Do you resist the urge to prematurely top off?
 

Just curious if folks here tend to force themselves to wait till an arbitrary fuel level before refilling, or do you have a mileage quota, or do you get antsy for quick fill and getting to "cash in" for a new mpg number.

I try to wait till 1/2 a tank or payday

i always wait to fill til at least a 1/2 tank and will fill before i go under 1/4 tank.

I don't want to run out and I don't want to have to stop for gas when I'm in a hurry. So I go as far down as safety and convenience will let me. Filling up when you're artificially high will get you a pretty green spike on the fuel log graph, but it's just a stunt.

I usually run it down pretty far, gas light is on most of the time before I refill. Weight savings!

I normally wait until 1/8 tank to fill the tank. I drive 100 miles a day, so tanks only last 4-5 days for me. I'm in no hurry to fill up, it's just more money!

As close to empty as I dare, then max refill. I've measured MPG on every tank of fuel for the past eight years, bar none.

It all averages out. Sometimes I don't have the money for a fill up, so I post in exactly 5 gallons or 10 gallons or whatever I can afford by the gallon mark [gallons don't change, dollar prices do] and then just remember to add it next time I actually fill up.

It always averages out.

I have an in tank pump, so I don't let it below 1/4.

What does that have to do with the price of coffee beans?

Gas light comes on ~60mte, at 40mte car won't move, avg fill up around 70mte (miles till empty). The info display fluctuates a lot, ie at 72mte it may go up to 80/90mte if I'm not at a light or traffic, in traffic or a light it will go down to 50/60mte but no e light.

I try and wait till just above empty. I have an 11.9 gallon tank and usually squeeze in 10 or so gallons. I figure running as long as I can on less fuel mean less weight I am carrying around.

I've been too lazy to track gas mileage for a while but I let the light turn on before I fill the car up.

With a 200 mile range and few - real, i.e. CNG :D - gas stations around, I fill up when I won't be near one again within the remaining gas range.

The average fuel consumption may be way off, the remaining range is just about spot-on ...

Obviously, I try to avoid running the Dwarf on its 2,5 USGal petrol reserve tank.

I fill up at gas stations that sell good gas at a good price, when my travels take me by them, when I know I won't go by them again before I run out of gas.

Did that make sense to anyone else?

I generally fill at 1/4 or less. This gives me the ability to buy the cheapest gas I can find.
As a general rule that's Wal-Mart, but after they dropped the 15 cent discount I have been buying from other stations. The Fiesta was filled at a Shell station in Gloucester County for $3.229 and the bike was filled near Hopewell for $3.199. One of the workers at the machine shop in Hopewell told me he paid $3.089 for his last fill. Maybe the next time I got there I'll take my 3@5 gallon gas cans, fill them with exactly 5 gals and then top off locally. That's almost 30 cents a gallon cheaper than I paid recently, but I don't drive-ride very far just to get a few cents a gallon off on gas.

regards
Mech

1/2 tank for me. Religiously.

Well what can you say about religion.

If I'm commuting to work, and the "50 MILES TO E" alarm goes off BEFORE I reach my normal fill-up station, I fill-up. If the alarm goes off AFTER I pass the station on my way to work (or on my way home), I fill-up the next day on my way to work. If I'm starting on a long road trip, I'll fill-up. Otherwise, more fuel than I need for my current trip is unnecessary weight. YMMV

On the truck I go until the EMPTY light comes on. The rest of the gauge doesn't work right, so the needle points to E for about 400 miles. I'd replace the gauge but because of the way the tank's mounting bolt threads have failed, I can't get the tank down. I'd have to pull the bed. I just don't want to do that.

On the Honda I'll go until the light comes on or until I've cracked 400 miles on the tank and it's payday, whichever is first.

1/4 tank for me in the winter. Anywhere between 1/8 tank and when the fill light comes on all the other seasons.

