Although the fuel gauge indicated a quarter full and the range indicated 90 miles when I filled up this morning it took 64.72 litres. I admit that I always fill to the brim but it still seems the gauge is showing more in the tank than there is.

Is this normal? It's a MY2011 if that makes a difference. Andyfr

Fuel gauges are and always have been just an indicator, they are not reliable and not representative of whats in the tank. Mine stays are near full for a long time then suddenly jumps down to 3/4, then it stays on half before jumping down to near empty. Dont worry about it, it's normal.

Out of all the cars I have owned, 40 plus, the fuel gauge has never been this far out, in fact most have read lower not higher.

It's more the range which concerns me. According to the spec the tank has a capacity of 68 litres, I put in nearly 65 litres, so that means that I would have gone 90 miles on less than a gallon.

Now I realise that the tank probably has a reserve capacity in there but it would be nice to know more accurately how much fuel there is left in the tank. Andyfr

I see where you are coming from, but unless your on your last legs with fuel, I cant see it makes too much difference. The fuel is juggling about in the tank, going round corners, braking. And I think the electronic read out on the dash is just there for amusement more than anything else. It's definately not an accurate and you have to laugh when people start quoting mpg etc. based on it. Same as the temperature read out. Two LR's, parked same spot, two different read outs. You could explain this away by saying it's where the sensor is located, but again, it's only there for a laugh.

I've worked out that the gauge doesn't just tell you how much fuel is in the car, but tends to react to the distance the car feels you can travel as well. So if you've been especially economical, then you'll be able to travel farther on little fuel, so the gauge reads slightly higher.

I agree it's a bit daft also, my Leon does something similar  Mine: 2012 Golf GTI Edition 35
Family's: 2009 Freelander 2 HSE TD4 Auto, Stornoway

Yorkshire - God's County

Hi guys

Thanks for the replies. What I'm really getting at is that it took nearly 65 litres to fill a 68 litre tank leaving only 3 litres left. Now however you look at it, a quarter tank, 90 miles range or 3 litres of fuel it doesn't make sense.

The only logical explanation to the above is that the tank holds considerably more than 68 litres. Andyfr

The current brochure quotes "useable fueltank capacity" as 68 litres.

As far as I can recall 68 litres is based on filling the tank until the first or second cutoff on the pump rather than brimming the tank which will allow you to put more than 68 litres into the tank.

Filled mine up last week and got 70 litres in, that's with having 0 miles range.

hinchy wrote:

Filled mine up last week and got 70 litres in, that's with having 0 miles range.

The low fuel warning light comes up on mine and the information screen displays 40 miles left and it is only halfway between empty and a quarter of a tank.  p****d off with a Digital Keyboard Warrior

[quote="andyfr"]

hinchy wrote:

Filled mine up last week and got 70 litres in, that's with having 0 miles range.

Is it a 68 litre tank plus reserve? Mine: 2012 Golf GTI Edition 35
Family's: 2009 Freelander 2 HSE TD4 Auto, Stornoway

Yorkshire - God's County

Another point to be aware of,
FL2 like most common rail engined vehicle do not actually run out of fuel, they are electronically switched off leaving the system still fueled.This is to save damage to pump etc. If you completely run out of fuel restarting would not be a roadside job.
If you do stop due to fuel shortage it is then only a matter of adding fuel and starting in normal way. All FL2's (3) Gone
2011 Mercedes C180 CGI Gone
FL2 GS Auto SD with heated leather, factory tints, alloy spare and a few other bits.

I wouldn't usually run the tank much below a quarter full anyway, but it would be nice to have an accurate indicator of how much fuel is in the tank. Andyfr

Yes Andy, but it will never happen.