crespoh69

Hello, came on these forums because my 99 V6 is having issues with the fuel gauge. It will go down to mark half full when in actuality it will be pretty close to empty. Filling it up with a 1 gallon emergency tank from the local gas station will bring back the gauge to "half full" again.

I found this writeup and replaced the fuel sender unit, only to have the same problem still. Before I go an spend money on parts that won't fix the issue, what should be my next course of action from someone who has worked on this problem and fixed it?

dntsdad

I would hit a junkyard and pick up a "new" gauge if it were me and see what happened.

Heck, I may have one around that I KNOW worked fine. PM me if you want me to look.

crespoh69

That's the thing though, would the problem be the gauge itself or would it be something else fuel tank related?

cpizzle42

How did this problem start? All the sudden? Got worse of time?

crespoh69

Yes just started all of a sudden, not too sure on what to do next and I hated dropping the tank...undid it like 5 times before I realized I didn't have to connect the sensor that kept disconnecting itself from the bottom, I could just do it from under the rear passenger seats lol my neck, chest and arms were all sore the next day lol

Texas_Ace

It is a common issue for the fuel gauges on these trucks to read funny. I can drive my truck all the way down past empty and then some and still only be able to put 14-15 gallons in the tank for example.

Think i remember reading that it was usually something to do with the sender in the tank but sometimes it was the gauge.

crespoh69

Thanks for the input guys, I'll check my local yard to see if they have any gauges available, I forgot to mention this is for our 4runner, would a Tacoma gauge work as well? Also, is there a writeup somewhere for installing the gauge?

Texas_Ace

Check the BGB, they should have something in there.

crespoh69

Sorry what's bgb? For some reason this thread will only load on my phone, not the comp :/

Texas_Ace

BGB = Big green book

Or factory service manual. You can download it online.

crespoh69

great, it's working on my comp now...just got back from the only place here that sells used Japanese truck/suv parts and they don't have it and would only sell me the whole cluster if they did. Dntsdad, do you know for sure that your's would mate up to a 99 4runner?

kawicowboy

If the cluster is cheap enough i would just change the whole thing, Thats what I did and it fixed the problem. Only issue would be the millage of the new cluster.

crespoh69

Darn it...completely forgot about the mileage lol, I'd rather just get the one gauge

dusty98

The fuel gauge on my 98 4Runner reads significantly less when I have my driving lights on. I haven't figured out the cause yet.
Have you added anything electrical lately? Just thinking out of the box

crespoh69

No, this is the car we mainly use for our day care, no mods on it lol my gauge shows half full when it's clearly running on fumes

Texas_Ace

How many gallons of fuel are you able to put it in out of curiosity?

crespoh69

About $40 is what we usually put to fill it up so maybe...~12? Not sure, I'll have to ask my dad to tell you the truth, they're the ones that mostly use it for the business lol

Texas_Ace

Well if you are only able to put 12 gallons in then you are not out of gas. I don't have fuel starvation issues till I am down to fitting almost 16 gallons in the tank. So doesn't sound like it is the gauge if thats the case. Either you are just misinterpreting a fuel starvation or it is something inside the fuel tank. Possibly a weak/clogged fuel pump.

radrace2001

I just had something very similar on my 2000 4runner my gauge would drop to Empty and the low fuel light would come on. I found a loose wiring conection at the driver lower A piller behind the cover. I cleaned to contacts and it started working fine.