Don't believe that lying fuel gauge!! Today while coming home from down near the Florida state line I was tooling along on I-95 north bound when the engine on "Ugly Betty" just up and quit while running about 70 and purring right along. I'm pretty good about monitoring the gauges but quickly scanned them to see any thing wrong. Fuel gauge read a full 1/4 of a tank. Pull over on the shoulder to beginning what little trouble shooting I thought myself capable of. Looked at the fuel separator and it had fuel in the bottom. Took off the top and the fuel was no where near the top of the metal housing. Removed the engine fuel filter and it was almost dry. THIS SUCKER IS OUT OF FUEL. Unhooked the toad, went and bought two 6 gallon fuel cans and 12 gallons of fuel. Returned and put the fuel in the coach. Next manually primed the pump but to no avail still wouldn't start. Bled all the injectors and she fired right up. Only lost about 2 1/2 hours.

Last time I will believe that LYING fuel gauge.

Nick

Few things lie more than a fuel quantity gauge. Even the super duper compensating systems on the airliners I used to maintain. Pilots learned to trust their fuel used indicators rather than the quantity indicators.

A lifetime of daily motorcycling with gauge-less tanks has taught me to use the odometer, preferably a trip odometer.

A number of older European cars had no fuel gauges, either, nor even a trip odo. There was a little device that had several wheels you rotated to display the mileage at your last fill up.

With boats, I always use the hour meter.

One of the first purchases for our Barth was a speedo with a trip odo. Not only for fuel, but navigation.

My biggest problem with fuel burn estimation is the 502's insatiable appetite for fuel when going uphill. When sitting still, I can walk out in front holding up a picture of a mountain in my hand, and the fuel gauge will start to drop.

My boat has two round 100 gallon tanks. The supplied gauge is a 3/4" square mahogany stick with 1/4 tank marks. I have yet to find it inaccurate.

"Next manually primed the pump but to no avail still wouldn't start. Bled all the injectors and she fired right up. Only lost about 2 1/2 hours."

Tip #2: If the Cummins is on a slope and one drains too much fuel out of the primary fuel/water separator it, too, is "out of fuel". I, also, was puzzled and called the Cummins hotline. His 2nd question (actually, a statement) was: "you mess with the separator?".
He gave explicit instructions:
1) "Remove separator and fill completely with fuel and replace." (Which, of course, required a trip in the Toad to obtain such.)
2) "Crack 2 rearmost injector tube nuts." (A 19mm crow's foot is the only wrench which will work, and which I happened to have. And access to injectors is only from above, beneath the bed in the bedroom)
3) "Push the neoprene-covered manual pump plunger a minimum of 75 times!" (Said plunger is on the side of the (Hot!) block behind the 4" exhaust pipe (REALLY Hot!); requires one to crawl underneath the exhaust and snake a hand up between the pipe and engine, then push hard -75 times!- with varying tired fingers.)
4) "Hurry inside and start the engine. If it doesn't start you didn't push it at least 75 times or you didn't push hard enough."
5) "Hurry back to the engine and tighten up the two injector tube nuts. It's a good idea to have a fire extinguisher handy, and don't rev the engine cause you have fuel squirting out the injector nuts."

Cummins guy was great; and he refrained from laughing -at least until he hung up the phone.
And I beat your time of 2-1/2 hours by 15 minutes!

When I drained my tank to relocate the filler, I had the opportunity to check the gauge by filling the tank after the mod in 5 gallons increments. I now know that when my gauge gets to certain levels there will be a certain amount of fuel left, of course, repeatability of the gauge comes into question here.

BUT, one thing I have a BIG question about is why there isn't a "sump" in the tank? The tank is a flat bottom tank and you could have 10+ gallons in the tank and still run out of fuel on a grade or corner! Yes there are baffles but this will only delay the eventual! I now will never run below a 1/4 tank on the gauge or 500 miles since last fill up.

Our Newell has a 240 gallon fuel tank, plus a large sump on one end. However the fuel pickup is on the other end. Go figure.

quote:

Originally posted by Gary Carter:
Our Newell has a 240 gallon fuel tank, plus a large sump on one end. However the fuel pickup is on the other end. Go figure.

Leaves all the water and crud in the sump.


Until it accumulates enough to run over the top of the sump. It also gives those little critters that eat diesel a place to grow up and multiply.