Filling your tank?

L-M

I never fill the tank in my car, and I honestly don't understand why people do. Maybe for some it's a weekly or bi-weekly thing, but if you think about it, it's like lugging around 80 litres of water in your boot!

In the long run, more frequent top ups of 20 euro rather than filling to the brim will save fuel in the long run.

cloneslad

it's been done to death here. What if you lived 5-10 mile from a ptrol station, think of the cost of driving to and from there just to fill up with €20.

Also, sometimes I just can't be arsed going in, filling up and knowing I'll be back again in a few days, it's better to get it out of the way in one go.

In saying that, I only top up with what I feel like doing, sometimes it's 30 sometimes 50, other times I fill it. I like to have more than half a tank when I leave the petrol station though, otherwise, what's the point?

L-M

cloneslad wrote: »

In saying that, I only top up with what I feel like doing, sometimes it's 30 sometimes 50, other times I fill it. I like to have more than half a tank when I leave the petrol station though, otherwise, what's the point?

The point is it's another fuel saving measure!

And that I didn't check to see if there were any previous threads on it :pac:

cloneslad

Limerick man wrote: »

The point is it's another fuel saving measure!

And that I didn't check to see if there were any previous threads on it :pac:

For the sake of saving a few euro, I'd rather save the hassle of going the the shop, putting the petrol in the car, paying for it, possibly buying something else in the shop that I don't need, chatting to someone I don't want to chat to, then going on my not so merry way. I couldn't be bothered doing this 5-6 times a week.

L-M

cloneslad wrote: »

For the sake of saving a few euro, I'd rather save the hassle of going the the shop, putting the petrol in the car, paying for it, possibly buying something else in the shop that I don't need, chatting to someone I don't want to chat to, then going on my not so merry way. I couldn't be bothered doing this 5-6 times a week.

Yes I also prefer to stay in my dungeon away from all forms of life...

corktina

80 litres? wow you must have some car...mine only takes about 40

L-M

corktina wrote: »

80 litres? wow you must have some car...mine only takes about 40

Sorry, 80 euro worth, ie. about 30 litres

I just fill it every 9 or 10 days, haven't done the 20 quid thing in years, got into the habit of filling up when I worked in Dublin and was up and down to cork regularly, was on the road than for a year after that so after all that it was habit.

Tragedy

65 litres = 45kg.

Car weighs 1,600kg

Difference in weight between half tank and full tank = 1.4%.

Top Dog

corktina wrote: »

80 litres? wow you must have some car...mine only takes about 40

Ours takes 90L if bone dry

Fuel light had just come on last Thursday, put in €110 (76.XX L @ 143.9c/l) and needle was then almost bang on the full mark, meaning we could have probably fit another €10 or so in

Forest Master

I fill up every time - can't understand why people don't TBH. They have to keep going back to fill up like suckers, and only get €20 each time like bums. Makes no sense.

Look at Tragey's post above - do you actually know how much it costs to "lug" around an extra 45kg of weight WHICH CONSTANTLY DECREASES, BTW? It's not constantly 45kg either - you realise that, yeah? It's probably around €1, based on average €70 full tank. (70/100 * 1.4)

So, considering the price of a full tank vs the €1 saving from making 2-3 visits, and considering the hassle of stopping off to fill up those 2-3 times, what sort of an idiot actually bothers with this thinking it makes any difference?

Yakuza

+1
While refuelling strategy might once have been important in F1, in day to day life, IMHO the marginal increase in weight (and the cost of fuel used in lugging it around) is more than offset by the time saved in *not* having to get to a petrol station three times as often.

opinion guy

OP if you really want to save some money the cheapest way to do that is to get some papier mache and cardboard and make yourself a grille block and some rear wheel skirts to improve your aerodynamics:

http://www.metrompg.com/posts/grille-blocking-part-2.htm

5% saving apparently


....althou you wouldn't catch me putting kindling anywhere near a hot engine....

...you might imagine some enterprising you business person could start successfully selling moulded real wheel skirts thou if petrol prices keep rising!

Bigcheeze

I'm going to fill my car with helium balloons to save weight.

R.O.R

I generally always fill the tank all the way. That means I can get 5-6 (working) days without having to visit the fuel station again.

LM - how long would that €20 last you? If I were doing that, I'd be in the petrol station every other day, which is a waste of time.

langdang

Take out the back seats and the spare and do the paper mache and John Gormley will come cut your lawn for you with a scissors (no nasty lawnmower emissions, and well - he has a bit more time on his hands these days anyway...)

Trampas

shave your body and head as the hair will all add up.

then again drive naked also as clothes weigh something also.

best way of saving fuel is how heavy you are with your foot.

