gas tank issues

[tortiosboy]

hey guys just got my 1st festiva a little over 2 months ago....

91/5-spd

when i get to a 1/4 tank it will act like it is out of gas and coughs and dies

when i fill it up after it has died, i can only put 8 gallons in it, thought it was a 10 gallon tank?

i've run fuel system cleaner through it along w/water remover through a seperate tank of gas....still got the problem

asked a guy at advance auto parts and he thought maybe my filler neck is bad (somehow) and shutting the pump off b4 the tank is full....and then also that my gauge is bad


thoughts?

[Gforcefd]

first thing I would do is take the clear plastic cover off from my dash cluster, and see if the fuel gauge is stuck, it was on mine. I push pushed on it lightly and it clicked back in the right spot. Don't know if this has happened to anyone else.

[PaulLehr]

If I remember right our cars have a 9 gallon tank. As suggested you should check to make sure your fuel gage is working correctly. The other thing that comes to mind is the plastic "sock" that goes at the end of the fuel pickup inside the tank. If its damaged or clogged it would not be able to suck the fuel through it when the level in the tank gets low

[rmp2711]

I had a similar problem a few years ago. When I got down to a 1/4 tank it would buck like it was running out of gas. Before it started i always put Texaco or Shell in my tank. I switched to Citgo because it cost less, thats when I started having problems. I switched back to Shell and Texaco added some Fuel Injection cleaner to the tank and that seemed to work.I don't remember the name of the cleaner but it came in a clear bottle with a long neck and I think the label was blue and red. The guy at the parts store said it was the best injection cleaner on the shelf. It wasn't a very big bottle but I only used 1/2 a bottle per fill up.

[tortiosboy]

the Gauge seems to not be stuck b/c it goes to E or below E when i turn the car off...thanx for the replies I'll check for that "sock" sometime this weekend

any other ideas are welcome

[getnhi1]

You're not going to get every drop of gas out with the fuel pump, 8 gals from a 9 or 10 gal tank is about right, the reason is the pick-up for the pump doesn't sit completely on the bottom, you have to have enough gas to cover the sock. I fill up my Aspire on the last white line before the E, about 1/8 tank according to the gauge, thats 6.5 gals, its a 10 gal tank. You have bad gauge sender unit.

[fastivaca]

Festiva gas tanks are 10 US gallons, 8 imp. gallons, 38 litres

[freshtiva]

Dumb answer...fill up when you get to 1/4 tank !

[Guest]

yeah the most I've ever put in is 9.2gls

Where does the needle sit if you fill it to the brim? Is it past Full?

Paul is probably right.. that sock may get coated with gunk at the bottom..

[freshtiva]

Fastivaca is correct on amts. never put more then eight gal in mine.

[tortiosboy]

i guess the answer would be to take the gas tank off and clean it out and get a new sock....and as of right now i do fill up b4 i get too close to a 1/4 tank but i usually run my cars down close to empty...bad habit, i know

[kcline40]

try checking the gas cap if it is to tight it won't let any air into the tank to keep it pressurized, if the seal is to tight it will create a vacuum next time it happens release the cap and listen for a rush of air to go into the tank, if this is the case don't tighten the cap all the way, it will probally run fine after that with that little of gas in it