Hey guys.

So I usually full up at a quarter tank or when my DTE gauge says 100 or so with 17-18 gallons worth of gas and the DTE all the way up to 395-410. But one time, I neglected to fill up at my mark, and let it run til the light came on and the "----" came on. Ever since then, my fill ups at the same quarter tank mark have only been worth about 16 gallons and the gauge only goes up to 350-370 now. It just hasn't been the same since I let the light come on.
I know it might not a big deal to some, but to me it is, since I'm pretty **** about the maintenance and whatnot of my Z

EDIT:
I might as well also add that the gas tank meter needle doesn't exactly go ALL THE WAY up to the top of the "F" line (sometimes even beyond the line) anymore like it used to.

Question is, how do you fix that and what's wrong?? Why is it being like that? What's happening to it? Will resetting the computer / disconnecting the battery reset this? I loved the luxury of having ~400 miles on the DTE after each fill-up.

I heard that on most cars, if you drive til the light comes on... it's bad for your fuel system. Apparently it deteriorates the gas tank and sometimes the cats. And may also rust some of the lines. Can this be true? I couldn't find any confirmation or anything related on here. In my search, I discovered that some say there's an extra 2 gallon reserve even after it 'flatlines' ... so I find it hard to believe that this is the issue.... but then again, it sounds plausible since it just happened to me, and it seems like it had a significant impact on the gauging and tank.

Anyone know what's the problem? Anyone know how to resolve this?
Anyone have input on this?

Help is much appreciated!
Thanks

 

Why don't you just disconnect the battery(negative pole)and see what happens.
It won't hurt.
Furthermore,the topic about,"I only can get 16+gals in my tank when the fuel
light is on",has been covered many times.Yes,the tank specs show it hold about
20 gals.However,Nissan and other manufacturers know there are idiots that
don't pay attention to gauges.They would rather stretch the truth a bit on
how much fuel you have left than have you callin AAA.
I don't think running your car down to fuel-light-on is hurting anything.
Now,of you had a diesel and run it dry,thats another story--try to restart the car.
If it were me,I'd not be using the DTE info on how many miles I have left.
If you were driving a Tesla,maybe so.

 

God I wish I had your problems.

 

Keep searching. This topic has been covered countless times.

/thread

 

the fuel sending unit is in tank, requires cleaning w Q tips, messy but simple.
COmmon issue.


Also, the amount of fuel in your tank when the DTE light comes on is usually almost a 1/4 tank lol.

Ask Len ( terasmk).. he usually drives another 100 miles when his comes on lol.

All can be fixed by cleaning the tank sending unit. there is one on both sides of the car to boot.. adding to your fun lol.

in THIS case as you didnt even know what to search for, i have appropriately spoon fed you answers.. now search those terms and youre all set.

 

i never even go by what that DTE thing says lol i look at the gauge, the place its at when the car is off is empty to me

 

There is a link on a british website where a member suffered the same problem. He ended up taking the sender out of the fuel tank along with a couple of other things. I can't remember the exact procedure but he fixed the problem and has no problems since. I'll try to find the link as it's very photo heavy and iss impossible to go wrong. Let me hunt out the link & I'll send it as soon as i find it.

 

Hey PaqmanBlueZ, just had a quick flick through the site as promised and the link you need is; www.350Z-uk.com 350Zforum-350Z FAQ guides 'how to fix inaccurate fuel gauge' posted by steve w on Dec 27th at 13:23. Hope this is of some help to you.

 

Nice man...I removed mines in hopes of getting it to work was scared to removed anything beyond the pump! Nice write up gonn have to go back in there now and test those resistors.

 

i did as much research as i could. in my search there were threads, alright... but couldn't get an exact answer as to WHY the number goes down and the meter doesn't go all the way up IF you wait til the light comes on. Not sure if that made sense, but I'm trying to describe/explain it the best I can.

Basically, if you wait til the light comes on... the next time you fill up, the number decreases and so does the needle on the meter, EACH TIME.

what are some search words you guys used to find this topic 'numerous times'? I used "DTE" and "DTE gauge" and only found a handful of threads, all of which didn't really answer my question.

--------

samsniss350z, thanks a lot for finding that thread!

i can't view the pdf file tho without an account lol
i'd hate to make a UK account just for one file, but i'm sure it'll help a lot.
did you have to make an account?

would cleaning the sender also fix this?

thanks for help again, and thanks for everyone's input... i'm continuing my search...

 

I have the same problem its the fuel level sensors

 

My gas meter doesnt work either i just reset my mileage back to 0 everytime i fill up try to research fuel level sensors. I live on long island ny we have gas shortage right now here its really annoying for me how much gas exactly i have left. There are 2 fuel level sensors if you buy it at the dealership its 118 each. Courtesy online nissan 80 each.