fuel gauge

[vwaudimb]

this is the 3rd time where i filled up till it spilled out and gas gauge is showing only 7 bars instead of 8. has anyone experience and is there a fix?

[DominicRI]

Is the ignition key off when you fill?

[rfernatt]

I believe overfilling is what causes the car to show 7, then go to 8 after some driving, and back to 7. I had a Nissan truck that did the same thing when it was topped off too full and it had an analog style gauge. I fill on the slowest setting and stop at the first click and rarely see this behavior.

That being said, I think some have had their gauge "recalibrated" by the dealer and it has improved the situation for some and not for others.

[ulflyer]

I read somewhere you should stop when the hose first cuts off, but I always give it one more quick squirt. Only had a 7 once.

[gurps]

It's been a small nuisance to me for the last 18 months. I finallyvfiguredcout what works - for me-
pull up to gas station@ stop
sit at idle for 30+ seconds
turn off car
turn key back to run
fill slowly

If that doesn't work, rub your belly while hopping around in a circle 3 times

pay for gas
start car
enjoy your drive

[jimvw57]

As posted before, you don't need to worry about a full tank, just an empty one. Gas gauges are more accurate when the tank is empty (so you don't run out) the 7 bars is more common than you'd think but sometimes a computer re-flash at the dealer will help, sometimes they have to remove the sending unit to fix it. If it bothers you and the old 'use the lowest setting when filling' doesn't work, talk to the dealership.

[rushfan]

Our pure is the opposite....we fill it, and it stays on full for several days, then drops quickly. When it says 1/4 tank, really we are much lower than that. We are going to ask about this at the dealer next trip....
As far as the 7 bars thing goes- our first smart did this, and I stopped pumping on 1st click of the nozzle (as mentioned by someone in previous post), seemed to help, even though it sort of defies logic.
Brian

[jimvw57]

You can have problems by over-filling the tank. If fuel is running out the filler neck, it is too full. When it is over-filled, fuel can back up into the carbon canister and cause the check engine light to come on. That requires a trip to the dealer to reset it and fix the canister. That is why the Owners manual AND the fuel door both say to not over-fill.


I believe the problem with the missing bar is caused by an air bubble in the tank. by filling at a slower speed, it allows the air to escape and the taank gets filled more evenly. I have had cars that will blow gas back out the filler neck if you use full speed on filling them up. Slow is the way to go.

[trekguy]

I had the 7-bar phenomenon happen a few times until I realized it was happening only when I filled up at a certain gas station in my neighborhood. Maybe the car was tilted to one side or the fuel nozzle filled the tank up at a speed the smart didn't like.

[Mud Pie]

My dealer told me the "7 bars" was common when the car was new, but goes away after a few fill ups.

My instant cure was to look at my gas gauge before fill up. 2 bars showing means I need roughly 6 gallons (yes, I'm discarding the whole 8.7 vs 10 gallon tank theory). I put the pump on full until it reaches 5+ gallons, then I slowly fill the rest until it clicks off. Doing a slow fill the entire tank takes too long.

Never had the 7 bars issue again. In fact, I only had it happen twice, when I first owned my smart.