My fuel guage is acting up. It works fine until it reaches about 1/4 left. Then it will drops below empty, maybe sometimes to recover but still not accurate. Using the odometer works for now but I would like to fix the issue. From what I have read this is a common problem and cleaning the contacts may solve the problem. I have pulled the carpet and pulled the covers leading to the tank and my question is if it only drops off near empty which sender do I want to check and clean, driver or passenger side? Or am I wrong and there are not two senders and only one is? Or does anyone have a better/different solution?

 

97 Outback sport

Try something else first. Get a bottle of techron and put it in your next tank. This stuff actually works well and helps alot. I have treid the cleaning thing and it didnt work. I would suspect the side without the fuel pump. but it can be both.

My fuel guage is acting up. It works fine until it reaches about 1/4 left. Then it will drops below empty, maybe sometimes to recover but still not accurate. Using the odometer works for now but I would like to fix the issue. From what I have read this is a common problem and cleaning the contacts may solve the problem. I have pulled the carpet and pulled the covers leading to the tank and my question is if it only drops off near empty which sender do I want to check and clean, driver or passenger side? Or am I wrong and there are not two senders and only one is? Or does anyone have a better/different solution?

 

97 Outback sport

 

my solution for all that was always to just keep track of my mileage on the trip odo then watch for the fuel light, or fill up around 240miles (300 hwy)

I second the suggestion of Techron. I've used two bottles a couple of months apart and it's starting to make a real difference in the reliability of the gauge. It used to drop off at about 3/4 full and now it's lasting until almost empty. I've got another bottle in the car waiting for the next fill up. Of course, after all this time trusting only the odometer I bet I'm going to have a tough time believing the gauge.

 

cheers,

 

Matt

I second the suggestion of Techron. I've used two bottles a couple of months apart and it's starting to make a real difference in the reliability of the gauge. It used to drop off at about 3/4 full and now it's lasting until almost empty. I've got another bottle in the car waiting for the next fill up. Of course, after all this time trusting only the odometer I bet I'm going to have a tough time believing the gauge.

 

cheers,

 

Matt

 

you relearn it real fast. And the low fuel light never changes where it comes on.

 

nipper

I'm having a similar problem in my '95 (116,000 miles) but during the top half. When I fill up, it doesn't quite register full, then after about 40 miles, it reads that I've consumed 1/4 tank. By 90 miles, it's down to half a tank, and then doesn't budge until around 150 miles. From there, it will be at only 1/4 tank left by 200 miles. When I then fill it up, I'm only putting in a little more than 10 gallons.

 

Is this the same problem? This only started happening about 2 tanks ago, and I tried a bottle of techron--that didn't help.

 

Brian M.

I'm having a similar problem in my '95 (116,000 miles) but during the top half. When I fill up, it doesn't quite register full, then after about 40 miles, it reads that I've consumed 1/4 tank. By 90 miles, it's down to half a tank, and then doesn't budge until around 150 miles. From there, it will be at only 1/4 tank left by 200 miles. When I then fill it up, I'm only putting in a little more than 10 gallons.

 

Is this the same problem? This only started happening about 2 tanks ago, and I tried a bottle of techron--that didn't help.

 

Brian M.

 

Odd usually the problem isnt on the top end. Maybe one of your floats are sticking.

when adding techron to the fuel tank does it really matter when you add it , empty or full tank ??

when adding techron to the fuel tank does it really matter when you add it , empty or full tank ??

 

Full tank, since you want the fuel covering the sender.

 

An odd plus for my car i have to do it once every 6 months, cleans up my gauge and gets rid of an odd stumble that shows up.

 

 

nipper

My gauge is back to about 80% functional after being completely useless for more than a year. It's taken a few bottles of Techron but I've got a feeling the next one will really fix things.

So if fuel injector cleaner helps the gauge operate better, wouldn't it make more sense to pull off the rear seat cushion, pull out the sender and douse it in cleaner directly?

So if fuel injector cleaner helps the gauge operate better, wouldn't it make more sense to pull off the rear seat cushion, pull out the sender and douse it in cleaner directly?

 

not really. It may be too harsh for the plastic at high concentrations. remember just because a little bleach whitens whites doesnt mean alot of bleach will get them really white.

Another thing people try is to remove the sensors and clean them with a pencil eraser, but initially that made mine worse. The cleaner we use is specifically made to clean fuel senders.

 

nipper