8 replies to this topic

[spiinthestates]

Out of the blue halfway through a drive waiting on a turning light I noticed my fuel had gone to zero when I knew I was at a little less then half 10 minutes ago driving along. I got going again and the fuel needle came back up to the level I knew I had, just below half then next stop light it dropped to zero again, first I thought it was washing around in the tank but I wasn't thrashing around, normal granny driving pace since I was on the lookout for deer after dusk. Then I did a little test when driving along I just slightly put my foot on the brake pedal and sure enough the gauge began to drop then I lifted off and it returned to normal.

So I can only assume I have a electrical short somewhere.

Where would be the most likely places I should check first and any sort of tests I can peform at the wiring level/source as I am no electrician.

My only idea would be to check the tail lights and fuel sender wires to make sure they look clean and clear of any obstructions.

[ryanfisher67]

mine does this as well. sit at traffic lights with "no petrol" pull away and it becomes half full

[reallybig]

check all fuses

i have 4 inline fuses next to dials, one of them?

[xrocketengineer]

The ground/earth points for the brake lights and the fuel sender are common. They probably need cleaning. Black wires located by the left tail light next to the fuel tank,hard to get to.

Ivan

[spiinthestates]

I did some very minor troubleshooting and may have solved it.

I jumped the fuel sender wires and the gauge showed full tank, I then drove around like that in stop and go traffic, twisties, bumps and all that, it stayed at full even with the brakes on. So I removed the jump and put it back original and topped it off at the gas station, turned over and it read full tank since it was. Drove around in the same conditions again and the fuel gauge read correct the entire time not dropping at all during stops and only falling slowly over the course of the day as I actually used fuel.

So my question is can the fuel sender develop a (lack of a better term) flat spot in it that would read dead for a certain reading range?

[reallybig]

it's a gauge not an instrument so it's going to be fairly inaccurate anyway

[ryanfisher67]

I feel it adds to the character

[xrocketengineer]

DK Lawson has a good description of the issues with bad earth connections in this thread.
http://www.theminifo...ic#entry2459692

[nev_payne]

Had exactly the same problem with front fog lights and ECU common earth. the connection was anything but clean; switching on the fog lights was as good as switching the ignition off - would die instantly.