[SirAlec]

Guys! Guys! Isn't the ol' fuel meter enough.

Don't tell me you people ignore that most of the time. Thats a bad practice, as while driving long distance you need to monitor them often. There are other more important instrument too namely, Temperature.

Next thing people will ask is a temperature buzzer that engine is cooked like Microwave.

[greenhorn]

the thing is , the meter is analog. as it nears the E mark, the general idea arises that it needs to be filled , but you forget about it. On the other hand , when the light is up, it was there , and not there before , and you instinctively need to get it turned off, so you fill up. Human nature i guess

[SirAlec]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

the thing is , the meter is analog. as it nears the E mark, the general idea arises that it needs to be filled , but you forget about it. On the other hand , when the light is up, it was there , and not there before , and you instinctively need to get it turned off, so you fill up. Human nature i guess

Actually practice is to never let it go near there, especially in Diesel. atleast I follow that.
I fill it mostly on 1st and 16th. Top it up before every long trip, and top it back after every trip back.

[anantnehru]

Originally Posted by viper

Vikram,

I am not sure about the light but would advise you to rethink your fuelling habits. Kindly refill at the 1/4 mark instead of empty.

Viper

Well, as far as the SX4 goes; I've been at the centre line of E and it didnt glow.
But why the 1/4 mark and not empty? Isnt running it to empty a somewhat better way of calculating average - since you have very little fuel in the tank? Or is it due to the trash in the fuel tank clogging the lines? I think the initial Astras had this problem since they were Single Point Fuel Injection, am I right?
Alot of questions I know, sorry!

[dreamdiesel]

I have never seen this low fuel indicator light on my Swift VDI light up. I had an instance when the car halted due to low fuel. But the light never came ON. I wonder why Maruthi did not enable this feature in the ECU.

The older Palio has this feature and I feel its a really good to such a thing enabled when the swift already has the light in place.

[akshay4587]

I have this feature in my accent,but I never let the light glow.
So its always better to fill up when you have 1/4th tank left.
no need to wait till the light glows

[greenhorn]

Originally Posted by SirAlec

Actually practice is to never let it go near there, especially in Diesel. atleast I follow that.
I fill it mostly on 1st and 16th. Top it up before every long trip, and top it back after every trip back.

Heck, even I never let the needle go into the red area, but for those who need the light , i guess they like living on the edge

[dreamdiesel]

Originally Posted by greenhorn

Heck, even I never let the needle go into the red area, but for those who need the light , i guess they like living on the edge

Hehe. Not that it will cost a bomb to have Maruti enable this feature. But its a good feature to check mileage.

[DieselFan]

folks,

there are two issues one faces with the near empty fuel tank - low FE and over worked fuel pump. If the car is bit old then a lot of muck in Fuel filter (in worst case scenario fuel filter may get blocked). With all these odds against your car why, why people just ignore to fill up the tank when the Analog indicator shows empty. I always make it a point fill up when the needle reaches the half way mark.

[kochicar]

To check the car for its low fuel warning light I drove my Dzire zdi for 670 kM this time. There was no sign of warning light comming up.

Finally the fuel needle was just below the empty mark and i refilled 43.1L of diesel as I was sure of getting stuck in the middle of the road.

Oh now I am sure this low warning lamp is of no use even if it comes up in the last moment as there is only very little margin left out to take you to the next filling station if you are in a highway. Tank capacity is only 45L.

But I got some interesting data to chear up.

100 % AC, mixed conditions, normal diesel, brim to brim same pump and dispenser, same time of the day.

670 Km= 43.1 L = Rs 1611.50 means 15.54km/L = Rs 2.4 /km


Car is now at 7000 km.
First service cost = ~Rs 500
Second service= Rs 0 (Zero)

[yzfrj]

This is OT I guess,

While an amber warning light ok.
An estimated distance till it runs dry (I've seen this in a fiesta)
That is more useful I think.

Once my friend's fiesta was running on fumes (at that time chennai was in the middle of a pertol/diesel shortage) so the car was showing "0" as estimated distance till dry and was safely parked in the "lot"

So mineral water bottle + my bike = 3.5ltrs to the rescue.
Filled her and promptly it showed 30kms after starting her up.

He took it easy 50-60km/hr and when he was home (26kms drive) it still has 10kms till running out of fuel (as per the meter thingy)

In a situation as "kochicar ji" mentioned this can be a life saver.

I'm pretty sure its wayyyyyyyy too complex to design and implement.
Any thoughts guys ?

Electronic wiz (read : greenhorn ji) ideas ???

[DieselFan]

Originally Posted by kochicar

Finally the fuel needle was just below the empty mark and i refilled 43.1L of diesel as I was sure of getting stuck in the middle of the road.

About 8 lts of fuel does exists once the needle reaches the empty mark. As far as I know Dzire Tank capacity is 43 L. I am pretty much sure that you were short changed of at least 5 lts if not more.

[lambuhere1]

Originally Posted by DieselFan

About 8 lts of fuel does exists once the needle reaches the empty mark. As far as I know Dzire Tank capacity is 43 L. I am pretty much sure that you were short changed of at least 5 lts if not more.

I second what Diesel says about the capacity. Whenever I fill my swifts tank after the needle touches the empty option, I find a min of 8 litres left in reserve. Sometimes its 10 liters.

[greenhorn]

Originally Posted by yzfrj

An estimated distance till it runs dry (I've seen this in a fiesta)
That is more useful I think.
I'm pretty sure its wayyyyyyyy too complex to design and implement.
Any thoughts guys ?

Electronic wiz (read : greenhorn ji) ideas ???

if we're to assume that the car has a fixed kmpl, then it should be do-able with a microcontroller and an LCD display ( something of the level of a final year project )

Voltage output of fuel sensor -> Analog to Digital convertor-> Microcontroller( convert voltage to kilometers based on formula/lookup table) -> LCD display


on the other hand , if the mileage is to be calculated in real time , based on usage etc, it becomes VERRRY complex, something like this
MPGuino - DIY Gas Mileage Gauge : Gas Saver Guide

and that itself is not enough- thats just a real time mileage gauge. you'll have to hook up to info from the fuel gauge as well and then calculate the miles remaining from that !