I just filled up my TL last night & it stopped at like 13 gallons. I thought these had 17 gallon tanks?? Why do I only have a 13 gallon tank? The gas light was flashing when I filled it & I filled it up to Full, just to the F, not past it. Why is my tank smaller than it should be?

 

Coulda been a bad nozzle at the gas station maybe? The light on doesn't mean empty though just low. There's still a few gallons left when it comes on.

 

There are "reserve" gallons

 

Light comes on when you have about 3 gallons.

Using some basic logic, do you really think you have a smaller tank than every other TL out there? Chances are pretty slim.

 

You never know.



And just to make things clear. Using the highest octane doesn't make a difference to mid-grade. It seems they both have the same MPG & power. I'm sticking to mid-grade from now on & saving my money. I just wanted to make things clear in case people didn't know.

 

Gas prices don't matter. I'll always pump 94.

 

^The highest here in Texas is 93!
cept at the race track.

 

How can you be so sure? Do you know why our cars are required to use 91 octane and higher? It's due to the high compression ratio. The higher the compression ratio an engine has, the higher octane gas it needs. Our engines run such a high compression ratio, that when turboed a stock J32 can only run about 10psi or less before blowing up.

I won't explain the details of how 87 octane in a high compression motor can cause knock and pre-ignition. You can just wikipedia that.

 

The gas stations in the more affluent areas here sell 94. Close by my house I got 93. Whenever I'm by the 94 sellers I fill up. Who knows maybe its 93 mislabeled to make the rich feel richer lol.

 

the TL is designed for 94 octane
and will accept a MINIMUM 91 as stated right on the gas cap--which is the highest avail in many states,,lucky people get 93/94... I have no idea why and where but run it if you can get it

it `will run` on 87, but get a borscope at HFT and look at the buildup of crud
not cool

Type S has even higher compression,,plus we all have very close tolerance `interference engines`
my honda bike requires carbon cleaning, as buildup can increase compression! above design limits of gaskets and other critical parts
can even contact piston carbon to a valve = really not cool

just another reason we all need to do carbon cleaning = seafoam or similar

for the gas tank: its 17.3 gal total capacity, of which ~16.5-16.7 is useable fuel
based on most I ever put in when the guage was way below empty

the low level light comes on with approx 3 gal remain, about 2.5 useable
giving you a good 50 miles to find a gas station of your choice

Reset a trip meter when light comes on,,,

its a good idea to run `Tier 1 gas`, with up to twice the minimum amount of cleaners in fuel as required by the govt. It helps,,and treating with seafoam or similar goes the next step to keep it clean like new- for best performance
carbon on pistons = poor combustion
carbon on intake valves stem, edge seals, and face- reduce efficiency of the fuel injection system

Ethanol gas leaves behind way more crud that the TL originally had to deal with
add 87 instead of 91+ is not good long range planning
The price differance between low and high grade is 20 cents in my area
over a year at 1-2+ tanks a week is only 50-100 bucks a YEAR
if you cant spare that to run the car right, sell it and get an older corolla= that loves 87

 

And you know this how? Also please tell me how much you save at a fill up of 13 gallons. Less than 1.50 Now in my car the difference between regular and premium is about 50-60 miles (mostly due to the shit-tastic ethanol added) winter blends do about the same) Now if you loose just 20 miles with mid grade it still cost you more than what you think you saved running midgrade over premium even if you were getting 30mpg Stick with what the car was DESIGNED to run optimally on

 

The more expensive gas get, the more money you will save by using premium. (assuming same price difference between grades)

 

i stick with 93. Only problem in PA is that 91/93 is 40+ cents more per gallon than 87 in some areas. It does add up, but ill shell out the cash to run the right gas no matter what.

 

its a few hundred dollars extra in annual expense, to operate a sports car-- over say a POS

My brakes cost more than that~