Forest Master

Hey OP - instead of getting carpet in your house, just get 2 small pieces and stick them to your feet! Same effect - but you save loads of €€€! Can't understand why everyone doesn't do this!

Also - turn off your engine & free-roll down hills - saves fuel. Only stupid people don't do this.

cormie

I had the same question before

I think the best practice is to just fill the tank when you find a cheap garage, let it go to near empty and do the same again, you'll save much more this way then topping up €20 a time at an averagely priced garage plus you'll avoid laser transaction fees and for those who need to, the extra hassle of dealing with more VAT receipts plus the time saved (which is working time for me) and means I won't be low on fuel and worrying so much if I'm rushing to a job plus you're more likely to be left off if you go a few cent over on a bigger top up :pac:

Mar4ix

45 l. diesel tank. usually fill full. enough for 3 weeks ish.

Testament1

Its all down to peoples commute aswell. When I was driving from Clare to Limerick everyday I used to fill the tank. But since September I've been living in Limerick and only really use the car at weekends so I've only been sticking in about 20 euro a go since then as I havent been clocking up much milage.

Leonard Hofstadter

I always brim the tank, can't understand the fascination with visiting the petrol station every few days tbh. I'm one of those people who will still fill it with petrol even after you get the 'click' sound to tell you it's nearly full - you'll still get another 5 litres in (or at least I can anyway:D)!

GeneHunt

I always fill my car from empty (after the light has come on;)), if you’re going to driver your car you may as well have fuel in it – putting a small amount of fuel in each time (say €20 a go) is a fool’s paradise in my eyes, you’re not going to drive the car any less. You’re also probably increasing the chance of adding dirt to your tank by visiting more fuel stations during the life of the car.

Is it an urban myth or is it true that the Engine Management Unit (EMU) keeps track of the fuel cap on diesel engines fitted with a Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF)? I was told that the EMU uses the fuel cap removal as one of its activations to start a cleaning cycle on the DPF - were it uses an additive to burn off the soot in the DPF. What I’m unsure of, is the additive added to the fuel tank or is it added to the fuel in or nearer to the engine? So my understanding is if the fuel cap is removed more frequently the EMU will put the DPF through more cleaning cycles than it needs and is then shorting the life of the DPF.

L-M

R.O.R wrote: »

I generally always fill the tank all the way. That means I can get 5-6 (working) days without having to visit the fuel station again.

LM - how long would that €20 last you? If I were doing that, I'd be in the petrol station every other day, which is a waste of time.

150 miles so far for 20 quid and I plan to beat it!

I always hear of people keeping their boot clean, stupidly leaving out their spare wheel and other weight saving measures, I can't see why not filling your tank won't help!

I haven't filled mine up yet and I don't plan to but it would definitely take more than 40 litres to fill it up!

Voodoomelon

I used to be of the opinion I was saving money too by not filling up, but its a load of tosh. I usually brim it every time, but recently i've only been half filling it purely for monetary reasons, its tough loosing €122 in one go so I split it up now. I'm not a commuter so I can go for about 10 days on €60.

Thoie

Let's say it takes you 13 minutes to go to the petrol station, fill a tank, pay and return and that your tank takes €60. It takes 11 minutes to put in €20 (including driving, paying etc). So, for the same amount of petrol, you're talking about 13 minutes versus 33 minutes - a cost of 20 minutes. The financial saving you're making (using the 1.4% figure from earlier) is 84 cents.

If you are earning minimum wage, the cost of your time is 12.75c per minute, so a saving of 4.2 cents per minute would not enough of an incentive for me to stop filling the tank.

Blitzkrieger

As previously stated, I don't think the weight makes that much of a difference. My car weighs 1,765kg and probably has about 45 litres of fuel capacity. I'm not sure how much a litre of petrol weighs, but the weight difference between 70 euros worth and 20 euros worth seems small to me compared to the weight of the car.

I've actually heard that for economy you should always keep your car brimmed. That when the tank is half empty the petrol has more space to turn into vapor, and keeping it full denies it the opportunity. I'm not sure if that's true though.

I generally fill mine and leave it go almost empty before filling it up again. I usually get about 3 weeks between fills. It'd be nice to almost empty it every time so I don't get a build up of muck in the bottom of the tank, but I try to leave at least enough in it to get to the nearest hospital. Never had to make an emergency run yet, but there's been a couple of times I've had to make an unexpected trip when the petrol stations are closed.

I used to really do the 10 and 20 euro top ups but started to put in more now that I drive galway cork return most weekends. I rarely fill it usually put in about 40 or 50 euro which is enough for the return trip, I do almost no driving during the week.

