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Biggest [fuel] Fill On 1500?  Post 'em!

brmiller

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Alright. I know there have been a few topics about the actual size of the gas tank, problems with 2500 owners having to burp the tanks, not getting full fills, etc., but I thought it would be kind of fun to post your biggest fill-up receipts. I know not everyone has a scanner or digicam, but to be counted you must show proof. So here's mine from this Christmas travels:

4501_av_big_gulp.jpg


30.554 gallons on a 1500. Read 'em and weep. :)

If you can read my chicken-scratch at the bottom, that 431.2 is the mileage before filling up, so not great mileage at 14.1mpg. But we drove a chunk of that in a 20-40mph headwind and used 4WD in some snow. In this kind of weather, I don't care what the mileage is; I just want to get there!

So post yours, and provide unadulterated "evidence". The only edit I did was to block out the last four digits of my card number.

Just a cool game I thought as I watched the gallons tick on past 28 (my usual gulp).

Brendan
 
brmiller said:
30.554 gallons on a 1500. ?Read 'em and weep. :)
Cutting it a little close there, aren't you! :eek:

My record is 28.4 gallons. A mere pittance in comparison. Alas, I didn't save the receipt. :6:

-- SS
 
Mine is just a bit more than that of SS at 28.8, I don't think I'd want to try for more than that as the fuel light was already on and the DIC chiming at me. If I beat that, I'll be sure to save the receipt.

SJP
 
I am afraid when I go to gas station so I made an habit to gas up after one quarter so I don't usually pay much every time but in the other hand I go very often.
The most I paid to gas up was 20 about half a tank. An average of 17-18 miles per gallon all of those on freeway coming back from Colorado to Houston.

Have Fun!
 
The receipt isn't good evidence. If I gas up with 28 gal and then add 5 gal to the gas can for my snowmobile my receipt will show 33.....just indicates how many gallons I purchased at a given date and time, not what it went into.
 
Half-Breed,

Do you ever go snowmobiling over here on my side of the lake? I'm in SW Michigan near Benton Harbor. If you're coming this way, let me know, I know most of the trails and we have a group of 6 or so that ride together.

SJP
 
half-breed said:
The receipt isn't good evidence. If I gas up with 28 gal and then add 5 gal to the gas can for my snowmobile my receipt will show 33.....just indicates how many gallons I purchased at a given date and time, not what it went into.


There you go, always thinking..............

You don't think an Aver would pull something like that just for bragging rights do you???

On second thought.................
 
Runnin' on fumes there, huh Brendan? Keep in mind that everything in the bottom of that fuel tank isn't gasoline.
 
half-breed said:
The receipt isn't good evidence. If I gas up with 28 gal and then add 5 gal to the gas can for my snowmobile my receipt will show 33.....just indicates how many gallons I purchased at a given date and time, not what it went into.

hey halfbreed it's called the honor system !!

sure I could pump mine, and swing the nozzle over the little hottie's car and give her a few free gallons too (or spill some in a gas can, but if you're gonna game the system do it in style at least >:D )

I actually like this concept, finally a game on the Av board that I play all the time anyway - "how far can I push my luck on the gas guage?" (Brendan, you da man with 30 gals!) As far as my wife is concerned, it's purely a male thing. Drives her nuts on long trip with me.
 
No, okay, I realized as I hit "Post" that it wasn't pure evidence. Next I'll require a video from your significant other while you honestly pump the 30+ gallons. It should include her (or him) in the background saying, "Dang hon--I told you not to cut it so close!" I won't comment on the soundtrack if you put a few gallons in hottie's car next to you while your wife is standing there... :)

Also, if your receipt said 33 and you have a 1500 I'd doubt you anyway... But enough on that. I don't mean to attack your cheatin' approach!

I just thought it was a fun game to play on the honor system. I guess for that matter I could not have posted my receipt at all, but I thought it made the post more interesting--I like "multimedia"!

And Steel, I thought of that as I pulled away--what the heck did I expect was in that last half gallon? Ewww... Don't even want to think about it. I've always, since I got my first car, wanted to see how many miles I could put on a tank (for mileage purposes) or how many gallons I could squeeze in there (to see how close I could cut it without running out).

