<dinosaur>
that sounds like someone else that remembers sucking on a fuel line to reprime the system on a bad day.... gas tastes poorly does it not?


</dinosaur>

 

And I think for many of us, it's not so much we have to do this, but what's the safety margin if your in the boonies or where gas is ungodly expensive (like the whole state of California?)

Matt

 

There's a difference between the volume of the fuel tank and the volume of the fuel tank + filler neck + canister. I'm willing to bet no one went over 13.2-ish on the "first click."

I've seen gas-soaked canisters. You're not going to get your $3.50 out of that gallon. Stop when it clicks, and fill up before it's empty.

 

I never force fill my tank. My 14+ gallon fills have all occurred pumping only until the first auto stop.

 

Some teams even went to the extreme of using the roll cage tubing as a fuel line/container..........

 

This reminds me of that crazy helicopter flying judge played by Jack Warden in And Justice For All (1979). He'd fly his helicopter out over the water until the fuel gauge was just a little bit below half, then try to make it back to the beach.

Sometimes he made it, sometimes he didn't.

 

I think the tank has been documented to hold 14.2 usg by someone who ran 'er dry once.

 

FWIW. Since your fuel pump is cooled with the fuel around it ..... It is not a good idea to consistantly let it get that low. Low fuel also contributes to getting more water in the tank through condensation. I liked the 13.8 IMP = 15.3 US post.

 

Hmm... I was looking at the 2007 manual pdf from the Owners Lounge (there wasn't one for a 2008 Cooper) while waiting on my car to get here, and it says the Cooper has a 10 gallon tank and the S has a ~13 gallon tank.

The manual that came with my car is for the 2008 Cooper and Clubman (non-S only) - it says they both have a ~13 gallon tank.

 

I routinely put well over 13.5 gal in the MINI, many times over 14, and as high as 14.594

 

I've filled over 14 gallons on the first click. The tank is not 13.2 gallons and the filler neck + canister do not make up another 2 gallons. In my opinion the tank is 13.2 gallons plus 2 gallons reserve despite the fact that manual says the 13.2 includes the reserve.

 

there are many out there (including me) who have run out of gas and only put in a bit over 13.5. Projecting one data point as a description of a large population isn't statistically sound. One datum in a population of over a million cars gives you a less than 1/1,000,000th of actual knowledge.

Matt

 

allow me to ask a stupid question... but does it make sense to cool something which gets hot with a flammable liquid like gasoline??

 

It's human nature to come to unsound statistical conclusions. After all, only 1 in 1,000,000 probability&statistics students find the field interesting enough to pursue...

 

Here's another statistic. I was curious. And I've been driving locally so this experiment was easy.

I've been filling up at "two red petals". I drove past that point. I like how Ulysses chimes his warning at the startup about low fuel level, then for the rest of that driving session will present visual signals in the center of your tach about your fuel level. The visual signals cancel by a push of the stalk button but return after a minute or two without chiming.

I'm driving a new 08. I'm not sure when I dropped to one red petal but the first time I noticed it I had a range of upper thirty miles or so. I drove it until my estimated range was 24 miles.



Now that I look at this receipt... They couldn't spell "Chevron" in the vendor name. And the address isn't exactly perfect. It's a pre-direction and not a post-direction. At least they nailed the URL.

 

You pay alot for gas up in your corner of America...

 

Gas won't burn unless there is oxygen. It's just done out of design convienience.

Matt

 

Gas will never burn - the vapors do.

 

Yeah, not the cheapest state in the union.

 

I was thinking the same, wow! I've never been able to put more than $40 into my MCS and I run it down to two red petals every time (93 octane).

 

GOOD GRIEF!! I double dog dare someone to do this! Carry a 1 gallon can of gas in the boot, with the window open. Do this when you are almost empty, of course. Then run your Mini till it quits! A gallon of gas should get you to a gas station and add the spare gallon you just put in to what you just bought. THEN TELL ALL OF US THE ANSWER!

 

in the what?

 

+1 You're not only running the risk of running out of gas by sweating your tank that low, you're leaving it low rather than filling it at 1/2 to 1/3, allowing condensation (moisture) a better place to form, putting water in your fuel/fuel lines/entire operating system; but as a bonus, you are risking burning out your fuel pump, which relies on sitting in the fuel to remain cool.
Say this little haiku as you drive:
full of fuel
pump remains cool
run it dry
pump will fry


This is the wisdom of my people, grasshopper.

 

Thank you for reminding me, (new owner) .

 

the cooling of the pump is by the gas flowing through it. We have closed fuel systems now, condensation isn't a huge problem.

And even if one person were to do the proposed test (with the 1 gallon gas can), you'd still just have one data point in a population of a million plus...

Matt