Hi!! I forgot my wallet-type thing today, so I don't have any money for gas, and my gas light is on. I knew I needed to get gas today, and I feel really dumb that I forgot my money.

So, my question is, how much gas do I have left, and am I going to make it the 20ish miles home this evening? If it makes a difference, which I suppose it does, I have a 2006 Mazda3 that usually goes about 325 miles on a 12 gallon tank.

I looked in the manual, and it doesn't say how much gas or how many miles you can go with the light on, it just says "Fuel up as soon as possible" or something. That's helpful. :P!

Thanks for any help!!

~Silver

 

I was told 60 to 100 miles left when the light comes on.

 

Geez, it comes on when you have 2-3 gallons left? That's not even close to empty.

Thanks! I think I should be able to make it. That's good.

 

But don't quote me as that's what I've heard and I've not actually tried it.
Good luck.

 

I've driven like 2 days with my light on! I know its not good for it, but you'll make it fine!

 

hope you got home okay

 

Haha, sorry, I meant to update!! I drove home (20 miles), and it was at 340 miles for that tank of gas. My dad actually took it somewhere and put some gas in it, and so I didn't see how close to being empty I really was. I might have to test it again, but I probably won't push it past 340. I don't want to run out of gas on the freeway. So anyway!! I did make it home OK. Thanks!

 

Good to hear you made it!

 

why do you want to test your car to see how quick you can crash and burn. Its not safe to drive on the freeway with almost no gas. You could cause a wreck, and hurt yourself and other motorists around you.
I've ran out of gas before in my Focus, (which also is NOT good for your car) and it was a scary experience. The car just putted along, and then quit. I'm lucky I was able to pull to the side and no one was close behind me.

For the record my gas light wasn't even on. It was just low. But thats the 1st year Ford Focus for ya.

 

Crash and burn?? Haha. Yeah, right. In my opinion its a good idea to know how far you can push your car, without being reckless. And I was hardly reckless.

Yeah, that's a Ford for you.

 

you definitly dont have 60-100 miles after thel ights comes on you will definitly be stranded if you try to go that far. You have between 40-50 miles though. Mind you these new cars aint like the old ones, im not sure how to describe it, but i think its an engine safety feature, you may not be COMPLETELY out of gas but the car will definitly cut off when it feels its to low (even though, it could still run for a bit if it werent programmed that way)

 

youve got sixty miles left once your gas light comes on, give or take acouple miles, depending on driving conditions (city/highway) and rpms.

 

I dont know how many miles you can go when the gas light is on but what illycut said true about the newer cars, the ECU are programmed to be more fuel efficient, rather than be the common gas guzzler, but here are some tips (some maybe common) that will help you get the most out of whats left: aviod hard launches (duh) if your cars of aviod stomping on the gas pedal cuz even though the car is not on the fuel injecters will still spray, not only wasting gas but also more risk flooding your car and it wont start at all, dont sit idel for a long time, i think there is more but i dont have time to post them yet, again some maybe be common sense. Just my 2cents

 

It's not good to run low since the fuel pump is cooled by the fuel running through it, this is why there's a couple gallon buffer. And burning the pump out will cost many hundreds to replace, along with getting towed, time to make an appointment, and you can't use your car during that time.... JUST PUT GAS IN, it's not worth the risk to damage the car to save a dollar unless it's some emergency where you can't get off the road etc...