Normally, though, when the LOW FUEL message comes on, I have 5 gallons left. I was driving to the gas station one time, and it came on half a mile before I got there. I got an even 26 gallons. So I call the LOW FUEL the 5 GAL LEFT message. At 15mpg, I should get 75 miles yet. At 10mpg plus figuring you dont' want to use the last gallon, I could still go 40.... This time I think the LOW FUEL message came on at 398, so I went about 34 miles....

I'll tell you what though... After driving that thing empty across the town of Fresno from my parent's house to the gas station right at the highway 99 entrance (@ 16 miles) Chevron, I felt like I had installed a load-leveling kit when I took off from the station! Could definitely feel the extra weight of 300lbs of gasoline. Felt like the rear was dragging. I'd gotten used to how light and peppy acceleration was with an empty tank. Guess I need a Whipple to a) preserve this feeling all the time and b) make me stop for gas more. :)

Thanks for the comments--even the "10 ways to cheat Brendan's game" posts!

Brendan
 
fidelfs said:
The most I paid to gas up was 20 about half a tank. An average of 17-18 miles per gallon all of those on freeway coming back from Colorado to Houston.
We could save this for another "Board Game" on "Whose fill up cost the most?" which would be a testament to both [empty] fuel capacity and where you live and how it sucks to be you paying that much for gas....

But my other runner-up receipt in terms of "most gas pumped" (over the whole time I've had the Av) came earlier on this trip when filling the tank cost $47.50 (!)

4500_av_pricey_gulp.jpg


The receipt is a little hard to read (running out of ink at this Chevron), but we faired a little bit better in terms of miles between fillups at 449.5. MPG is still 15+; again the snow and headwind were a factor. But don't buy gas in Willows, CA--1.61 for 87 octane sent me through the roof!

Let 'er rip--I know some of you (Californians?) have paid wild prices for even 87 octane. Here in Salem, OR I usually pay $1.25-$1.40.

Brendan
 
The most I've ever put in the Av was about 29 gl. Brendan, pump gasoline weighs about 6.2-6.4lbs/ gallon compared to 8.33 lbs/gl. for water. Water will really make a bee-line to the bottom of a container of fuel given half a chance. The older the vehicle, the greater the chance for condensation. Keeping the tank close to full helps to keep this to a minimum due to decreased ?surface area exposed to air. I am the worst offender, ?being below a 1/4 tank most of the time, it seems.
 
Steelheadchaser said:
pump gasoline weighs about 6.2-6.4lbs/ gallon compared to 8.33 lbs/gl. for water. Water will really make a bee-line to the bottom of a container of fuel given half a chance. The older the vehicle, the greater the chance for condensation. Keeping the tank close to full helps to keep this to a minimum due to decreased surface area exposed to air.
Hey! Thanks for the weight on gasoline--always wondered and used water as a "close estimate". And thanks for reminding me about the condensation potential--I'd heard/read/learned that somewhere along the way, but hadn't thought about it in awhile. Always good info here, even from a silly "competition"!

Brendan
 
brmiller said:
It's actually Brendan--no worries, though.

D'oh! :2: Sorry about that, Brendan! I knew better than that! I went back and fixed it (on both posts!).
 
Cool, mustang! I went back through my receipts, but the first Avalanche fill-up I could find was 4/02 when we bought our truck in 10/01. I know we didn't drive 6 months on the dealer tank of gas, but I can't find it. Nothing like that first fill-up.... Ahhh... Except in Oregon they take most of the thrill out of it since they pump your gas for you.

Brendan
 
Dang, I just checked all my receipts (I have the data stored in my Palm device) and the most I ever put in was 23.442 gals. Not even close :6:

I usually don't like to go below 1/4 tank for a bunch of reasons, but mostly because I don't want to push the truck... When I was in college I made a dead stick landing in my roommate's '69 Olds 98 (with the 455 Delta GT engine :) ); that car taught me to have respect for a vehicle's weight! :eek:
 
After 10 months I finally let the gas get low enough for the light to come on. It took 28.5 gallons to refill. I don't have a picture of my receipt. How could I not think to take a picture of a gas receipt?? ;)

Usually, my wife pesters me by asking if the Av will get her to the grocery store (5-10 miles away). Then I ask her how much gas she has left and she always says 1/4 tank. Yes, honey, I think you'll be okay....... ;)
 
