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Car Forum / Ford / Ford Cars / March 2005Fuel Consumption Question
On my 2001 Escort ES, why can I travel 200 miles on the 1st half of a tank of fuel, but barely over 100 miles on the 2nd half? This would be expected if the fuel tank was cone shaped, but it isn't. > On my 2001 Escort ES, why can I travel 200 miles on the 1st half of a tank > of fuel, but barely over 100 miles on the 2nd half? This would be > expected if the fuel tank was cone shaped, but it isn't. That's normal. The same thing happens in my Contour. The gas gage is not that accurate. It is designed to let you know when you have to fill up and to indicate how much gas you have. Jeff Hi, I have an 87 Ford Taurus, 4 dr sedan that I have had for 2 years. I bought it at a large dealership where they only sell cars that they believe are in excellent condition. When I fill up. I can get about 80 to 100 miles down to F. From F to 1/2 another 80 to 100 and from 1/2 to about 1/4 about 40 to 50. As far as I can tell I have a capacity of 12 gallons. At 1/4, the car shows signs of being about ready to run out. This to me is the most frustrating thing about this Ford. It runs great, is very dependable, rides smoothly and is in great shape but, this gas tank is too small and I have to fill up about every 200 to 250 miles which is about every 6 days. Previously, I have owned a Honda, a VW, and a couple of Plymouths. The gas tanks in all of those went below E and with normally driving, I only filled up 2 times a month or so. I have wondered if I could get the tank replaced with maybe a 16 or 20 gallon tank and get a new guage but, am guessing this would not be worth the expense. > > On my 2001 Escort ES, why can I travel 200 miles on the 1st half of a tank > > of fuel, but barely over 100 miles on the 2nd half? This would be [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Jeff IIRC, the Taurus had a 14 gal tank in the early years and was upped to 16 by 92-3. On the hwy, you should be getting about 28 mpg at a steady 70 mph. That means on a trip, you should be able to go 448 miles max and about 390 with some reserve. however, with the earlier 14 gal tank, you would need to drop that to 398 and 330 respectively. I've owned a 94 Taurus and a 98 Sable. On trips, running from LA to Montana through Las Vegas and Salt Lake City, I got no less than 28 and sometimes as much as 32 mpg running between 70 and 80 mph depending on the section. The hilly part between Las Vegas and Cedar City usually turned in the poorest mileage. In each case, the gauge on my two cars was a liar by a long shot unless the car was honestly empty. In which case, it read below empty.  SignatureR. J. Talley Teacher/James Madison Fellow NAR #69594 NRA #133073736 Well, my Taurus is an 87 model and I have never been able to more than about 11.7 gallons into the tank. I have had times where it seems on the verge of running out where I get a sputter or surge which is cured by filling up. That does not mean I do not agree about the 14 gallon tank but, if that is the case it is extremely poorly designed. On a Freeway trip, though I can get 28 to 30 miles per gallon. Around the city, it is only 20 or 21 which is why I am complaining about the range of the vehicle. > IIRC, the Taurus had a 14 gal tank in the early years and was upped to 16 by > 92-3. On the hwy, you should be getting about 28 mpg at a steady 70 mph. [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > NAR #69594 > NRA #133073736 > On my 2001 Escort ES, why can I travel 200 miles on the 1st half of a tank > of fuel, but barely over 100 miles on the 2nd half? This would be > expected if the fuel tank was cone shaped, but it isn't. The gauge isn't calibrated either. This used ot be a characteristic of all Fords. My newer fords seem to have reasonably linear fuel gauges (a 1/2 tank really is close to a 1/2 tank). However in the old days (old being the 60's, 70's, and 80's for me) Fords were notorious for having non-linear fuel gauges. I always suspected it was company policy. Ed No, it is because the fuel gauge in not linear. Fill the tank, then note how many miles can be traveled before the indicator even begins to move off the full mark. mike hunt > On my 2001 Escort ES, why can I travel 200 miles on the 1st half of a tank > of fuel, but barely over 100 miles on the 2nd half? This would be > expected if the fuel tank was cone shaped, but it isn't. I'm facing the same problem with my Ford Escort '96. My guess is this. Since people never want to be stranded, they try to fill the tank when the fuel gauge mark shows something slightly less than 1/3rd. I guess, Ford expects people to think, "Wow! This car goes 230-240 miles for 2/3 tank, so it will go 325-330 for a full tank. Good effeicieny." Whereas only those very few who tried going the full tank, will realise that a full tank lasts only 300 miles and that the fuel gauge tries to create an illusion of very good gas effeciency. If my guess is correct, it would be a dubious as well as poor advertisement policy adopted by Ford. Non lineal fuel indicators are certainly not exclusive to Ford. You will find that the fuel gauges in most vehicles are not linear. One can take advantage of that when they rent a car. I rent cars often and am given both foreign and domestic cars. When I fill the tank I record the mileage, then observe the mileage when it actually moves off the full mark. Let's say it is 50 to 70 miles miles, when I refill I know I can drive at least 50 miles and still return the vehicle at the full mark. ;) mike hunt > I'm facing the same problem with my Ford Escort '96. > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > If my guess is correct, it would be a dubious as well as poor > advertisement policy adopted by Ford. So the person renting the car next pays for your gasoline? How is that not stealing? > Non lineal fuel indicators are certainly not exclusive to Ford. > You will find that the fuel gauges in most vehicles are not [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > > If my guess is correct, it would be a dubious as well as poor > > advertisement