Grommit

iTrader: (3)

My bad. I should have explained it better. I fill up when I have a quarter of the tank left.

That get's me thinking though. If trash and dirt is found at the bottom of the tank and you never use that 'dirty' gas up, wouldn't the dirt and trash build up over time eventually making your whole tank dirty? I'd think if that were true you would want to empty out the tank to prevent build up? No?

MrNicholas

I just started thinking in that direction as well. I'm not so concerned about my Z as I am my '90 celica. After 150K miles and god-knows-how-many fillups, I wonder what kind of sediment might be present in the bottom of the tank. I also wonder how one goes about flushing the gas tank.

mofoz

iTrader: (1)

you can jack it up and drop the tank and clean it out i believe.

alkpaz2

Good point... I never had to flush out my Truck (which I always used Regular unleaded) which makes me think.. Is there sediment? I am sure higher octane fuel does not have as much stuff in their fuel as it propably does in regular unleaded.. I need to look into this further

Here is what I found so far on the subject:

http://www.mycarwizard.com/autoshop/fuel.html

http://www.i-car.com/html_pages/abou...04/042604.html

Dirt is enemy number one of your car's fuel system. A common cause of hard

starting and poor operation is accumulation of sediment and/or other deposits

in the tiny orifices which meter the fuel to the engine.

While better grades of fuel contain detergents that can help fuel systems

clean, an occasional application of additives can help remove deposits. Routine

replacement of fuel filters prevents sediment in the gas tank from disabling

the fuel system.

Sediment from gasoline settles at the bottom of every gas tank. When you let

your gas level run low, you force your car to use the dirtiest gas in its tank

for fuel.

The lower your car's gas level sinks, the more the dirt gets stirred up from

the bottom of the tank. Drive on a near-empty tank and you risk this dirt

getting into your car's fuel line and even into the engine. There's a good

chance your car's fuel filter won't be able to catch all of it, especially if

you drive with a barely filled gas tank on a regular basis.

"You're going to pull the heaviest sediment into the fuel line," says Karl

Brauer, editor-in-chief at Edmunds.com. "If it gets all the way to the engine,

it could scar or damage internal parts of the engine."

If this happens, you're putting extra strain on the engine. And you'll need to

flush the entire fuel system if it clogs up with dirt.

"You're talking a minimum of a couple of hundred dollars if it really jams up

the system," Brauer says.

At the very least, you'll need to replace your car's fuel filter more often.

That will run you about $100. And if sediment deposits or sludge form on your

fuel injectors, you won't like the way your car drives.

"The car will run funny," says Tony Molla, a spokesman for the National

Institute of Automotive Service Excellence. "It will feel like the car needs a

tune-up."

The best advice? Never let your gas level dip too low.

"It's a good idea to keep your tank half full," Molla says.

YooiY

Does the fuel get sucked in from the bottom of the tank or from an assembly hanging down from the top? Reason I ask is if the outlet to the engine or whatever is on the bottom then wouldn't it suck from the bottom of the tank anyhow? I'm sure high G turns would slosh that stuff up and around too...

alkpaz2

Well according to one website: "The outlet pipe has a fitting for fuel line connection and may be located in the top or in the side of the tank. The lower end is about one-half inch above the bottom of the tank so that collected sediment will not be flushed out into the carburetor. The bottom of the tank contains a drain plug so that tank may be drained and cleaned."

It can be either or... On the 350Z... I have no idea...but do to its proximity to the ground, I would figure the outlet would be on the side.. I guess the contour of the tank itself is made so that the sediment flows into the fuel filter and not just "remain on the bottom"... but this is a guess... Anyone know for sure?

chemismailife

how do you put 19 into yours?! that's outrageous

Jsn350Z

DONT LET YOUR Z RUN ON FUMES!!! I was really low one day because I just did not have time, my service engine soon light came on and when I had it checked out it said there was a misfire. Mechanic said it was due to low gas.