I've been running on vapors for the last 15 miles after my "Low Fuel" warning came on... I'll get a full fill after work and see how much this 1500 tank can really hold... I've passed about 20 stations since, but keep on rollin' by... its takin' me too long to figure in the math of how much I will loose from station 2 station.
If theres a Sunset-O on the side w/ a AAA single gallon fill... you know its me.

sponger :B:
 
I fill up around the half way point. After driving a kar.
w/ an 8 gal. tank for about 23 years and having that 8 gals. last about a week to week and a half....... Well, at half way it dosen't seem to hurt so bad.
Still overall I think the AV's mileage is much better than I expected. I use to own a Chevy truck with a 454, everytime you stepped on the pedal the gauge would move.

I SOOOoooooo love this truck ;D ;D :B:

RR
 
Funny you should mention this... for 2 reasons.

1. My girlfriend and I debate over this a lot. As soon as she sees the Low Fuel warning light in my Lanche, she lets me know - as if I can't see the 4" yellow square in my face. ;-) She's one of those ooh - my tanks at 1/2, gotta go get gas now!! I take the stance that when my low fuel light comes on, I know I have about 25-35 miles left. I check the odometer reading so I know... (more on this in a bit...) I think the 'when to fillup' debate can be divided between the sexes. I remember on my honeymoon (yes, with my ex-wife for you sharp readers) we rented a jeep and cruised up to the top of some volcano in Hawaii. The low fuel light came on on the way up, and she wanted to turn around and get gas right away. I said not to worry - we've got plenty of room to get gas when we get back down the mountain. Besides, if we run out, we can coast down! ;-) She was pissed the whole day because of that. (Shoulda seen the warning signs) >:D

Now, on to reason #2:

After I did my stereo install, I noticed a rattle in the dash. I wanted to check it out. I'm always looking for something to do while filling up the tank, cause it takes like 10 minutes. So, this particular time, I decide to take apart my dash board, pull out the stereo and see what the problem was. I paid for the gas (without even looking at the receipt I just signed for) and pulled away. Around the corner, I noticed the low fuel light was still on. I thought that I had pulled something loose in one of the fuel gauges or something. Went to my friend's auto repair shop, and had him look at the gauges. "You sure you have gas in here?" Yea, I just filled it up...

I thought, "oh well, I'll check with the dealer on Monday..." and continued driving around. Sure enough - truck dies that night. Called On-Star to pick it up - sent a flatbed in like 5 minutes, that was cool! They drop it at the dealer. Monday morning, I call the dealer - again - "You sure you have gas in here?" Yea, I just filled it up... "Well, we put a splash of gas in here, and it started up." Hmm.. check my receipt - only like $12. (Keep in mind in NJ you can't pump your own gas)

So, I go back to the gas station (good place - I still use em) to find out what happened. Turns out that they had new pumps, and weren't used to using them. No gas went into my truck, but the display went up to $12. So I drove around on fumes for about 35 miles. ;-0 The guy that pumped the gas gave me $20 out of his pocket for his mistake.

So, I know the range once the low fuel light goes on - cause I tested it ;-)

When I filled it up after picking up the truck, I put in 29.19 gallons, so the dealer must have had a generous 'splash.' My record in 29.62 gallons.

Damn, didn't think that would be such a long story... ;-)
 
gojira-san said:
Dang, I just checked all my receipts (I have the data stored in my Palm device) and the most I ever put in was 23.442 gals. Not even close :6:
I hate to get off topic, but what do you use to keep track of gas? I love my Palm m505, and can't live without it. I've been using AutoMobile to keep track of gas, but I'm wondering of there's something better.

A.J. said:
Damn, didn't think that would be such a long story... ?;-)
Long, but good! (y)

-- SS
 
ShapeShifter said:
[...]what do you use to keep track of gas? I love my Palm m505, and can't live without it
I have used AutoBase (works ok, shows instant MPG when you enter the fill, no conduit just copy to memo, oh it is free :) ).

I am also using AutoSlate which has more features (more categories, more flexible alarms, custom filters) and has a conduit to output the data to a file on your PC. It is $15 I think.

Both work on Palm 5, well the newest version of AutoSlate does (v1.26) because I asked for them to fix the bugs before I would buy it ;)

Still trying to decide so I use both right now :)
 
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