Im sure this has been answered before, but when I search for the answer I cant get a straight one. I have a 2003 Z enthusiast and I did my first refuel when the low fuel light came on and it only filled up to 13 gallons. From what I read there is a gauge problem, is there any way to fix this or do I just assume that I have more fuel when the system says low fuel? Thanks in advance

 

do some searches using the key words "fuel tank" or "fuel" there are a bunch of postings out there on this forum. I've been having some questions with the fuel sensor. basically my fuel light went on at 325 miles and the DTE was at 35 DTE and I was also just pumping in 13 gallons which makes no sense if its a 20 gallon tank. Even if there is a 3 gallon reserve 13+3=16 gallons so where is the rest of the fuel? For me I drove the tank low to "---" then the fuel guage climbed from E all the way BACK to a quarter tank! The DTE was crazy..it went from "---" and climbed back to 85 miles left to empty. I drove it a total of 400 miles before I freaked out and went to the gas station where i STILL only pumped in 15.5 gallons. This is much better but after going thru these posts I am confident I can get 400-450 total miles @25-28 mpg in mixed driving. It is confirmed that the reserve amount of fuel is 3 gallons which is slightly higher than the traditional 2 gallons. In my situation I think i reset the fuel sensor computer which gives me better accuracy I think.

 

did u get a recall notice?

 

I wasn't part of the recall...double checked my VIN.

 

how the heck are you guys getting 25 mpg in this car? I get to just under 300 when the light comes on. I fill up around 310 or so and it usually takes about 17 gallons to fill up. I don't drive it hard at all. That figures out to about 18-19 mpg and I don't drive much in the city.
Maybe I got a sucky engine(besides the oil consumption).

 

i'm with you brocken, i get like 21-22 with not that much hard driving

 

+1
Averaging about 22 MPG with normal driving.

 

Poor fuel econmy can be caused by a number of things. The fuel mixture may be running too rich, the air filter could be clogged, the MAF sensor could be dirty etc. Do you have sooty deposits in the exhaust tips? Burning oil/too rich a mixture can cause this. Auto trans will get less mileage than manual. Too low a tire pressure also works against fuel economy. Lots of fun to figure out.

I routinely get 26-28 mpg because I drive mostly on the highway. If you cannot get better then 19mpg something is definitely wrong, especially since you don't drive it hard and you don't have much city mileage.

If you use one of those "oil type" filters (K&N, etc.) the MAF sensor may be fouled. They make a cleaner spray for it. You might also want to try resetting your ECU by disconnecting the negative term on your battery and stepping on the brakes for a minute (to drain all the current). The ECU will then "re-learn" the correct fuel mix after a few drive cycles.

Good luck,
Joe

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I wasn't sure what normal mileage was for these cars so I didn't know if I was getting crappy economy...sounds like I am.
I'm sure it has something to do with the mixture as well as the other engine trouble I'm having. I don't think the oil consumption helps at all. Hopefully I'll have those issues resolved soon and that will correct the mileage issue too.

 

the Z should average 29 mpg on the highway cruising between 65-70mph. 21mpg or less if you go over 80mph.

 

^^^^ ha...good one. Are you guys using the on board computer to tell you what the MPG is or are you actually figuring it based off of how much gas you put back in it? I know for a fact that the Computer gauge is a lie. It told me I was getting 24 and I did the numbers based of the fuel replaced and I only got 19. And this was all on the highway while on cruise control! The newly added ethanol to the fuel caused a decrease in fuel economy.