Dan Cobb

I thought I had serious problems with my 84 a few weeks ago when it left me poking under the seat and fiddling with the DME relay on the side of the road.
I swapped the relay. No start.
I checked for spark. No start.
I checked for the fuel pump noise. No start.
I began to think about head temp sensors, etc. etc. then I decided to start looking at the most BASIC FUNDAMENTALS of automotive repair.
I pulled the fuel level sender and looked inside the tank. I still can't believe it. I could see the bottom of the tank, drier than a desert bone!

I put a gallon of 91 in it, re-assembled the sender & jumped the battery. BANG! it started!

I 'thumped' the fuel gauge with my finger and watched it drop from nearly 1/3 of a tank to the bottom line and then the red light went on.

Amazing. I had no idea that the thing could stick like that and cause me to run out of gas!
How do I prevent this from happening again? Repair/replace the gauge or the sender or both?
Has anyone else run their car empty due to a faulty reading?

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faithless

Great story.

84_Carrera

Glad everything worked out Dan. FYI, I keep a watch on the trip odometer too. I've seen weird things with other gauges (including some Autometers & VDO aftermarkets) when it's cool at night / very hot the next day.

Peter Zimmermann

Dan: Over the years I "repaired" a number of cars with your problem, a sticking guage is very unusual. I would recommend that you get your guage over to No. Hollywood Speedo (or buy a new one), but replace the sender for good measure.
Pete

sjanes

Dan,

I'm having the same problem with the fuel guage on my 87 except it sticks going up. I fill it up and it reads 1/2 tank. Doesn't move until I get below 1/2 of fuel, and it goes down. I'm not sure if it's the guage or the fuel sender, but somethin' ain't workin right.

Par911

Buying a new fuel tank level sender might alleviate the problem also. The rubber seal can sometimes dry rot.
http://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/...g13.htm#item46

MDL

I remember about a year or two ago that Shell put some kind of additive in their gas that made the fuel gauge's stick. It screwed up my wife's 98 Accord and the brand new Silverado I had at the time. The Honda's gauge never showed full again, only about 3/4 full, and I ran the Silverado out of fuel with 1/4 tank showing on the gauge.

Dan.

theiceman

it's about time Dan . I was wondering what happened to you and your car... If I remember one of your original posts however you suspected fuel did you not ?
any way the best fix ever .. the only damage is to your pride :-)

Thanks for sharing..most woudn't..

Dan Cobb

My pride is well scarred.
I'm thinking I should replace the sender first, then the gauge if the issue repeats itself.
I'll certainly be watching the odometer a bit closer now.
Good thing it returned to working order all on it's own about 8 months ago or I'd have to put a stick in the trunk to check my fuel level.
Ha!
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autobonrun

I'm embarrased to say I've been thumping my gage for over 20 years. There is a point around half full where mine sticks. Thump it and it drops to where it should be then doesn't stick anymore until it's refilled back over the 1/2 way point. My low fuel light even works although I've only tested that a couple times. I've never run out of gas since I tend to fill up at 1/4 tank and I know that I can go about 280 miles with a full tank and I reset my odometer at every fill up.

I just haven't bothered to fix it since I know the car so well. Instead I've put money into the suspension, exhaust, interior, etc. Maybe you've given me the incentive to pull mine and get it fixed since the car gets to rest a lot these days. I try to keep everything on the car perfect so this would be a good item to restore.

Same issue with my windshield washer, it quit working the same year I bought the car in 1984, but since I don't drive it in the rain, I never miss it either.

Dan Cobb

My wiper and headlight washers don't function either. I don't typically drive in the rain either so I'm not worried about it, but as I type this it almost doesn't make sense.
If it is raining, then you probably only need the wipers, not the washers. They are more helpful in the dry when your windshield is just filthy and 'bugged-up'. This makes me want to fix that too.
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theiceman

When I got my car nothing worked.... and I too ran out of gas due to the sender issue. I get around 600km to a tank and am looking for gas after 500 ( have driven by odometer on all my cars since I can remember ) . My headlight washers were the relay but all that does is give you an excuse to wash your car..what a mess..

Nashville84Cab

Wow the exact same thing happened to me last month. My 84 had been sitting in the garage, then one day I decide to take her out for a spin. Well to make a long story short, the engine wouldn't fire and I tried everything I possibly could to get her started (and even checked the fuel gauge which was just above 1/2 tank). My neighbor (another PO) came over and convinced me to put some gas in the tank as a last resort. To my amazement, the car fired up!

My fuel gauge now does not go below the 1/2 way point. To save more embarrassment (especially from my friends who don't let me forget about that day and remind me that Porsches need gas too) I now clock my miles and fill up more frequently. This hasn't been that big of a pain yet since my car is only driven 20-100 miles per month, but I eventually would like this fixed. Please keep us posted on how you fixed this issue.

Best regards,
Darrell

autobonrun

Just curious. The next time it gets to the stopping point, try thumping the glass on the fuel gage and see if it drops.

Dan Cobb

I'm inclined to suspect that the fault is more commonly caused by the level sensor(float) sticking in the tube or the tube has debris in it from something that makes it stick intermittently.

I'd also think that because of this constant sticking over a period of maybe 20+ years of fuel deposits and gunk collecting in that tube and how most of these gauges are not solid state, they could have 'flat-spots' on a coil or armature by now that makes them remain in one spot until they are imbalanced or jolted loose.

HMMM just a theory.
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