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Absolute Fuel Tank Size on mk7 GTI

KevinC

KevinC

Autocross Champion
Location
The land of Wyatt Earp & Doc Holliday
Car(s)
'19 Golf R, '21 M2c
cbaumy34 said:
I like to tell myself it's a racecar and it's weight reduction. But I would like to fill up to full capacity or know how much I have left when the light goes on especially when on longer trips
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Put a couple o' gallons into a gas can, then go for a ride and run her dry. You could find out exactly how far below 0 miles left it will continue to run, and also exactly how much it takes to fill it back up, once you adjust for the partial fill from the can and miles to a gas station to top up. The entire forum would thank you. :)
 
R

racerxxx

Ready to race!
Location
Philly Burbs
Strange Mud said:
the plastic ain't going to stretch....you may be able to fill up the filler neck etc or the tank may be more than claimed but it ain't going to stretch.
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Put a container of gas outside when it's warm out let me know if it expands, not stretch, even if its vented it will still expand. Enough expansion and you can get more fuel in. These guys aren't claiming they're getting 5 extra gallons in. There's also an air gap that will be at the top of the tank, fill up at a different station on a little different grade and that air gap might actually fill up. Again, we're not adding gallons here.

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W

wantone

Ready to race!
Location
Iowa
KevinC said:
Put a couple o' gallons into a gas can, then go for a ride and run her dry. You could find out exactly how far below 0 miles left it will continue to run, and also exactly how much it takes to fill it back up, once you adjust for the partial fill from the can and miles to a gas station to top up. The entire forum would thank you. :)
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I'm surprised no one has gone way past "0" miles once they learn their vehicle. On my current car on long trips at "0" miles I have a smidge below half gallon left. So at "0" I put in 12.0 gallons on a 12.4 gallon tank. Depending on terrain, I can do 20-30 miles past "0". Yes, this is running it low, but at 60k I've never had any issue running the tank that low and/or topping it off. I do it all of the time as I drive 30k plus a year. This is crazy if the GTI tank takes 13 gallons and most people run close to "0" and only put in 10.X gallons. Would drive me nuts as that lowers the distance by 60-80 miles on a tank. A big deal on a long trip.

I agree, there needs to be a test mule hehe. Who's first???
 
eurospek

eurospek

Just finished watching Fast&Fu
Location
Chicago
I tested this somewhat today. I got the 0 mile range warning coming home tonight with about 30 miles left in my commute. When I got to the petrol station I drove 25 miles since the warning appeared. I did the math. I managed to fill up 11.6 gallons tonight.

One can easily argue that 50 miles of reserve gas is in the car when you hit 0, and that’s being generous.

25 miles since 0 warning + 1.6 gallons left of gas in car x 25 mpg avg more or less = 65 miles of highway cruising at speed limit

I knew I was low, cruised at 55 mph on the freeway. Radio was on. Fogs too. Heat and heated seats were off. And I was holding up the right lane at that speed. Everyone was passing me.
 
Strange Mud

Strange Mud

Autocross Champion
Location
Small Town CT
Car(s)
Assorted
a sealed tank will expand with heat...but not a vented one. Google tells me that cars have fuel tank vent valves. Even if they didn't how does putting fuel in it expand it? The tank will be open with the gas cap off.

remember the other posts (think it is this thread) where folks said fill it, wait a few minutes to let air bubbles get out of the tank then see if you can get more in it. That is a worthwhile experiment as is the one with carrying an extra can and pushing the limits. I'm not interested in doing either as on long trips I can use a break at the 4-5 hr mark anyways which is 300-400 miles @ 75 mph
 
B

bkuu

Passed Driver's Ed
Location
Chicago
I drive a bit past 0 miles range frequently. I keep all my fill up receipts and the most I gotten in was 12.345 gallons and that's with auto filling til it stops. I never managed to get more miles in one tank than my GLI however which was a personal record of 389.9 miles at tank listed at 14.5 gal. GTI was around 340 miles and listed at 13.2 gal, so I was very close to getting stranded on the highway.
 
