11th Gen Civic Forum banner
Cancel
Create thread New Garage Forums

Tiny fuel tank?

Jump to Latest
1 - 20 of 21 Posts

robardin

· Registered
2022 Civic Hatchback ST 6MT
Joined
·
869 Posts
Discussion starter · #1 ·
So I've had my Civic HB Sport Touring for about a week, and just filled it up for the second time.

The first time, I didn't wait for the low fuel warning - when the fuel bars reached three remaining, with around 250s on the odometer, the "remaining range" reading 60 miles and my dashboard "Avg. Fuel" reading being 31.5 MPG or something like that, I figured it'd come on really soon anyway.

I put in just under 8.4 gallons. Hmm.

So this time, I drove until the low fuel warning came up, and then went to the nearest gas station. My Trip A, "auto reset on fill up", read Avg. Fuel of 32.3 mpg, based on 289.1 miles, with 33 miles of estimated range remaining.

I put in... Just over 9.5 gallons. Hrm?

The fuel tank on this car is 12.4 gallons, isn't it? I mean I don't want to run it bone dry (that would probably ruin the fuel pump), but I'd think the "low fuel warning" came on after 10 gallons at least. Would make my "real life MPG" calculations a lot easier :).
 
Discussion starter · #3 ·
OsidePunker said:
32.3mpg x 11 gallons = 355 miles

I don't see what the problem is, other than your car is getting terrible gas mileage just like mine is LOL
Click to expand...
Well I didn't put in 11 gallons. I put in 9.5 gallons. That's the point. I was thinking the "low fuel light" should come on around after 10.5 gallons on a 12.4 gallon tank, maybe 10, but not 9.5. That's like at the 76% mark!

I know there needs to be, say, a gallon (?) of fuel in there for the fuel pump to operate efficiently, but that means the "range" on my car (if I go between low fuel warnings on the dash) is only going to be around 350 miles if I do a lot of highway driving, and like 275-300 miles under ordinary circumstances? Boo!

BTW, I don't think my gas mileage has been terrible at all - I was expecting to be getting 30+ MPG in best case scenario, and got it!

289 miles / 9.5 gallons = 30.42 MPG, which is quite a bit less than the 32.3 MPG dash estimate but that's par for the course for me (trip computer estimating by 1.5 to 2.0 MPG better than I actually got based on "refill to refill").

But, that's still pretty good considering how much time I'd spent in 0-15 mph traffic and with 1-3 passengers in the car with me.

Overall since I've owned the car (and still in the break-in period), I'd logged 540 miles on the odometer by the second fill-up and put in 17.9 gallons, that's 30.16 MPG, with an average speed of 26 MPH and very split between incredibly slow (total standstill to 15 MPH stop and go) and reasonably fast (40-70 MPH, sometimes up to 80 MPH).

It's exactly in line with the EPA estimate of 28/37/31 MPG for the six-speed manual on the 2022 Civic HB sport touring, actually; slightly better when you consider I've had passengers and dealt with NYC traffic instead of the EPA city driving simulation, offset somewhat by the fact that I held back from going over 5000 RPM until I hit 500 miles on the odometer and am still only doing it "a little bit" until I hit 640 miles (definitely over 1000 km).

I've never gotten better than 22 MPG in mixed city/highway driving (my kind of city/highway driving, where "highway" is often still snarled by accidents, construction, and just too many people on the road) in any of my previous cars; this one getting 30 MPG on regular fuel while still feeling fun to drive is like AMAZING.

I mean OK, in the 2020 CR-V Hybrid I passed on to my daughter, I would get like 35-38 MPG this way, but it was no fun to drive... I'll take 30-32 MPG in this Civic HB with "normal (for me) driving" over that in a heartbeat.
 
Discussion starter · #5 ·
OsidePunker said:
32.3mpg x 11 gallons = 355 miles

I don't see what the problem is, other than your car is getting terrible gas mileage just like mine is LOL
Click to expand...
Oh, I see what you were getting at now... 9.5 gallons in what I put in, but 30+ miles of remaining range = about one more gallon of gas to go before the range estimate would zero out makes it 10.5 gallons to zero range. Which is also the "leave a little in reserve" threshold for a 12.4 gallon tank.

