Battery.

If it's any consolation, my Yaris supposedly has a 36L tank but usually the most I get into it is 28L. It always makes me laugh a bit that that gives me 400-500 miles - It's ridiculous!  All my previous cars would need 10-20L more for the same range!!  

[FROSTYBALLS]

Toyota tend to be generous in terms of fuel tank reserves.

Look in the index of the owners manual for 'warning lights', and then 'low fuel light', go to the relevant page, and that will show the reserve when the low fuel light comes on.

[Obsidian Estate]

You'll never get the full amount in unless you drain the tank empty..

[Bper]

Hi, Petrol stations typically dispense fuel in litres directly.  So, if you're only able to put in around 35 litres in your Toyota Corolla TS, that's likely close to the actual amount going into the tank.

 Even though the advertised tank capacity is 43 litres, some of that volume might be reserved space that the fuel pump can't reach. This reserve is there for safety reasons, to prevent fuel overflow and potential damage to the car's emissions system. As mentioned before, pump calibration can be slightly off. While regulations are in place for accuracy, there might be a minor variance that could account for the difference between the advertised 43 litres and the 35 litres you're able to pump in.It's important to note that as long as you're able to fill up to around 35 litres and your car is running well, it likely isn't a major issue. The remaining space in the tank is for safety purposes, and 35 litres should still provide you with a good driving range.

[Parts-King]

Here we go again....................... 😂😂😂

[McGeoch]

16 hours ago, Obsidian Estate said:

You'll never get the full amount in unless you drain the tank empty..

It was just an observation really.

In all other vehicles I’ve previously owned, I’ve been able to refill the tank to quite close to the tank capacity when refilling from empty.

Clearly the Corolla has a large reserve as others have said. So that answers my query.

 

[McGeoch]

9 hours ago, Bper said:

Hi, Petrol stations typically dispense fuel in litres directly.  So, if you're only able to put in around 35 litres in your Toyota Corolla TS, that's likely close to the actual amount going into the tank.

 Even though the advertised tank capacity is 43 litres, some of that volume might be reserved space that the fuel pump can't reach. This reserve is there for safety reasons, to prevent fuel overflow and potential damage to the car's emissions system. As mentioned before, pump calibration can be slightly off. While regulations are in place for accuracy, there might be a minor variance that could account for the difference between the advertised 43 litres and the 35 litres you're able to pump in.It's important to note that as long as you're able to fill up to around 35 litres and your car is running well, it likely isn't a major issue. The remaining space in the tank is for safety purposes, and 35 litres should still provide you with a good driving range.

It was just an observation I’d noticed when refilling. I’m not worried or bothered by it, just curious. 😃
 

I personally don’t care how much goes in or the range from a full tank, I refill until the pump clicks.

I’ve just never had a car which such a large reserve before! Just wandered the reason for the 8L approx reserve and my query has been answered. 

[McGeoch]

8 hours ago, Parts-King said:

Here we go again....................... 😂😂😂

🫣 🫣
 

I didn’t realise it was a touchy subject!

Just curious why I can’t get close to the tank capacity even when refilling from 0 miles!

I’m not troubled, worried or concerned by it.  Just something I’d noticed.

[McGeoch]

So does anyone know how far you can drive when you hit zero miles of fuel remaining?

I know it’s variable depending on outdoor temperature, speed, road type, how heavy car is etc etc but I have driven very economically for about 10 miles on zero miles remaining!

I estimate the reserve to be about 8 litres so that could be quite a few miles but I’m not prepared to test it out!

[yossarian247]

55 minutes ago, McGeoch said:

So does anyone know how far you can drive when you hit zero miles of fuel remaining?

I know it’s variable depending on outdoor temperature, speed, road type, how heavy car is etc etc but I have driven very economically for about 10 miles on zero miles remaining!

I estimate the reserve to be about 8 litres so that could be quite a few miles but I’m not prepared to test it out!

I've never tried it with the Corolla, but my wife once drove our Auris 1.6 (non-hybrid) 40 miles home with the range showing as zero miles. I wasn't best pleased as at the time we lived about 7 miles from the nearest petrol station. I was debating whether to take the other car and fill up a can, but in the end I thought sod it, I'll risk it, and took the Auris. I got to the petrol station with no problem, brimmed the tank, and from the amount I was I able to fill it with I think there must've still been at least 6 litres left even then. So, based on that I think it would have gone 80+ miles with tank showing empty and the range 0.

[taxidriver50005]

1 hour ago, McGeoch said:

🫣 🫣
 

I didn’t realise it was a touchy subject!