policy adopted by Ford. > So the person renting the car next pays for your gasoline? > How is that not stealing? [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >> >>mike hunt Not necessarily. If the car is rented and returned at a hub facility, usually near an airport, the tank is topped off by the cleanup people regardless of the gauge indication. If the checkin attendant looks at the gauge when you return the veicle and sees the gauge below FULL, you are charged for an estimated amount of fuel. You are not charged for the amount it takes to actually top off the tank. The next renter gets a full tank regardless. You could say that this is stealing gas from the rental company, but they recover this loss with highly inflated prices for the fuel they actually charge for (right now about $3.75\gal at Hertz in Cleveland). The folks who don't return their vehicle showing a full tank eat the charge, sort of. (...) > Not necessarily. If the car is rented and returned at a hub facility, > usually near an airport, the tank is topped off by the cleanup people [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > Cleveland). The folks who don't return their vehicle showing a full tank > eat the charge, sort of. But if the gauge is on FULL, they don't top off the tank, and the next person gets a less-than-full tank of gas. And, if the tank goes below full, who ends up paying the rental company to fill it up? Yeap, the renters ultimately end up paying. > But if the gauge is on FULL, they don't top off the tank, and the next > person gets a less-than-full tank of gas. Yep, they do top it off (SOP for Hertz hub locations). I'm talking about the major companies like Hertz, National, Avis etc. at their main facilities, not licensees or satellite pickup\drop locations. The corner gas station that rents Avis or Hertz cars is a licensee and they do things their own way. The Hotel with a car rental counter is a satellite location and usually has no fuel\cleanup facilities. The cars from satellite locations are returned to the hub between rentals, fueled, cleaned and serviced as needed. Each car leaves the lot with a full tank. The only time a customer is charged is if the car is returned less than full (on the gauge). Satellite renters may lose slightly,as their car may be down a gallon or so due to the car having been driven to the pickup location. Any difference between the Full gauge reading and actual full tank is made up, somewhat, through the inflated prices charged to customers who don't return the car with a full gauge showing. This is a mute point because the inflated price price would be charged regardless. If everyone returned the car filled to the brim, the fuel price would still be inflated. The inflated price is a deterrent to returning the car less than full. Hertz, Avis, etc arent in the gasoline business and would prefer not to even deal with gasoline storage and pumping facilities. > And, if the tank goes below full, who ends up paying the rental company to > fill it up? Yeap, the renters ultimately end up paying. >> But if the gauge is on FULL, they don't top off the tank, and the next >> person gets a less-than-full tank of gas. [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > full. Hertz, Avis, etc arent in the gasoline business and would prefer not > to even deal with gasoline storage and pumping facilities. Yet the reality is that returning the cars less than full costs the rental companies money. Either that money is taken out of profits, which belongs to the stock holders or results in increased rates. Jeff >> And, if the tank goes below full, who ends up paying the rental company >> to fill it up? Yeap, the renters ultimately end up paying. >> So the person renting the car next pays for your gasoline? >> How is that not stealing? [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >>> >>>mike hunt i always hack in to the fuel guage sender wiring before i return the car f.ck they get a real full tank lmfao hurc ast mmmm, white trash... JS > i always hack in to the fuel guage sender wiring before i return the > car [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > hurc ast > mmmm, white trash... Wrong. The color of one's skin is not important. It is what is in one's heart (or actually, head) that is important. Jeff >mmmm, white trash... > >JS > >m we have a nigger here lmfao >>mmmm, white trash... >> [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > we have a nigger here No, we have a person. The color of his skin is irrelevent. Jeff > lmfao >>>mmmm, white trash... >>> [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > >> lmfao um no its not hurc ast There is no place to mark less than full, only 3/4 and it is not at 3/4, there system not mine The rental car companies top off all fluids before they vehicle is rented again, in fact that is ALL they do to their cars in the form of maintenance When one return the vehicle they do not ask if the tank is full, they only have one make the indicator. ;) > So the person renting the car next pays for your gasoline? > How is that not stealing? [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > > > If my guess is correct, it would be a dubious as well as poor > > > advertisement policy adopted by Ford. >So the person renting the car next pays for your gasoline? >How is that not stealing? ><snip> Are you for real? stealing? You've got a pretty quite life if you worry about that sort of thing. You loose exponentially more everyday in government graft etc.. The fuel gauge in any vehicle is a rough ESTIMATE. They tend to be calibrated to drop faster at the 1/2 way mark partially as a marketing exercise and as a warning to people to fill up before running out (which causes more problems). >I'm facing the same problem with my Ford Escort '96. > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >If my guess is correct, it would be a dubious as well as poor >advertisement policy adopted by Ford. lmfao ford thinks of one thing the cheapest and quickest way if ford wants coustomers it would build something RELIABLE hurc ast |
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