And indeed I still had two "bars" left on the gauge when the warning came on, not zero. I don't intend to drive down to zero bars, but I suppose down to one bar wouldn't hurt if I am in an area with plenty of gas stations.

I just realized why I was annoyed, it's because I was also used to refilling my 2007 Acura TSX (my previous DD) when the warning light came on at around 275 miles on the trip meter, and had been "expecting better" from the Civic. Which I am getting - because I would be pumping in between 12.5 to 13.5 gallons of premium fuel into the TSX (into what is listed as a 17.1 gallon tank!), not less than 10 gallons of regular.

So I didn't get more time between fill-ups with this change, just fewer and cheaper gallons to put in, LOL!
 
#6 ·
robardin said:
Oh, I see what you were getting at now... 9.5 gallons in what I put in, but 30+ miles of remaining range = about one more gallon of gas to go before the range estimate would zero out makes it 10.5 gallons to zero range. Which is also the "leave a little in reserve" threshold for a 12.4 gallon tank.

And indeed I still had two "bars" left on the gauge when the warning came on, not zero. I don't intend to drive down to zero bars, but I suppose down to one bar wouldn't hurt if I am in an area with plenty of gas stations.

I just realized why I was annoyed, it's because I was also used to refilling my 2007 Acura TSX (my previous DD) when the warning light came on at around 275 miles on the trip meter, and had been "expecting better" from the Civic. Which I am getting - because I would be pumping in between 12.5 to 13.5 gallons of premium fuel into the TSX (into what is listed as a 17.1 gallon tank!), not less than 10 gallons of regular.

So I didn't get more time between fill-ups with this change, just fewer and cheaper gallons to put in, LOL!
Click to expand...
Yes exactly! If it makes you feel better, my 2013 tunda fuel light comes on when there is 9 gallons left in the tank haha But it only gets 10 mpg (its a fully built off road truck). Still though, when the light comes on I have a lot of range left. I tend to get nervous and fill up when there is still like 4-6 gallons left in the tank.

At 10 mpg I'm usually filling up every 175-200 miles...
 
Discussion starter · #7 ·
OsidePunker said:
Yes exactly! If it makes you feel better, my 2013 tunda fuel light comes on when there is 9 gallons left in the tank haha But it only gets 10 mpg (its a fully built off road truck). Still though, when the light comes on I have a lot of range left. I tend to get nervous and fill up when there is still like 4-6 gallons left in the tank.

At 10 mpg I'm usually filling up every 175-200 miles...
Click to expand...
Holy moly. I got more range from my old Vulcan 750 motorcycle with a 3.7 gallon tank, LOL

Seems like it's been years where no matter what I drive or ride, I am filling up at around 275 miles (except for that CR-V Hybrid) unless I do a long, all-highway road trip

I mentioned that 2007 TSX I had for the past 5-6 years... My other vehicles are,

2012 Suzuki DL650 motorcycle - after around 275 miles, I pump in 4.5-4.75 gallons of regular into a 20L (5.3 gallons) tank

2000 BMW Z3 - 2.5L I6, tiny roadster, at around 275 miles I pump in around 11-11.5 gallons of premium into a 13.5 gallon tank

The last one is probably what unconsciously set my expectations for the latest, greatest, and largest Civic - I didn't expect it to have a smaller fuel tank than a 21 year old convertible, haha.
 
#8 ·
I think most manufacturers aim for around 400-500 mile range on a full tank. The better the gas mileage a car has, the smaller tank they put in it. So overall range remains around the same. Regardless of how fuel efficient the car is. So if you were hoping to go to the pump less often, you may have to buy a hybrid! 😉

It is strange the low fuel light comes on so early. This is my first car with a digital fuel gauge. So I’ve been curious about this.

At least we know we still have plenty of range when the light comes on.
 
#9 ·
CaliCivic said:
I think most manufacturers aim for around 400-500 mile range on a full tank. The better the gas mileage a car has, the smaller tank they put in it. So overall range remains around the same. Regardless of how fuel efficient the car is. So if you were hoping to go to the pump less often, you may have to buy a hybrid! 😉

It is strange the low fuel light comes on so early. This is my first car with a digital fuel gauge. So I’ve been curious about this.

