Low fuel idiot light

[Tungsten]

Have you checked the bulb?

 

Now this is interesting as that bulb should see almost no wear because it's almost never on (unless you're cheap and don't put enough gas in).

[Towncivilian]

Now this is interesting as that bulb should see almost no wear because it's almost never on (unless you're cheap and don't put enough gas in).

I thought the same, but you never know! It could have been a defective bulb, or did somehow manage to blow. But then again, 180sx said his stopped working, so it must have worked at some point. My SES bulb died after probably 2 years of constantly being lit. I had just filled up my tires, started the car, no more SES light! It takes maybe 10 minutes to check the bulb anyway.

Edited April 6, 2011 by Towncivilian

[180sx]

Check the bulb? Bah, no need. Just keep gas in the tank. I think my CEL bulb is out though. It used to always be on and off. Hasn;t been on in a very long time and I havent changed the problem yet (bad O2 sensor) so I'm assuming it's dead. And to think of it, the light probably stopped working the las time I went wheeling, because I remember it not coming on on the drive home and I was on E. Maybe the jars shorted the bulb? Who knows. Too lazy to pull the cluster. Engine is practically dead anyway and it's just parked now while I wait for parts so it gets more than 8mpg.

 

Jose

[JamesRich]

Nissans fuel gages are all screwed up. With my first titan (04) the fuel light came on when it still had 8 gallons left. My second titan (06) the light came on when it had 4 gallons left. The pump and sending unit has been changed twice now because of recalls so now I don't know when it will come on.

The sensor for the light is a small check ball at the very bottom of the tank so if your light quit working the sensor is probably corroded from moisture condensation in the tank from running it so low.

My pathy doesn't have a light, it has the sub tank gauge but it doesn't work either. One day I will get a chance to fix it but I usually fill up at a quarter anyway.

If you want to know how far you can go with the light on, throw a 5 gallon can in the back and drive till it quits.

James

[MrT]

My light hasn't worked since I got it. Can't say I miss it. The gas gauge is the best one I've ever had though. It's actually fairly accurate, if you take into account that the middle of the 'E' line means 3 gal. left. I've had two Fords that the gas gauges must have been logarithmic. You'd fill it up and when it got to 1/2 you really had a 1/4 and it quickly fell to 'E' from there. Just one more reason never to buy a Ford again I guess...

[01KJRPath]

In my 01 I have gone 50 miles with the fuel light on, and not gotten more than 19.5 gallons in the tank.

 

Karl

[Rick13]

Must have been someone else's misinformation you read.

 

Fuel tank capacity is 21.1 gallons. Period.

 

http://www.google.com/search?q=pathfinder+...=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

 

I think I'll go with this for my rig (2001 R50):

 

I swore I had read this exact topic about a year ago, but I also know how doing searches can be before posting.

 

I've done this calc many times over the past 7 years of owning my R50 (filling up at the first sign of the warning light) and I get anywhere from 2-3 gallons. I also know that there can be great fluctuations in when this indicator comes on so I'd base it on your personal experience with your particular truck.

 

Just my

[XPLORx4]

Rick13- That's an interesting piece of information above! Thanks for sharing the info from your owners manual.

 

The 97 owners manual and even the sales brochure (which I still have!) both say the tank holds 21.1 gallons. Nissan must have changed the way they measure the fuel capacity or changed something about the tank in the later models.

 

 

But either way, 21.1 gal - 20 7/8 gal = about a quart of gas, not really enough to make a statistically significant difference in how far you can drive after the low fuel light glows.

Edited April 8, 2011 by XPLORx4

[Rick13]

Yeah, that's kind of why I posted it up. I figured that even though we are all R50's that there might be some slight differences (or even large ones!).

[esy]

My light usually comes on at about 16gal/4gal left, give or take. My manual also says 20 7/8, which i just say 20 gallons. Keep it simple. Most fuel lights should come on with around 50-60 miles left to drive before it starts sputtering. At least that's what i've typically noticed.