99whiteSR5

Obviously my '99 has this problem... :cry: When I fill it up, the gauge drops a 1/4 tank after only 30 miles. Also, yesterday I drove it till the needle was just below "E" and I was able to put only 14.5 gallons in it. I have called several Toyota Stealerships in the area asking them if my Toyota Extra Care Warranty would cover the TSB EL010. Not one of them would give me a straight answer as to whether this TSB would be covered by my Toyota Care Bumper to Bumper warranty. Is this total BS, or what?

My question is this: Even though the gauge is reading below "E" and I actually have 4 gallons left, am I still safe driving another 40 miles or so? In other words, the fuel "pickup tube" or whatever is at the bottom of the tank, NOT at the bottom of the fuel sending unit, correct?
Mentally, though, it is tough continuing to drive when the light is on and the needle is below "E"!
When my low fuel light comes on, I usually have over 6 gallons left in the tank....

amorphous

hey, quit complaining....at least yer gas light doesn't come on at 3/4 full!

(just kidding!)

Good luck....my advice...keep records on yer fuel economy (aka MPG) and you'll know when the gauge is lying....like mine does! I know I can go at least 250 miles per tank...then its time to pull to the pump.

or you could try yer luck with the stealership!

Å

sgirt

Both my wifes, 99 and my 2000 have the problem. We bought hers new with the extended warrenty. Mine is Toyota Certified used with ex. warrenty. Neither are covered. They wanted around 900 each to fix. I have gone over 350 miles on a tank in my 00 5sp.

rimpainter.com

That should be covered under your warranty. It is a known problem.

However, you are not going to hurt anything by driving with the light on. When my light comes on, I have a good 80 miles left - at least.

I get about 40 miles in the first indicated 1/4 tank.

havic

I get between 50 to 70 miles to the 1/4 tank indicator. One time I got 90 miles to the indicator, and then it dropped down between 1/4 to half within the next 5 miles. I hate when the guage fluctuates.

Bob_98SR5

why wouldnt it be covered under the warranty? if you cant find anything that specifically excludes it from coverage, then it should be covered.

bob

Roadtripr

Maybe I have problems too then. I usually get the light at mile 260 and drive another 30-40 miles before filling up. The needle seems very sensitive to whether the truck is going up or down hill.
But the other day I filled up at an extremely slow pump and I stopped it when I got 18.9gallons in (there should only be room for 18.5). The guage showed full when I drove off and continued to show full for another 60 miles (WTF). So either my guage broke, I found a reserve tank inside my 4runner (no smell of gas though from leakage) or the gas pump ripped my off (more than usual).
Has anyone ever seen this?
C

Mohamed

Hey Christian, did you get the "dreaded" fuel gauge problem in Honda's also? I did and I replaced both the sending unit and the guage needle to get it work right. Thank god the sending unit can be accessed from the back seat, dropping a fuel tank is not fun which you would have to do in a Toyota.

rimpainter.com

You trying to jinx me Mohamed?

So far our Accord has been great. A MC, a couple CV's, and some routine maintenance is all she has needed. 95K miles. Still trying to get my wife to agree to an H22 swap.

[/threadjack off]

Unhappy99

Regardless of what super-duper extended warranty you bought, of course its not covered, its a Toyota.

File complaints with Toyota Corporate (lotta good that does, they support their dealers), NHTSA, and local BBB.

p.s. $900 is obscene to fix. Here, they charge an obscene $450 or so. Cost is $200 in parts, if you don't buy a new pickup tube. Just the sending unit, gasket and circuit board are what's needed, then take it to someone who won't screw you.

rimpainter.com

In Toyota's defense, the part, if warrantied, must be defective as they have to send it in after it is pulled. How they determine a fuel gauge (sender unit) faulty I have no idea. Any ideas?

Unhappy99

Toyota already knows which vehicles have the defective senders and gauges, as they issued the TSB listing the VINs. Further testing by anyone on a known defective part is simply wasting time.

Toyota simply has no defense regarding their lying fuel gauges. Its a serious safety issue and they should at least pay for the repair, if not recall the whole lot (like Audi). Its only a matter of time before a big wreck happens when the engine dies with no warning due to a fuel gauge indicating something other than empty when it is empty.

Mohamed

If it's a float type sending unit, you bench test it by lifting the float at various positions and testing resistances and comparing specs, samething I had to do for the Honda's version too.

hehe you jinxed me dude...as soon as I sent you that pm about the fuel filter, my MC went out, and I had no time to fix it last weekend so out comes the credit card to pay the dealer to do it. What's really the kicker is I got it back and the dealer didn't bleed the brakes . I got now an EGR problem I'm trying to diagnose and I'm trying my best to figure it out before I give up since i'm not an expert in engine performance, and no the valve is not faulity, nor are the ports clogged. I think it's the solenoid. We'll see tonight...[/thread hijack off...hehe ]

rimpainter.com

I thought the problem was the gauge always indicating E too early, not the other way around.

And my previous post was primarily responding to your [warranty] "it's a Toyota" statement. I understand you had a bad experience, but a blanket statement like that is just ludicrous, given the satisfaction and quality data of Toyota's over the years.

99whiteSR5

You are correct, 96 Runner. It drops and reads WAY too early, not the other way around. Also, I agree with you. Toyota is known world wide for its quality and has an EXCELLENT reputation. It is too bad that he had such a bad experience with his rig. Maybe he should buy a F*rd and find out what bad quality and service really is!

4RUNR

I still don't get it, when is the E supposed to light up "normally"?
And what is wrong with having a 4 gallon reserve in an 18.5 gallon tank?
Or does anyone really get that poor of a mpg and drive enough for it to even register as an "annoyance" or a "problem"?

rimpainter.com

Why would it be a TSB if it wasn't a problem?

FriscoKid

I also had this problem on my Toyota Certified Used 4Runner (w/ Certified Gold extended warranty). My dealer told me that they needed to verify the problem first, and then order any necessary parts before they could apply the fix on the TSB. The entire process took 2 days and was 100% covered under warranty. They even rented me a car until mine was fixed. I was dealing with the person at the dealership who handles the Certified Used vehicle program and I have nothing but good things to say about how the problem was dealt with.

And the fix works great. The gas gauge is now accurate and the light goes on when I have about 2 gallons in the tank.

My suggestion would be to find out who is in charge of the Certified Used program at the dealership and talk to them if you have any problems with a Certified Used vehicle.

IamaFan

This is a weird question, but the 18.5 gal. capacity of the tank means that if the tank were completely empty, one could put int 18.5 gals before the pump would stop itself right? not that you have to force in another gallon or 2 after the pump automatically stops itself? just wondering because it seems a lot of gas can be squeezed in after the pump stops (i know we're not supposed to do that).

Unhappy99

My gauge read all over the map. Full when empty, empty when full. I ran dry twice while it indicated 1/2 tank. The only time it read remotely accurate was when a load was put in the back. Obviously a confused level sensor on circuit board #3.

I'm not sure which was more annoying, the blinking low fuel light whenever it felt like it, or the dealer and Toyota not honoring 'fuel gauge reads correctly' as part of the Certified Used checklist.