OKEH1 Posted October 1, 2005 Share Posted October 1, 2005 I have a concern regarding the fuel capacity of my 04 RX330. This week I allowed the fuel to drop to almost zero ( needle was almost flat and cruise range was 10 miles)before refilling, this is the first time doing so as I usually fill up at just under half. Anyway, I filled it up and only managed to get 15 1/2 gallons into it, now I have always thought the fuel tank held 19.2 gallons, if this is the case, what has happened to the other almost 4 gallon capacity. Could my tank have collapsed in some way to reduce the volume somewhat?, or has Lexus been overstating the capacity, I can't believe the gauge to be so far out of sync and don't think the fuel pipes would hold 4 gallons. Does anyone have any ideas or similar experiences?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lexus411 Posted October 1, 2005 Share Posted October 1, 2005 It has a 3-4 gallon reserve tank. So when it says you have 0 miles to empty you really still have about 3 gallons left in the tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OKEH1 Posted October 1, 2005 Author Share Posted October 1, 2005 It has a 3-4 gallon reserve tank. So when it says you have 0 miles to empty you really still have about 3 gallons left in the tank. ← Thanks for the quick reply, just a quick question though, if there is a reserve tank, is this mentioned in the manual?, and why does the cruise range not indicate correctly?. Does the fuel automatically change to reserve or is there a switch?. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sakaike Posted October 1, 2005 Share Posted October 1, 2005 It has a 3-4 gallon reserve tank. So when it says you have 0 miles to empty you really still have about 3 gallons left in the tank. ← Thanks for the quick reply, just a quick question though, if there is a reserve tank, is this mentioned in the manual?, and why does the cruise range not indicate correctly?. Does the fuel automatically change to reserve or is there a switch?. ← I wondered the same thing for a while, and have learned the following: The first warning sign you receive is when the low fuel lamp illuminates on your gas gauage, usually with about 4 or so gallons left in your tank. If you have your trip computer set to distance remaining, it is usually with about 20-30 miles left (depending on your driving history). Next, your distance remaining will drop to zero. This means you have about 3 gallons or so left in the tank. Finally, if you ignore all these warnings, you will eventually run out of gas. There is no separate reserve "tank." The previous post was referring to a reserve amount in your 19.2 gallon gas tank. I ran my tank til it was almost dry, and was indeed able to fill almost 19 gallons, after having driven a good distance past 0 miles cruising distance remaining according to the trip computer (about 50-60 miles). Obviously, you don't want to run your tank empty for a myriad of reasons, so I recommend you take my word for it. I strongly suspect the reason the system is set up the way it is is for risk management on the part of Lexus. They don't want owners running out of gas because they relied too heavily on the indicators in the car. Once you know and understand how things work, you can rely upon them to your own particular level of risk. And no, none of this is documented in the manual... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgr7 Posted October 3, 2005 Share Posted October 3, 2005 Also running your tank dry will lead to fuel pump failure. The fuel cools the pump and it will over heat if run dry. Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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