How much I put in often depends on the price for instance I needed a bit more to make it home last night but my fuel card price was going to be a cent less as of today so I just put in 10 euro last night to get me home.

Absurdum

I always brim it (and drive until light comes on) so that I can calculate my consumption. I also have a fuel card so my pain is only once a month.

Stinicker

I came very close to been born at the side of the road thanks to my fathers light weight fuel strategy back in the 1980's.

Absurdum

Absurdum wrote: »

I always brim it (and drive until light comes on) so that I can calculate my consumption.

I do the same. God how i hate short trips, ruin all my good mpg work!

omb0wyn5ehpij9

I'd always fill the tank aswell. Just don't see the point in only throwing €20 in to it

EPM

I fill. If I put 20 in I'd be filling twice a day. Cant see the point in putting x amount in and then refilling sooner than you need to. Still costs the same:)

Welease

i refuse to let fat people into my car.

alex73

I'm glad I bought a 1.3L engine car... But its gone from 40 euros to fill up to 60 euros now. (or more)

Time to get a Nissan Leaf... (160km = 3 euros charge)

pajo1981

And don't forget that, between pump visits, a half filled tank is on average one quater full and a fully filled tank is on average half full.

So you'd actually be looking at .7% difference, on average.

-that's a lot of use of the word average.

holuc

Limerick man wrote: »

Sorry, 80 euro worth, ie. about 30 litres

where are you buyin petrol?? 30l for 80e... dats 2.666 a litre!!!!!!!!!!!!

you would save more money if you knew how much it costs before you buy.

Cassidy28

I Fill her up every 3 - 4 weeks,diesel is great

Voodoomelon

Welease wrote: »

i refuse to let fat people into my car.

Someone posted in After Hours in the Stingiest Person thread about a girl who made people in the back sit in the middle of the car to make sure the tyres wear evenly.

She would even rotate people throughout a journey to make sure the wear on the tyres was even all round. She also used to put frig all in the tank to keep the weight down. Unbelieveable stuff!

Dempsey

I go to the petrol station when the reserve light comes on, and fill it until there is nearly petrol running down the side of the car! :pac:

I dont believe the fuel saving gained is worth the hassle with frequent visits

shedweller

I brim the tank every three weeks and let it empty to under the 5 litre mark. I'd rather not have to go to for diesel every week. I don't get the issue with picking up dirt in the tank. The pump is drawing off the bottom of the tank and it has a strainer on it.
The weight of the diesel makes no difference to my mpg. The weather makes a bigger difference from what i can see.

ShadowHearth

I hate petrol stations. Why should i visit it more then I need? I even fill up my yokes when I got to work at 5:30 in the morning. No cars, no life forms, no annoying bastords who go shopping while theyr car still by the pump.

I newer fill less then 50 these days. I used to get for 20 quid, but now 20 quid gives you feck all... As mentioned before, I would not be arsed to fill 3-4 times per week to save 1-2eu... I would not be even bothered to go to the anther side of town to fill in for 1-2 cents cheaper...

shedweller

ShadowHearth wrote: »

............... I would not be even bothered to go to the anther side if town to fill in for 1-2 cents cheaper...

Not to mention it actually costing you to get there!!

tuxy

Limerick man wrote: »

it's like lugging around 80 litres of water in your boot!

80 litres of water would be about the same weight as 115 litres of petrol

That's a bigger tank than a range rover. Most large 4x4's only have 85 litre tanks.
What kind of vehicles do you think we drive?

wildefalcon

Life is too short to be spent in a filling station.

Which reminds me, I'm outta gas.

Meh.

G.

L-M

holuc wrote: »

where are you buyin petrol?? 30l for 80e... dats 2.666 a litre!!!!!!!!!!!!

you would save more money if you knew how much it costs before you buy.

Pretty obvious that it was a joke...

EthicRanger

Also To keep empty tank is not corossion wise in long term.

other not mentioned smallish arguments for Limerick man:
you don't want to create more cost of serving you, which is not leading to price drop;
you don't want to waste printed reciepts, because ink is not recyclable actually ;
possible spills ;
you don't want breathing of petrol sciented air in station ;
battery wise,
you don't want to create a queues for others in petrol stations;

if you filling a little, you likely driving just around, so definitely should consider in to bigger savings from electric car. check some mathematics here adverts.ie/554260 (sorry this one is sold... will be getting another...probably for myself)

L-M

Ok I admit I was wrong and bored at 2 in the morning, what more do I need to say :P

knifey_spoonie

EPM

knifey_spoonie wrote: »

Done!

L-M

Fail