keitholivier Posted March 12, 2007 Share Posted March 12, 2007 I recently purchased an 85 Dolphin. On the return trip home, I never got more than 150 miles to a tank and the most that went in was 10 gal. Does this sound familiar ? I have heard repeatedly that the tank size was 17 gal ? Regards Keith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gulfstream Greg Posted March 16, 2007 Share Posted March 16, 2007 I think the tank is 17 gallons. I have misplaced my Chilton's but will find it soon. Here is a link for new replacement tanks and there are no 10 or 12 gallon tanks. http://www.quantaproducts.com/products.asp?dept=396 Your gauge is probably off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keitholivier Posted March 16, 2007 Author Share Posted March 16, 2007 Wow ! I must have been lucky all my life and have never had a fuel gauge read that far off. Since the tank is almost full now, I guess I will have to top it off and then drain it to know the "real number" ! Since I had no experience with the unit, I wasn't taking any chances but a 150 mile range would certainly be pretty pathetic (based on 10 gallons). Thanks for the link. Maybe I will spring for the biggest tank I can find to try to get the range extended to at least 300 miles. The way it is, I barely got around Chicago before the indicator was showing empty again... If the sender unit is off it will mean dropping the fuel tank to get it and the fuel pump out. Probably a good time to (preemptively) replace the fuel pump anyway ? I think its less than $200 for a part like that and it really spoils your day when it fails on a weekend in the middle of nowhere. Last time it was with my wife's Venture on I69 in pouring rain over a weekend while I was in Germany..... bummer. Regards Keith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gulfstream Greg Posted March 16, 2007 Share Posted March 16, 2007 Your gas mileage seems to be about right. Very few get over 16 mpg. I have a 22 gallon tank and I found that when it shows empty it still has almost 10 gallons in it. I plan to drop my tank and replace the sender, making sure that its set up correctly. If I show empty and I have 8 or 9 gallons left its like russian roulette wondering if I am going to run out of gas. I will try to find that manual tonight and get back to you on the stock size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toto Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 We bought our '93 Seabreeze last Nov. in Las Vegas, and on the trip back home to Boise, Idaho (in the dark; in the desert) we had no idea how large the tank was but had a pretty good idea on what fuel burn was supposed to be. Since it was miles and miles between each gas oasis, we topped off whenever we found some. One thing we learned on this adventure (with mucho anxiety) was that when we climbed hills and the tank read less than half, it would start missing and gasping and running like crap. When we again topped it off, everything ran fine again and it would climb hills smoothly like a little goat. My husband is a mechanic and when we got home, he dropped the tank and found that the fuel pump lives in a little reservoir to keep it full of fuel regardless of slosh and hills. Apparently ours was full of crud and the little line that fills the reservoir when it gets below the lip was clogged. Since the pump was old, cruddy, and had been cavitated enough, we replaced that and cleaned the line to the reservoir. Problem solved. The morale of the story is that if you are going to pull the tank to replace the sending unit, you should change the pump and clean all that other stuff in there. That's our advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
futar Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 Great info. I posted here asking about the fuel gauges reading low and got only one reply. I heard that they read low because the pumps will burn out unless completely immersed. I have a hard time believing that. Can any one verify that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88WIT Posted March 17, 2007 Share Posted March 17, 2007 Great info. I posted here asking about the fuel gauges reading low and got only one reply. I heard that they read low because the pumps will burn out unless completely immersed. I have a hard time believing that. Can any one verify that? I made that comment from my Ford literature which states the pumps are designed for immersion cooling. It's pure conjecture on my part that the guage is calibrated to help ensure this. I replaced both pump assemblies twice in my twin-tank F150 in the first four or five years, and once in a co-worker's Econoline. We tried to maximize the number of long commutes based on our gallonage. After I spotted the Ford information, I've had no problem for about eleven years. It may not be a burn-out that occurs, either. There may be a check valve and a bypass valve in the assembly. I recall those were a bigger problem than the actual pumps quitting. Seems the pumps were being starved because they didn't get their allotment of return from the injector rail, and performance suffered. It appeared Ford's strategy ('92 - '96) was to use the returned fuel before the tank fuel, probably to avoid having a tank full of very warm gasoline. Maybe Toyota's mounting position in the tank would allow a truer calibration of the float arm. Ford's would not -- the bouyant material nearly touched the tank at factory setting. Until I get into a V-6 and upgrade to a 26-gal primary tank (Transfer Flow?) and maybe a little transfer tank tucked away somewhere, I've contented myself with running another twenty-five miles or so after the guage hits a certain point near E. Works fine except when I snap out of road hypnosis and ask: now just when did that needle get down there? Hopefully I wrote mileage on the last receipt and can calculate the remaining fuel. On true road trips I carry two Jerry Cans.... I'll check my mostly-pictoral Toyota-authorized 3-volume set to see if there's any mention of strategy. Steve R. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
84TOYRV Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 I have a 17 gal gas tank. On a long trip, last summer, I let the fuel gauge get down to right on empty (my bad ). When I filled up, It would only take 10 gallons. That's a 7 gallon reserve! Mine is also a Dolphin. Tudy 84 Dolphin "Cricket" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bufbooth Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 I thought that my 1990 Odyssey had a 17 gallon tank but found out the hard way it was only a 15 gallon tank. I my two week Yellowstone trip I ended up running out of gas during the first four hours of my trip, in Illinois of all places. I just cleared Peoria and saw that the fuel gage was on E. I said to the wife we need to stop at the next exit for gas. About 30 miles later I was still looking for the next gas station, I could not believe the lack of gas stations on I-74 West of Peoria. I ended up running out of gas in Knoxville, in the parking lot of an out of business Amoco. After walking a mile to an open gas station the next morning, I returned with one gallon of gas, drove the mile and filled the tank up, she would only take 14.5 gallons. I now took for gas as the half way mark, and now you know how I found Knoxville, Illinois, the location of the Mid-West Toy-Ins that I have been hosting. Dennis... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magnaflow Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 I recently purchased an 85 Dolphin. On the return trip home, I never got more than 150 miles to a tank and the most that went in was 10 gal. Does this sound familiar ? I have heard repeatedly that the tank size was 17 gal ? Regards Keith How far down did you run the tank? Your gauge might be off. Magnaflow in Oakland ca. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bufbooth Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 It was on E when I started looking for gas, 30 miles later it was about a quarter inch below E. So, I am guessing I have about 2 gallons of gas when I hit the E mark. I am still looking for the 1 to 2 gallon spare tire gas tank (fits into the spare tire). About 10 years ago they used to sell them for Geo Trackers (I used to get a catalog for Tracker accessories), but cannot find them anywhere. I know that BMW makes them for their cars, but they cost about $200 and I think will only fit inside of a BMW rim. Later, Dennis... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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