At least we know we still have plenty of range when the light comes on.
Click to expand...
That's what I found. I just traded in my Subaru Impreza, it cost me more to fill up with a larger fuel tank but I can go the same distance in my Honda Civic with a smaller fuel tank. I was happy when I filled up for the first time yesterday in my Civic, even with premium fuel my cost is lower with the Civic.
 
#13 ·
Zala11 said:
You can also set how much % (25% is automatically set) left before you want to be warned that gas is low
Click to expand...
I disagree.

Link or other info please.
 
Save
Reply Quote Like Like
Discussion starter · #14 ·
MeefZah said:
I disagree.

Link or other info please.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I may or may not want to fiddle with it, but it'd be interesting to know if one could fiddle with that (I don't think so, either)

OTOH "25% left" seems about right, as the last few times, if I go to fill it up as soon as it lights up, I barely get 9 galllons into it before the pump shuts off

This even though the manual says the Low Fuel Indicator "Comes on when the fuel reserve is running low (approximately 1.8 U.S. gal/7.0 Liter left)"

Which is all it says about the Low Fuel Indicator (nothing mentioned about twiddling its threshold from that)
 
#15 ·
robardin said:
Yeah, I may or may not want to fiddle with it, but it'd be interesting to know if one could fiddle with that (I don't think so, either)

OTOH "25% left" seems about right, as the last few times, if I go to fill it up as soon as it lights up, I barely get 9 galllons into it before the pump shuts off

This even though the manual says the Low Fuel Indicator "Comes on when the fuel reserve is running low (approximately 1.8 U.S. gal/7.0 Liter left)"

Which is all it says about the Low Fuel Indicator (nothing mentioned about twiddling its threshold from that)
Click to expand...
This thread I started some time ago gives some insight into actual range and reserve

 
Save
Reply Quote Like Like
#16 ·
There’s the infotainment low fuel warning AND a dash light warning that illuminate separately. The infotainment one comes on with about 65 miles left on the tank. The dash light kicks on with about 35 miles left.

From actual testing, when the dash says 0 miles left, you can still drive about 40 miles before running out of gas.
 
#17 ·
Le Tour said:
There’s the infotainment low fuel warning AND a dash light warning that illuminate separately. The infotainment one comes on with about 65 miles left on the tank. The dash light kicks on with about 35 miles left.

From actual testing, when the dash says 0 miles left, you can still drive about 40 miles before running out of gas.
Click to expand...
That's super useful to know actually, I haven't pushed it past the infotainment light yet so I didn't know there was another.
 
Discussion starter · #19 ·
Le Tour said:
There’s the infotainment low fuel warning AND a dash light warning that illuminate separately. The infotainment one comes on with about 65 miles left on the tank. The dash light kicks on with about 35 miles left.

From actual testing, when the dash says 0 miles left, you can still drive about 40 miles before running out of gas.
Click to expand...
Ah you are right, the infotainment had a separate alert that definitely comes up earlier than the dashboard light - an exclamation point that if I touch it, brings up the built-in GPS (not Google Maps) and a “reminder” or “suggestion” to search for the nearest gas station.

So yeah - if I fill up when the infotainment alert happens (gosh I hate that word - can I just call it “console screen”?), I put in 9 gallons; if I fill up after the dash light comes on, it’s around 9.5 gallons.
 
#20 ·
No secondary warning for us peasants with the 7" screen. I guess we have to just use the gas gauge, the trip meter, and the warning light on the dash...
 
Save
Reply Quote Like Like
1 - 20 of 21 Posts
About this Discussion
20 Replies
11 Participants
Last post:
hondaservice33
11th Gen Civic Forum
posts
96K
members
13K
Since
2020
2022+ Honda Civic Community and Owner's Club - Join the conversation about the new Honda Civic
Full Forum Listing
Explore Our Forums
2022+ Honda Civic General Discussion Forum 2022+ Honda Civic Si Forum 2022+ Honda Civic Complaints, Issues & Problems New Member Introductions 2022+ Honda Civic Performance, Mods & Tuning