Irritating gas filler problem

[tri]

Hi Guys,

Normally, when you fill up on gas with a credit card, you would just let the gas run until it stops itself. That means that the car is full and you're good to go right? Not on my 997.2. The nozzle would occasionally stop it self at about 1 mark away from full, 3/4 full, or sometimes even 1/2 full... it's kind of random. What's irritating is that it is random. Sometimes it will go all the way full and sometimes it doesn't. So what I have been coping with (because i don't have time to take it to the dealer yet) is when i feel that it stops early, i would turn the ignition to the on position to see where the gas is and if it's not full, I would get out of the car to reset the auto fill lever. It's kind of comical to watch actually:

I set the autofill lever and get in the car to wait for the nozzle to shut itself. Then I check the gas gauge. If there's not enough gas, I would get out of the car and set autofill lever again. Then I get back in the car and wait for the nozzle to shut off to check the gas gauge. This process sometimes get repeated quite a few times until I get a full tank :cursing:

If our tanks wasn't so small I would just say the heck with it... but I usually run out of gas in about 3-4 days on a full tank.

What should I do? Has anyone else encountered this on their car? TIA for the inputs

-Tri

[Loren]

Since your car is still under warranty - report this to your dealer and have them investigate it.

[RH512]

Do you position the gas nozzle so it is upside down (lever at the top)? I've had better fills this way.

Although I have to say the lock catch is not legal in my state so I'm holding the lever and monitoring the fill.

[MWS]

I always top off the tank but then I live in an area where the filler nozzles allow you to do it.

You should have an idea of about how much fuel you will be putting into the tank and I suggest you stop the flow of gasoline about a gallon short of that amount fuel. Then wait a few seconds for any trapped air in the tank to escape or gasoline foam to settle down then restart the flow. Always pump fuel at the slowest rate possible.

I also fill my car 2 or 3 times each week. It is my daily driver and I drive about 100 miles a day so squeezing every drop possible into the tank is important.

[eva350]

911's are notorious in somehow stopping nozzle flow when the tank is 3/4 full. I've had similar experiences on both my 997 and my wife's 993. I roughly now how many gallons I need for a full fill and so when the tank is estimated to be 3/4 full, I ease up on the fuel flow from nozzle and that seems to do the trick. good luck.

[355bhp]

It helps too, to assure the car is level, both laterally and longitudinally. Unfortunately, the car's fuel tank is small, and they use lots of the stuff. You'll get a feel of what constitutes a good fill over time.

Edited August 7, 2010 by 355bhp

[tri]

Thanks for the feedback guys

[Yash]

Thanks for the feedback guys

I have a similar problem on my ML320, and I have found that filling it slow, helps achieve a more complete fill.

[bolobar]

This thread caught my eye. I'm a 997-1 owner who used Chevron gasoline for years (I bought into Techron) and had similar 3/4 tank fills most of the time. A few months ago I was forced into buying fuel at a Valero station and filled up w/o a problem. I gave it some thought and began buying gas at my local Valero station across the street from Chevron and haven't had a fill-up issue since. Also saved a few pennies a gallon.

Perhaps coincidence or maybe different nozzles.

How many Chevron users experiencing short fills?

Edited August 11, 2010 by bolobar

[mrepor]

I also Chevron exclusively, I have the same problem on occasion. It seems more related to the the individual

pump/nozzle. I pump by hand rather the auto fill lever and I think that at least in CA, the nozzles are

over sensitive frequently. My previous car a Lexus. had less frequent probs but still had the prob.