Fuel Tank Calibration

[J L Dunn]

I'm sure that this question has been posed elsewhere, but I do not know how to search for it.

My fuel gage shows a 1/8 ~ 1/4 full and the "miles to empty" overhead shows as much as 100 miles. Then my 7.3 starts to lurch, buck...and I pull over and call for someone to bring some diesel fuel.

I can't place faith in what the gage says nor what the overhead suggests. So, to alleviate this I just fill up when the gage registers 1/2 full/empty.

How do I calibrate or have it calibrated?

Thanks,

JLD

 

[DaveBen]

Don't beleive the Lie-O-Meter! Forget about it. Go by the miles since you filled it. As for the calibration, Ford should be able to do it for $$.

Dave

 

[JRJ04]

fill it up

 

[Tail_Gunner]

Over the last 11 years, I have learned how to correlate the gauge reading with actual gallons quantity in the tank.

Usually when I fill, it is to the brim of the filler neck which "pegs" the needle.

When the gage gets down to the "F" mark, I have burned 8-9 gallons.

The actual "half tank" (19-20 gals) quantity reads about 9/16 to 5/8 on the gage.

The actual 1/4 tank (9-10 gals) reads about 5/16 on the gage.

The "You'd better find some fuel soon" light comes on about 1/8 or slightly less.

The point here is the gage isn't spot on accurate. Learn to understand what the gage is really trying to tell you.

 

[BIG JOE]

Over the last 11 years, I have learned how to correlate the gauge reading with actual gallons quantity in the tank.

Usually when I fill, it is to the brim of the filler neck which "pegs" the needle.

When the gage gets down to the "F" mark, I have burned 8-9 gallons.

The actual "half tank" (19-20 gals) quantity reads about 9/16 to 5/8 on the gage.

The actual 1/4 tank (9-10 gals) reads about 5/16 on the gage.

The "You'd better find some fuel soon" light comes on about 1/8 or slightly less.

The point here is the gage isn't spot on accurate. Learn to understand what the gage is really trying to tell you.

X2. Same here TG, spot on with my 2K, but I just fill up every 300 miles or so. (Half-ish a tank). I think there's something to be said about keeping fresh fuel, at a good level, in our tanks.

Joe

 

[early 99 stroker]

when you get down to 1/4 - 1/8 of a tank the mixing chamber allows air to get into the fuel system..this air has no place to go except for the injectors...once the air gets in..it takes 50 to 100 miles after re fueling to work the air all out and the truck start run smoother and quiter.. .there is a mod to fix this problem or you can just refill when you get down to 1/4 tank..

 

[Tail_Gunner]

when you get down to 1/4 - 1/8 of a tank the mixing chamber allows air to get into the fuel system..

The fix for that problem is the "Hutch mod". It fixes that sucking air issue and gets rid of that POS mixing chamber.

There is an old thread HERE that explains the Hutch mod pretty well.

 

[sagebel]

My 7.3's fuel guage always moved slow on the top end and quick on the bottom. At 1/4 I needed to look for fuel. I could get 250-290 miles on the top half (short bed) and then the guage dropped quickly. Sounds like your guage is doing something similar. FWIW I try to avoid going less than 1/4 tank. (Probably due to running the tractor empty at age 11 and the "training" I received because of it.)