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gas tank capacity at empty


mrdisty

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My 2018 Edge says it has an 18.5 gallon tank, but when the miles remaining is at zero, and I refuel, I can only get 16.5 gallons or so into the tank.  Do I really have 2 gallons in reserve at "empty". My 2013 Edge was very accurate in tracking mileage until empty.

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I have same issue.  2016 Edge Sport.  Master tech told me on the edge the bottom of fuel tank is fairly flat and there are a couple gallons in the "reserve" amount.  He did not give specifics on quantity but I have never been able to put more than 16 gallons in at fill up...

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I wasn't trying to find out!  But since I try to walk a few miles or so every day I figured if I ran out of gas I would be enroute to the nearest gas station......

 

0 miles left.... Admittedly I was worried at this point. I was caught in Philadelphia construction....... 10 minutes felt like an eternity. 

 

0 miles left she cruised into the gas station without a care nor worry into the world.  I swear when I put the gas nozzle in she let out a sigh of relief and said "daddy I told you I got this!"

IMG_20181015_144303.jpg

Edited by onyxbfly
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The spec sheet on my '11 Edge AWD says 19 gallons, the FWD spec is 18 gallons.  Interesting because I would have thought that it would be the other way around.  My thinking would be that the RDU on the AWD would somehow cut into the tank real estate and with no RDU the FWD fuel tank would have more space in the rear.  Go figure.

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2 hours ago, akirby said:

 

Perhaps it was a 19 gallon tank?  I think AWD Edges came with bigger tanks.

 

Yes, AWD had a bit bigger tank. I was able to get a bit more than 70 liters (18.5 gallons) several time in my AWD 2011 MKX.

 

From the 2011 MKX Owners Guide:

image.png.7ebbba4873f509ff4e5c5b72f5918fc4.png

 

For 2016 the difference between AWD & FWD is minor:

image.png.e5628d5447710b1d7cf9a3d728ef8daa.png

 

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2 minutes ago, chefduane said:

My thinking would be that the RDU on the AWD would somehow cut into the tank real estate and with no RDU the FWD fuel tank would have more space in the rear.  Go figure.

 

I think it is because the FWD doesn't have the AWD system it has a regular tank, think square shape, whereas with the AWD the tank is kinda like 2-tanks merged at the top to clear the AWD system. So with FWD they made the biggest tank that works with a single Fuel Pump, but with AWD, since they already had 2 pumps, they added a bit more capacity.Link to the diagrams.

 

This is the FWD Tank:

image.png.dc6fc311699d52c78f69f39b09995646.png

 

 

This is the AWD Tank:

image.png.b09db215be534b58ff2a79204899dd41.png

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  • 5 months later...

I believe that one or two gallon 'reserve' is built in to protect us from ourselves.  The fuel pump is in the tank and cooled by the fuel.  If it's uncovered it's going to overheat and fail.  That's a pricey fix so automakers tend to err on the side of caution. 

 

The best way to end the guessing game is to (at least once) fill up as soon as your low fuel light comes on.  If it takes 16 gallons then you know you have a two gallon reserve when you see the light. ;)    From that point on you'll always know how much of a cushion you have assuming the fuel pickup can actually reach the last gallon.

 

BTW that miles to empty readout is just for general guidance since it's constantly changing based on your actual current mpg. 

 

Cheers!

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 5 months later...

2019 Edge.  FWD  2.0  Wife tried to run it out of fuel, or so I thought.  Only got 15.1 gallons in the tank at fill up.   Said it has 30 miles to empty.  

 

Will say I'm happy about the reserve of extra gallons, since our last car she tried to run it out of fuel three times to where there was only a gallon left at one time.   

Edited by Nolan
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2 hours ago, Nolan said:

2019 Edge.  FWD  2.0  Wife tried to run it out of fuel, or so I thought.  Only got 15.1 gallons in the tank at fill up.   Said it has 30 miles to empty.  

 

Will say I'm happy about the reserve of extra gallons, since our last car she tried to run it out of fuel three times to where there was only a gallon left at one time.   

 

Once you get to "0" miles to empty, you will still have few miles to go. There is a considerable reserve.

Edited by omar302
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40 minutes ago, David Young said:

You all know the fuel pump is in the gas tank? It depends on being submerged in gasoline to keep it cool? You all know this, or am I wrong...………...


You're absolutely right David.  I considered mentioning that (again) yesterday but then thought....no, I'll just hide and watch the competition to see who can destroy their (expensive) fuel pump the fastest.  ;)

 

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1 hour ago, David Young said:

You all know the fuel pump is in the gas tank? It depends on being submerged in gasoline to keep it cool? You all know this, or am I wrong...………...

 

It is mentioned in the owner's manual that running out of fuel causes damage not covered by warranty, though I know of several owners of late model Fords that continuously run very low on fuel and actually ran out several times with no I'll effect on the fuel pump. I guess the cats would be more affected due to the misfiring caused by running out of fuel.

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On 11/29/2019 at 10:57 AM, David Young said:

You all know the fuel pump is in the gas tank? It depends on being submerged in gasoline to keep it cool? You all know this, or am I wrong...………...

 

That's an old "wives tail" like the 3000 mile oil change.  The fuel passing through the pump is enough to keep it cool.  I mean the engine doesn't have to be submerged in coolant to keep it cool?  Just the coolant passing through is enough.

 

The biggest risk of damage when you run out of fuel is running lean while you're on boost.  In my old turbo RX7 doing that just once could blow out the seals in the rotary engine.  If it runs out while you're just cruising along, there's isn't going to be any damage done.

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On 1/3/2019 at 11:41 PM, onyxbfly said:

IMG_20181015_142821_1.jpg

Just noticed this. On my 2016 Edge, when the low fuel pop warning comes up it does NOT show the distance to empty. I have to clear the message and then go to a screen display that shows distance to empty.

The 2011 MKX I had before showed the distance to empty like above, was annoyed by this in the 2016. 

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