Disappearing fuel/gas

[RLDaily]

I'm either going nuts or I have already gotten there.

My gas keeps disappearing after my car has been parked a few days...can it be evaporating?

I know, I know and NO, it's not being kiped, nobody is driving it, and it's not leaking out. Where we live there ain't nobody snagging the gas,my wife won't drive it, there aren't any kids, and the car (and driveway) is absolutely dry with no telltale stain.

I can have 1/4 tank, park my car for a few days while I travel and wala, I'm on reserve when I get back.

The thing has the OEM gas cap and I can occasionally smell gas when I open the hatch..What am I missing (besides the gas)?

Could my guage be screwy and give me a false reading at a certain level?

 

[catbert]

Go to a gas station and fill it up until it hits the automatic shutoff. Drive it home and park it for a few days. Drive directly to the same pump at the same station and fill it up until it hits the shutoff. You may, or may not have a problem, but you'll know if it something is goofy by doing this.

 

[paz72vette]

Do you have teenagers? with no jobs? Always out driving?

Dads car is the 2nd gas station....

 

[Florida Guy]

"Where we live there ain't nobody snagging the gas"

Yeah, I read all of your post. But my opinion is: Somebody is syphoning your gas. Get a lockable cap. I'll wager it will no longer evaporate.

 

[boomdriver]

I'm either going nuts or I have already gotten there.

My gas keeps disappearing after my car has been parked a few days...can it be evaporating?

I know, I know and NO, it's not being kiped, nobody is driving it, and it's not leaking out. Where we live there ain't nobody snagging the gas,my wife won't drive it, there aren't any kids, and the car (and driveway) is absolutely dry with no telltale stain.

I can have 1/4 tank, park my car for a few days while I travel and wala, I'm on reserve when I get back.

The thing has the OEM gas cap and I can occasionally smell gas when I open the hatch..What am I missing (besides the gas)?

Could my guage be screwy and give me a false reading at a certain level?

Its just the fuel level sender getting old and dirty. I'm told that the new fuel blends leave certain deposits inside the system, and the level sender is just a point-contact sensor. It has a series of contacts on an curved piece of tin, and the float arm has a small pin-point contact that slides over those as the float moves up/down.
The contacts will get dirty. Rust also gets in everything and aids in dirty level sender contacts. The sender gets slow, and you can actually run out of gas and still show 2-3 gallons. Turn the key off, then on and THEN it will show empty.....Just what ya wanted, to find out the gauge agrees that you ran out of gas, after the fact.

There are 3 ways to clean them.

1. Chevron "techron" fuel system cleaner has lots of fans. Many folks swear by it.

2. pull the float assy and open the sender and carefully wipe off the contacts with something mild, like a Q-tip in a wet mix of a-jax & water,. wipe off and re-install. be careful not to rub the contacts. They are coated with something and if rubbed thru, its junk. You just want to wipe the dirt/rusty film off. Sand paper or emory not advised,.

3. Open the sender and wipe off with an acid that will disolve any film or rust without causing any wear to the contacts. (my personal favorite) I used a diluted aluminum wash (phosphoric acid), applied that and immediately rinsed off. It instantly removes tarnish and build up.

When cleaned the sender behaves again. Mine finally broke the little tabs that hold the sender body together, so it had to be replaced. Those are the weak link in the part. Once you look at it, you will really wonder why most places get $300 (or more) for replacements. The mfg are real proud of those things and the ONE moving part....

I have a detailed instruction somehwere....if I can find where I 'stored' the file (lost) it, I'll post it.


As far as someone messing with you...its MORE fun to ADD gas for a couple weeks then suddenly stop...otfl
Ya' ever seen someone that could'nt figure out why their car was'nt using any gas? 20 yrs ago that was cheap entertainment.

 

[RLDaily]

Do you have teenagers? with no jobs? Always out driving?

Dads car is the 2nd gas station....

Naaaaaaaa, our youngest is 34 and there ain't no one snagging it, not where we live, trust me.

 

[John Robinson]

I'm either going nuts or I have already gotten there.

My gas keeps disappearing after my car has been parked a few days...can it be evaporating?

I know, I know and NO, it's not being kiped, nobody is driving it, and it's not leaking out. Where we live there ain't nobody snagging the gas,my wife won't drive it, there aren't any kids, and the car (and driveway) is absolutely dry with no telltale stain.

I can have 1/4 tank, park my car for a few days while I travel and wala, I'm on reserve when I get back.

The thing has the OEM gas cap and I can occasionally smell gas when I open the hatch..What am I missing (besides the gas)?

Could my guage be screwy and give me a false reading at a certain level?

Take a good look at the EVAP System to be sure it is not allowing the gas to back flow under preassure from the sun heating and expanding the gas in the tank. I am sure there must be some kind of a back flow valve in the system and if it is stuck open then the gas will flow backwards.