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heiney9

heiney9

Go Kart Champion
Location
Illinois
Car(s)
2017 GTi Sport DSG
SpaceGhost said:
My car yesterday said 5 miles to empty and I was able to put 10.4 gal in. I might have been able to squeeze a bit more, but I heard somewhere that was bad for the emissions system. Anyway 10.4 and I was practically empty plus 2 gallons is still almost a gallon shy of 13.3. Never thought about the tank size but do have to admit that I have to fill this car up quite often so it would be nice to have a larger tank.
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Just because the computer calculates "5 mile until empty" doesn't mean it's accurate and the tank is empty. It's obviously not, nor would I expect it to be. There is a certain amount of a margin built into the calculations, and the calculations are a running average.

If anyone is relying on the computer in their car to determine mpg or fuel tank size, you'll get it wrong every time.

Not even sure why this is a thread. Your tank size is 13.2 gal, end of story. The only accurate way to compute mpg is by the old fashioned way.

Miles/gallons used. Even then it's not 100% accurate because when you go to fill up your car to find the gallons used, you will not be able to put in the exact amount as the previous time. You can get close, but not able to exactly repeat each fill up the same.

I'll throw you another curve ball, fuel gauges aren't exactly the most accurate either. It's a gauge of fuel left, not an exact measuring tool.
 
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M

mawallace

Ready to race!
Location
UK
heiney9 said:
Just because the computer calculates "5 mile until empty" doesn't mean it's accurate and the tank is empty. It's obviously not, nor would I expect it to be. There is a certain amount of a margin built into the calculations, and the calculations are a running average.

If anyone is relying on the computer in their car to determine mpg or fuel tank size, you'll get it wrong every time.

Not even sure why this is a thread. Your tank size is 13.2 gal, end of story. The only accurate way to compute mpg is by the old fashioned way.

Miles/gallons used. Even then it's not 100% accurate because when you go to fill up your car to find the gallons used, you will not be able to put in the exact amount as the previous time. You can get close, but not able to exactly repeat each fill up the same.

I'll throw you another curve ball, fuel gauges aren't exactly the most accurate either. It's a gauge of fuel left, not an exact measuring tool.
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I had the VW Connect app fitted at the last service - guess what - it normally reports another 50 miles in the tank then the trip computer!
 
Trancebolt

Trancebolt

Ready to race!
Location
California
There's really only a usable ten. It's fine It's not a long distance car. Most cars designed in the mindset of a gti are about ten ish. My other car says it holds 21, but it's never filled up more than 18.5. It's a diesel and has a huge range. Otherwise ten gs at 25avg is just perfectly fine for this car. Becomes an issue on c63s and evos that don't get good gas mileage though....or an m235i which all have ten gallons....the latter has an eco mode that actually works though

Other cars I've owned where I've messed about with the tank I had fuel pump and catalyst issues. Using diff octane and running dry and overfilling just to see what goes on. Especially on a d.i. motor or a diesel where fuel is the bloodstream of it. Not worth the extra 30-50 miles to run past 0.

Few YouTube videos show a diesel e350 or Audi a7 on smoking tire got like 850 up until it died, but knowing that doesn't mean you should use that extra range. Long term effects are unknown. The 700~750 hwy should be enough on a tdi touareg no reason push it

It's no wonder an enlarged fuel tank is an option on Porsches but not standard due to practicality and weight considerations.

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A

adam1991

Banned
Location
USA
Does anyone remember Clarkson testing that diesel...which car was it? Audi? Drove it round trip within England on one tank of gas, to test Audi's mileage claims against the gas tank capacity. Figured he could just make it.
 
C

chiefhiawatha

Ready to race!
Location
Chicago
JC_451 said:
Every one of my fill ups is a similar experience. Computer says no miles to go, car won't take more than 11 gallons and change.
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Do you stop at the automatic shutoff? It’s astonishing how much extra fuel can be put into it if you’re patient. On Friday I tested this and got in more than 2 extra gallons after the pump stopped itself.
 
MonkeyMD

MonkeyMD

Autocross Champion
Most I've filled up with was 12.253.
Needle was below the empty hash.
Probably 30 miles after 0
 
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