Just curious why I can’t get close to the tank capacity even when refilling from 0 miles!

I’m not troubled, worried or concerned by it.  Just something I’d noticed.

In my previous prius I've run 70 miles from when range said zero 

[Cyker]

I've only tried something like this in my old Mk1 D4D, which didn't have a range meter (Or GOM (Guess-O-Meter) as the EV folks rightly call them  ), but when it hit the last block of the fuel gauge and started flashing, I managed 100 miles before I lost my nerve and dived into a petrol station  

IIRC I still was quite a few litres off what the stated capacity was so it could probably have gone another 50 miles at least!! The Mk1 D4D was insanely efficient for its time though - Regularly got 450-550 miles out of it from 35-38L of diesel without even trying. It took Toyota 20 years to make a car that could out-do that!!!

[TonyHSD]

I had done 40 miles I negative and managed to refill 40ltr so I had more to go. Not a pleasant drive knowing you are at the edge. 

[Parts-King]

15 hours ago, McGeoch said:

🫣 🫣
 

I didn’t realise it was a touchy subject!

Just curious why I can’t get close to the tank capacity even when refilling from 0 miles!

I’m not troubled, worried or concerned by it.  Just something I’d noticed.

Sorry, just my weird sense of humour. We get lots of posts saying how much is the reserve tank and why doesn't the car run out of fuel when the "range" is on zero. Just put fuel in the ruddy thing 🤣🤣🤣

[Cyker]

Agreed - The correct line of thinking when it's getting close to zero should be "Where's the nearest petrol station??", not "I wonder how much further I can go before the engine cuts out..."  

I usually start thinking about refuelling at 1/4 tank or ~100 miles of range left - It means I can pick and choose the best station and complete my journey without any risk of getting stranded!

 

[Parts-King]

Being a tight Northerner last week I went out of my way to fill up at Morrisons which was the cheapest in the area, only to brim the car with super unleaded fuel at 10p per litre more..................that'll learn me  🤦‍♂️😂😂😂

[Cyker]

But now you can experience the huge power and smoothness increase when you hoon it back to work and/or home!   

[yossarian247]

43 minutes ago, Parts-King said:

Being a tight Northerner last week I went out of my way to fill up at Morrisons which was the cheapest in the area, only to brim the car with super unleaded fuel at 10p per litre more..................that'll learn me  🤦‍♂️😂😂😂

We're lucky now to have a family-owned village petrol station not far away which price-matches the local supermarkets. The downside is their forecourt is tiny with only two pumps, and the easily accessible pump near the roadside is Super Unleaded E5 only..the regular E10 unleaded pump is hidden near the back, and has a queue at busy times. I usually just use whichever pump is free when I drive in, which tends to mean my car alternates constantly between E5 and E10 every other fill up. I reckon therefore the car ends up running on an 'Super-ish E7.5' mix most of the time!

[AndrueC]

On 3/22/2024 at 5:33 PM, McGeoch said:

It was just an observation really.

In all other vehicles I’ve previously owned, I’ve been able to refill the tank to quite close to the tank capacity when refilling from empty.

Clearly the Corolla has a large reserve as others have said. So that answers my query.

It varies. The reserve on the several Honda Jazz I owned over the years was pretty mad. It was partly due to the shape of the tank as it's under the seating area and thus quite flat. The warning light often came on just because you'd gone round a curve but once on the light stayed on until you filled up. I was once touring Yorkshire and the light came on when the tank was still almost half full!

But typically when the orange light came on the Jaz had over a hundred miles of range left.

[TonyHSD]

On 3/23/2024 at 12:30 PM, yossarian247 said:

We're lucky now to have a family-owned village petrol station not far away which price-matches the local supermarkets. The downside is their forecourt is tiny with only two pumps, and the easily accessible pump near the roadside is Super Unleaded E5 only..the regular E10 unleaded pump is hidden near the back, and has a queue at busy times. I usually just use whichever pump is free when I drive in, which tends to mean my car alternates constantly between E5 and E10 every other fill up. I reckon therefore the car ends up running on an 'Super-ish E7.5' mix most of the time!

Actually my Auris hybrid runs the best on exactly this “ Super-ish E7.5” mix , however the E10 needs to be from a good  BP (M&S) or Shell and not from any supermarket. E5 from Tesco is acceptable. 

[Parts-King]

On 3/23/2024 at 12:28 PM, Cyker said:

But now you can experience the huge power and smoothness increase when you hoon it back to work and/or home!   

Never noticed a thing😂😂 ........cheapest petrol available does it for me 😎