I can never get my fuel tank full - ever.

The tank is what, 15 or 16 gallons, correct?

Well, whenever I run it down to E (or just like 1/16" above E), I can only get about 11.5-12 gallons in there before fuel starts to come out the filler (where I'm filling - read on about this).

Also, when I pump, it almost never lets me get a "full" tank without stopping a million times like it is full. I have to sit there and keep manually restarting the fuel flow after it stops, I do this until I get fuel to come out of the neck where the nozzle is so I know that is all the gas I "can" get in there.

Also, whenever I take the gas cap off, it releases a bunch of pressure, like the tank isn't properly vented or something.

Any idea on what the hell is up?

 

Thats beacause you still have fuel in the tank when its on E, its designed that way so you have a little more fuel than you think you do. as far as filling up, try slowing down the pump when you fill up, some gas pumps flow more fuel than others and if you get to a pump that flows alot it will keep shuting off until you slow it down a bit.

 

Slow it down, how would I do that? So, will my low fuel light come on when I have about a gallon left (assuming it works) - and a little more fuel = about 4 gallons?

(I mean, hell, I never know how far into the red I am because the damn needle always moves when the car is moving - and changes depending on how it sits)

 

to slow down the fuel flow at the pump, just dont squeeze the handle all the way. my car does the same thing. i cant hold the handle had full blast or else the pump will stop. just dont squeeze the handle that hard and you will prolly be able to get more fuel in the tank.

 

Oh, okay, I'll try that.

So, it holds about 2-3 gallons in the tank for a reserve when you get past E?

 

maybe your float is bad inside the tank?

 

Would that cause the fuel gauge to fluctuate when the angle of the car changes?

 

You're kidding ..... right?

 

a fuel gauge isn't a "gauge" its more of a guide. i didn't realize people still relied on these things, thats your first mistake to running out of gas. i always drive 150 to 200 miles and then fill up, cause i know thats about half a tank of gas, but thats just me im paranoid about running out of gas.

as for the pump stopping several times during fill up, i have had this happen to me a before, i agree with slowing the flow of gas down, but also, it would help me when i turned the handle 90 degrees counter clockwise to face the back of the car while pumping, i figure it has the same effect of pouring a glass of beer, keeps it from foaming up as much.

 

Also, so what is the deal with the gauge bouncing around with incline change? Is that the float being stupid?

 

in short..... yes

 

So how would one fix that?

 

well i dont think yours is actually broken, its just off a little bit. i wouldn't worry about fixing it. its just an old car, these things happen

 

yeah i have the same problem with the fuel gauge thing.
always changes on me. so i dont really ever know how much gas i really do have.
it doesnt bother me to much.
i normaly fill it up when my tank is 3/4 empty

 

Your problem isn't unusual. It is random as far as I can tell though. Some cars have the smaller capacity, some don't.

My 89 has never been able to pump a full tank of gas in. I even drove past the bottom line on the fuel gauge and could hear the pump humming as I pulled into the station. In that case, I got 13.1 gallons of gas in. And that was as much as it would take. Even inching the trigger a half an inch and it would shut off. When the car was new in 1989, it still had the small tank issue. So I don't think it's anything to do with the float being old or anything like that.

To make matters more interesting, I talked to another person at a car show with an 89 GTA. Original owner. I asked him how much gas he can put in it. He pulled out a receipt showing 16.1 gallons. I was stunned. NOT FAIR! His car was a 305 but from looking on the board, the engine choice doesn't seem to make any difference in who has the full 15.5 gallon tank and who has the smaller tank.

Most of the time I can get about 11 gallons of gas in. At 1/4 on the fuel gauge, it worked out to 7.7 gallons. It's frustrating when my economical 4 cylinder Sunbird with a 13.7 gallon tank can accept more gas during a fill up than my V8 gas sucking GTA.

 

Or maybe the fuel station pump is off (and ripping you off at the same time) - saying you put in 16 gallons when in fact it was only 13.

 

if they are ripping you off. its not hard to figure out.

 

There is nothing to fix. This is usual for these cars. When your fuel level starts getting lower, say around 1/4 tank, when you take turns or are on a banked road, the fuel moves to one side of the gas tank by centrifugal force. The float that measures fuel level in the tank interprets this as a drop in fuel level. I'm sure you notice it goes back to what it was once you straighten out.

Also, though the fuel capacity for these cars are 15.5 or 16.5 gal depending on the year, that is TANK capacity. The filler neck could easily hold another .5 gallon or so.

I agree with all the other posts regarding speed of the pump delivery. If you are using the same gas station pumps, the auto stop could be triggering prematurely. From all I've read here, it really seems like your car is ok. It is a good thing for your car to vent when you remove the gas cap.

One other thing- our beloved F-bodies have no low fuel light, at least with standard guages. They expect to be fed, LOL!

 

The gas is spraying back at the nozzle and triggering the pump shutoff.

Don't put the nozzle all the way in the fuel pipe.

Pull it back out about a 1/2" so the gas doesn't spray back against the shutoff.

 

One interesting thing I noticed is that my old '88 Firebird had a very touchy gas gauge. Especially around a 1/4 tank, any turns (right turns were the most noticable) would cause drastic changes in the fuel level on the gauge. This is normal, and I understand why this happens. When I would fill up with gas, as soon as I turn the key on, the gauge would quickly rise to full. Again, expected.

However, my '91 GTA doesn't exhibit the same behavior. The gauge reading seems like it is averaged over time. Going on an exit ramp with a 1/4 tank doesn't affect the level noticably (where my '88 bird would show past the E). I would venture to guess that the GTA might have a tank with better baffling to keep the fuel where it needs to be. But, when I fill up, it also takes the gauge about 1-2 minutes to read full (negating the baffling reasoning). Like I said, it seems like the level is averaged over some value of time. Has anyone else noticed this kind of behavior?? Just curious.