[DangerousDave]

Almost late for work when the display appeared today, I stopped to put in one gallon of more expensive fuel until I could get to my less expensive place later today. At the fuel station the display said I had 14 more miles to empty. After the one gallon, the 14 miles did not reset even after turning off and on the car or pressing the Return arrow. The analog gauge did show slightly more fuel of course.

Of course I know not to rely on this display, I believe it's calculated under current driving conditions and to fill up before it gets close. However, I assume there must be some minimum amount of fuel being put into the car to reset it after the alert is displayed? Obviously one gallon isn't enough but I'm curious.

 

[AML]

You probably need to fill enough to get you out of "reserve" before it adds to the DTE.

 

[tonyreo]

I find the "Distance Until Empty" is wrong.
When mine comes on I wait until it reads 0 miles until empty and then fill up.
It always takes about 14.5 gallons which means I have 2.5 gallons remaining.

 

[cb91710]

I find the "Distance Until Empty" is wrong.
When mine comes on I wait until it reads 0 miles until empty and then fill up.
It always takes about 14.5 gallons which means I have 2.5 gallons remaining.

Very typical of Toyota.
When the light comes on, you've got quite a bit left. The DTE will probably show zero not long after the light comes on... mine is very close to when the gauge hits E, but at that point, I'm still only getting 10.5-11 gallons into my Corolla and it's a 13.5 gallon tank.
My '08 Tacoma was the same way (light and gauge only, no display)

 

[sethr]

Never been that low. Bad in the winter because of condensation. Summer it helps cool fuel pump AND keeps from sloshing extra junk off the bottom.
In either case I rarely go much below half.
But DTE is never the same.

Sent from my STH100-1 using Tapatalk

 

[cb91710]

"Junk off the bottom" went the way of the dodo with polymer tanks.
I've seen tanks dropped that had 100k on them and they were spotless.
If you are getting junk in your tank, your gas stations have bypassed their filters.

Besides... the pump pickup is on the bottom of the tank... it does not float on top.

Keeping the pump cool?
Not a problem on most vehicles.
GM is notorious for fuel pump failures and the dealerships often tell the customer that it is because they ran their tank's low, but it is mainly because GM pumps simply fail.
I've had one Ford pump die at 35k (never ran the tank low)
Never had a Toyota pump go... close to a million miles on maybe 5 or 6 vehicles and regularly run to the light.

 

[sethr]

"Junk off the bottom" went the way of the dodo with polymer tanks.
I've seen tanks dropped that had 100k on them and they were spotless.
If you are getting junk in your tank, your gas stations have bypassed their filters.

Besides... the pump pickup is on the bottom of the tank... it does not float on top.

Keeping the pump cool?
Not a problem on most vehicles.
GM is notorious for fuel pump failures and the dealerships often tell the customer that it is because they ran their tank's low, but it is mainly because GM pumps simply fail.
I've had one Ford pump die at 35k (never ran the tank low)
Never had a Toyota pump go... close to a million miles on maybe 5 or 6 vehicles and regularly run to the light.

I stand corrected if you are right. Yes, three fuel pumps later in a GMC s-10.
In a town of 90% Haji - marts where pumps don't work right half the time, I doubt changing filters is high up on their list.

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[cb91710]

I stand corrected if you are right. Yes, three fuel pumps later in a GMC s-10.
In a town of 90% Haji - marts where pumps don't work right half the time, I doubt changing filters is high up on their list.

If they aren't changing filters it's pretty obvious.
The pumps will run extremely slowly, I don't believe they have bypass valves the way our oil filters do.
Every now and then, often on a holiday weekend, I'll hit a station in the high desert that takes 15-20 minutes. That's a clogged pump filter.

 

[CamRod1]

Same thing happens on the high side ... filled up yesterday and computer gave me a distance of 426 MTE. Ran some errands today, and even though the needle was on full, computer showed 380 MTE. I topped her off with about 2.3 gallons and computer is still on 380.

I'm sure the computer will self adjust as the milage adds up, but I never rely on that for accuracy. Heck, I even had -- remaining and ran another 20+ miles and the car only took 15. something gallons.

 

[DangerousDave]

DTE - Update

When I went back to my car after 8 hours at work, the "14 miles to empty" warning had increased by about 20 miles or so. Then I went to fill up completely and all was well. Thanks everyone for your suggestions and comments.