Fuel Consumption (again!) And Running Out Of Petrol

[Guest Snowy3]

Ok i accidently ran out of petrol about 100 yards from the petrol station.... BIG DOH!!!! but it did give me chance for the first time to fill the tank from nothing to absolutely jammed packed full...ok two questions....

One - people say that when you run totally out of fuel the engine gets loads of crap in it from the bottom of the tank - is this true and is it likely i have buggered my engine up? (its running fine now but am worried that through my stupidity i may of done something).

Two - I set my trip clock when i filled the tank and now its a only a quarter full and i have done only 200 miles SURELY that cant be right???? if this is the case im very concerned as even driving the short distance to work means i will have to fill up every few days. Is the car screwed?? how can i get this checked out? will garages be able to do anything?

many thanks in advance everyone. I'm disappointed as i love my RAV to bits and the dealer assured me it wasnt a gas guzzler........

RAV 4.1 S plate, 2 litre, manual, petrol

[bothwell_buyer]

The car is fitted with a petrol filter to catch the crap that comes from the tank...although in real terms, I doubt if you actually empty the tank dry. There's normally a little fuel left swilling around the bottom. It does mean that you need to check the fuel filter when the next service is due, just to be sure. If loads of rubbish had got past the filter, the injectors would be blocked/ the engine wouldn't run smoothly.

mpg figures have been discussed on this forum a few times recently; as has the accuracy of the trip meter.

First thing is the fuel guage is not accurate - it gives you an approx idea of what fuel is left. Next is the speedo and mileometer is not that accurate either - these things are built often with a degree of optimism on the reading.

The best way to check mpg is to keep a note of miles you do, and the litres of petrol you put in. Then work it out over a period of a few weeks.

mpg figures will depend very much on how you drive, and whether its the 56mph or stop and start or whatever. Driving a short distance means the engine might not get warmed up so you can imagine the engine running a rich mixture perhaps most of the time. Have a look at some of the posts recently - folk mention figures around 28-30mpg.

With my RAV and its turbo engine, I can get anywhere between 160 miles and 240 miles on a tank of petrol depending on how hard i drive it. Thats about 50 litres.

[Clive XT5]

Ok i accidently ran out of petrol about 100 yards from the petrol station.... BIG DOH!!!! but it did give me chance for the first time to fill the tank from nothing to absolutely jammed packed full...ok two questions....

One - people say that when you run totally out of fuel the engine gets loads of crap in it from the bottom of the tank - is this true and is it likely i have buggered my engine up? (its running fine now but am worried that through my stupidity i may of done something).

Two - I set my trip clock when i filled the tank and now its a only a quarter full and i have done only 200 miles SURELY that cant be right???? if this is the case im very concerned as even driving the short distance to work means i will have to fill up every few days. Is the car screwed?? how can i get this checked out? will garages be able to do anything?

many thanks in advance everyone. I'm disappointed as i love my RAV to bits and the dealer assured me it wasnt a gas guzzler........

RAV 4.1 S plate, 2 litre, manual, petrol

Snowy,

The 4.1 2 litre petrol can be a thirsty little beast especially if you are only doing short runs. The 1997 4.1 Stax my wife used to run would only average 22/23 mpg when she was going 3 miles to work in the morning and the same distance back at lunchtime plus maybe another 2 miles to the shops in the afternoon. The car was spending 75% of the time on automatic choke and combine this with permanent 4 wheel drive = LOW MPG. :( :( On a good run however it would return 38 to 40. :) :)

Don't get too screwed up about the petrol guage reading as they are never that accurate, the wifes used to have half a tank full when the guage showed a quarter. Best thing is to fill it to the brim again and divide that into the mileage shown on your trip for a more accurate guide to your actual MPG.

Clive XT5