Ive been noticing my Gas Gauge acting up after I fill the tank,twice when driving the needle sank quickly from full to quarter and alittle farther almost to half then would slowly float back up,when the truck stops it seems to go back to the normal level it should be but when driving I notice this erratic fluctuation this is a recent phenomenon. I dropped a can of Fuel injector cleaner and filled the tank and thats the first time I noticed driving from station. Could topping off the tank too much affect the float in the tank? I checked all connections to fuel tank hoses and plugs all seems good,there is something definetly wrong and would like to remedy myself no warranty. The dealership dropped the fuel tank to do a TSB bulletin about 2years ago but the gauge worked fine then? I dont know if its the float hanging up or electrical problem. The gauge is definetly not giving accurate reading, Any help appreciated. Its a 2004 V6.
Erratic Gas Gauge
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Hello, there could be a loose ground causing the problem or a short. make sure all your wires are tight and there is no loose connections. other than that then I would say it is or could be a float problem. the only way you could check the float is to remove it and test it.
Lance
Lance
fuel gauge
Hi there that sort of problem is usually wear in the the sender unit to check you have to remove the sender from the tank and use an ohm meter and you are looking for erratic resistance in the region of the trouble. The wear should be visible if you can see the wiper near the float pivot. you may have to remove the tank to remove the sender I am not sure of your tray clearances.
Joe
Hi there that sort of problem is usually wear in the the sender unit to check you have to remove the sender from the tank and use an ohm meter and you are looking for erratic resistance in the region of the trouble. The wear should be visible if you can see the wiper near the float pivot. you may have to remove the tank to remove the sender I am not sure of your tray clearances.
Joe
Yep.hilux5084 said:
To get to it you need to remove a plate from the top of the tank. There are 2 ways to get to it.
1. Drop out the tank.
2. Tilt the bed.
Both take about the same amount of work. I favor removing the bed. There is a lower risk of damaging the fuel and electrical connections.
Thanx for all the replies,I searched some other websites for Gas Gauge problems there were 2 people that had problems that mimiced mine #1 2006 Taco the said he put in a can of Gumout injector cleaner then gased up and gauge went ape shit bounced around erratic,same exact thing mine did when I put in can of cleaner and filled up,maybe the chemicals in the cleaner are F ing with the sensors somewhere? #2 Another thread a guy put some added weight on the front of his truck a winch and heavy bumper caused the truck to tilt nose down,his gas gauge acted erratic someone chimed in and said there is a LEVELING sensor in the gas tank that if the truck is at an unlevel position for long periods the sensor needs to readjust itself or cant? In my case this makes alittle sense I park at my job for 8hrs. on a better than slight grade rear end in first nose out so the rear is elevated quite a bit when I took off from this position the gauge acted up again? The next day started the truck gauge works fine and did a test parked nose in for 8hrs. came back started the truck no gauge problems.
It is just a float in the tank on a metal rod with a resistor attached. Tank is full the float is at the top and the gage reads full. Tank is empty the float is in the bottom of the tank and the gage reads empty. Erratic readings occur when the instrument cluster goes bad, the sender goes bad, or the wires between are damaged. There are no "leveling sensors" and fuel additives have no effect.
Thanx for the reply I filled the truck up today and the gauge seems to be working so far like normal,I will definetly be watching the gauge for a while,I dont really know why it fritzed but I wasnt imagining it I'm kind of hoping it was some kind of a fluke thing really dont want to drop that tank to replace a sender or something but if it does I'll try to fix it I like having a gas gauge that works right.TcmaBoy said:
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My 02 gas gauge has been acting like that for years. I just count the miles and when I get to 280 or so its time to fill up. Sometime the gauge is correct, sometimes its not even close.
I knew someone out there must have this happen other than me,been watching my gauge like a hawk it definetly acts goofy between full and 3/4 qaurters of gas,50 miles on the odometer and the gauge reads 3/4quarters then bounces back to in between full and 3/4quarters where it should be,then back again to 3/4qtrs. My first qaurter of a tank usually nets about a 100 miles. This craziness started happening with extreme cold weather out usually below freezing,never noticed it beforehossmaster said:
Thanx for the heads up Hoss
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no prob, just one of those thingsjohnv said:I knew someone out there must have this happen other than me,been watching my gauge like a hawk it definetly acts goofy between full and 3/4 qaurters of gas,50 miles on the odometer and the gauge reads 3/4quarters then bounces back to in between full and 3/4quarters where it should be,then back again to 3/4qtrs. My first qaurter of a tank usually nets about a 100 miles. This craziness started happening with extreme cold weather out usually below freezing,never noticed it before
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