Yes, with the exception that I seldom actually fill up. The best-price stations that I pass take cash, at about 5 cents less per gallon than credit, so I generally just put in $20 worth - which is 1/2 - 2/3 of a tank, or about 400 miles, in the Insight.

just depends upon situation.
 

If im evaluating a mod or attempting new best effects mpg.
I always go beyond 1/4 and sometimes to empty warning. because it gets more definative results.
I dont count any result readings under 200 mile either way.
But if I get side tracked and going any which way but loose, I will fill at first cheapest location. The KIA dont get much love from me lol.
I did document months back exxon fuel then Chevron 2 tanks each made better effect in mpg. But this could be results of mixed fuels and also changeover from winter blends to summer blends As I stated then.

I used to run my gas tank low. Once I traveled 526 miles & filled my 10 gallon tank with 9.8 gallons, just like I had figured. But now I fill only with 100% gasoline(ethanol-free). Such stations are often far apart & very far apart in some cases. So now I fill fairly soon, in case, I have to quickly travel in a particular direction with little 100% gasoline available in that particular direction. However, my mpg has gotten so high using 100% gasoline, I need to let my fuel tank drop, since I can still travel 150+ miles with 4 gallons or less.

I can do that with E85 blends. Ba dum tss!

I just logged a 5 gallon tank on my 94 GS500E. The tank only holds 4.5 gallons. I got the gas at $3.199 at an Exxon station (sorry Sentra ;)). I filled 3@5 gallon cans and the Ranger. Total was close to $83 but it saved me over a gallons worth of gas over the local stations.
Two weeks later I still have 5 gallons left. One can filled the other bike after I drained the tank and put it in the wifes Sorento (big brownie points there).
Any "short' fills are price sinsitive in my case.
The 5 gallons in the bike got me 319.4 miles of fun.

regards
Mech

I try to get as close to empty as I can. The CX doesn't have a low fuel light, but I know when I start it in the morning that if the needle doesn't move at all I am pushing my luck. If it turns over more than usual before it starts, then I REALLY know I am pushing it, luckily there is a gas station at the end of my block! :snail:

When the gauge goes below 1/4 tank, I start looking for a gas station. In the Saturn, it's a pretty leisurely search. But in the Pontiac, it's more like "I better baby it, or it'll run out of gas before I clear the intersection".

1/4 tank for me, never know when I'll be stuck in traffic for a long period of time.

When I got the brakes working, without dragging, on my 89 Suzuki, I topped off the tank. That way my next fuel log entry will reflect the mileage without the dragging brakes which was 66% of the currently logged tank, even though the mileage is not that bad.

regards
Mech

Looking at gas as an Investment
 

I try to save as much money as I can on different things, gas is no different.
If I know gas prices are going to go up soon, I'll fill my gas tank up sooner than later. If I know gas prices will be going down or stay about the same, I typically wait until my gas light comes on at around 2 gallons remaining in the tank. Hope this helps someone!
- Aaron

Probably should have filled up last week, at 760+ miles on the tank now and the nearest E0 is 40 miles away. Probably gonna take a gallon with me just in case, but mpg for the tank is 45.2 so I might be OK.

I have no idea about coffee bean prices, but I have heard it is not a good idea to let the fuel get too low if the pump is in the tank (in-tank pumps are very common). The pump is cooled by the fuel and if it becomes uncovered because the fuel is very low, it could overheat.

One of the side effects of not burning much gas is the the fuel pump works less. It doesn't get heated up as much as one in a car being used normally.

Ever actually had a pump get hot? Me neither. And I run 'em 'til they're dry.

If I remember correctly, most of the cooling is from the fuel moving through the pump. So as long as the pump isn't sucking air, it should be fine.

Also, on most cars the fuel pump doesn't speed up or slow down according to fuel use. Instead, the fuel system just returns more fuel back into the tank. So the fuel pump isn't working much less, if your engine burns less fuel.