Ran fuel tank empty, ran out of gas?
 

Has anyone done this in their HHR (yet)?
I havent run out of fuel in a car in a very long time.

I had read that a fuel injected system needs to be 'primed' with fuel to get the air bubbles out.

What ya'll got to say about it?

I have never ran a vehicle dry! :eek: I won't let it get under a 1/8 tank. ;)

not in my hhr, but i did run out in my 2000 jetta once. i didn't do anything special to it, just put some gas in. it kinda' hesitated a little when i started driving again, but after that, it was fine.

The HHR's fuel system has return lines to the canister (this clears any air), I'm sure it will prime just from the pump.
Once you add fuel to the tank, turn the key "on" with the window down and wait until you hear the fuel pump quit pumping.
Then crank the key and you should get fire within a few seconds.

Hope it helps,

On older cars you had to worry about what the pump would suck up into the lines, but on something new, I wouldn't worry about running it dry just yet.
The pump will do its job and will suck up fuel as soon as there is some. It might take a little bit of time to start, but it will come back.
You can make the fuel pump 'prime' by turning the key on but not starting it. You can hear the pump run for a second then stop. That is putting pressure on the lines so when the car turns over there is enough to make the injectors work.

Did some searching and found this online. I'll keep searching and see if I come up with anything else. :thumb:

You can also cycle the ignition key to bring fuel to the motor. That is turn the key to the on position (not run), listen for a hum (electric fuel pump), when it ends turn to off. Wait 5 seconds, turn the key back to the run position, and repeat this five times. If this doesn't work, then you have a different problem

Back in the days (carbs, and no I'm not talking Atkins) we used to drive on "fumes" no problem. But with Fuel Injection that is no longer recommended.

Most F.I. vehicles have the fuel pump inside the gas tank and the fuel acts as a cooling agent for the pump. Running the vehicle on "fumes" will shorten the life of a F.I. fuel pump. Also all the junk sits at the bottom of the tank including water from condensation. The lowest I'll go is when the ID-10-T light comes on. That usually means you have 3 gallons left and time for a pit-stop. My :2cnets:

Ng

i had a 2.3 turbo diesel and was going to Cincinatti for a convention and i got to a town and i was on empty and all of a sudden couldnt find diesel.

i finally found a station w kerosene and was pulling off the road and it ran out on the ramp. i had a gas can and got some kerosene and put 2.5 gallons in. there was a primer on the fuel filter line.

primed it, turned key on and it started great
only time i have ever run out of gas.

if i kept my 2.3 around 70 to 75 i could go 800 miles on an 18 gal tank and still had fuel to look for a gas station. it was right at 1500 miles to cincy and it took me 2 tanks of diesel. the drag was the convention was in Feb and i had to plug the truck in overnight and run it from my hotel room w a long extension cord

i miss that truck

Old cars with mechanical fuel pumps need priming. I have never had to prime a car with an electic fuel pump. I've got a 20+ year old daughter so I have some experience with cars running out of gas.

Just One Question, Sindy, What the heck you doing running out of gas. I know you`re not Boycotting or waiting for prices to go down...

Running an Electronic Fuel Pump out of gas is the quickest way to burn up your pump....Even letting the car run below 1/8 tank a lot can cause damage to the pump because the fuel in the tank helps cool the pump.

i dont think she ran out
i just think she was posing the ? to get thoughts.

I ran a truck dry eons ago, but the gas gauge was busted. And it had to be primed but that was easy....just pour some in the carb and pump the crap out of it. I do remember on my Taurus they told me never go below 1/4 tank because the fuel cooled the pump in the tank. As far as my HHR, nope.

CJ is correct, I was just throwing the topic out there.
The last time I ran out of fuel was a few years ago in a VW Baja, coasted into the gas station! That was convient.

I realized this when I read your original post....I was just givin some free advice...

Sounds like a strange question to pose, Has anyone driven on a flat tire, tried driving with the hood up? Who could think of a good result to any of these questions? Sounded like she (Sindy) was worried she had damaged her veh. , more than just a question tossed out there.

I've driven on a flat. :lol: But the tires were run flats so it was okay. ;)

There is no prime required on an HHR. I ran out of gas with my LS1 powered hot rod and had to bleed the air out of the fuel rail because I'm using the Corvette "returnless" fuel system.........the HHR does not have this problem.

In post #14 Sindy says she is just throwing it out there. ;)

I haven't run out of gas, yet. My mother used to all the time when I was a kid, and I was the one who ended up walking. Now I make sure I've got plenty. I've also ran on a flat; it's not very good on the wheels, but if you're buying new ones anyhow, what the heck?

My original post was # 10:nuts:

Interesting you read that much into my topic of discussion.

Nope, no damage, no worries.

Our HHR's do have an warning light when the fuel level becomes to a low level.

Part of my Moderator duties is to bring discussion to the forum. Thats what I did.

Like that Saturday Night Live skit with Mike Myers..here's a topic now talk amongst yourselves.

It's good to facilitate discussion.

Yes but for what it's worth the one I quoted was #16. :p:

So here's a question...Aside from the warning light (?) and message on the DIC about low fuel range, is there also a chime or alarm of some sorts that sounds...not near my manual to check it out...

Every North American vehicle I had had both. My Mazda had only a light, no auditory warning...I hated that...not that I let the fuel get that low that often.

By the time I hunted and pecked out my post , two others had come in.
Still was a strange querry even just to start a thread discussion.
Even w/dash lights you can run out of fuel, just need to be too far from source.:red:

Yes, there is a chime. When you get down to about 30 miles your DIC changes from miles to empty to fuel low. If you continue on much farther you get a chime from time to time to remind you. I found that out on the way to Vegas last week!