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Kindness of strangers

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drooartz

drooartz

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So I'm driving home from a concert in the park in the Tunebug, feeling pretty good about how he's running. That smug moment before the fall, as it were. Then I get a stutter, stutter, stall. What the...

Check plug wires, poke around, nothing. Then I look at the gas gauge. Doesn't really work, shows 1/4 all the time. Except when the tank is empty, apparently, then it shows empty. Get out and shake the car (my backup gauge method), no sloshing. Out of gas. Only a couple miles from home, but not much road shoulder for pushing. Call the wife, she'll run down some gas when her TV show ends in 15 minutes. I settle in to wait.

Not 2 minutes later a guy in an early 80's Alpha Romeo pulls over and offers me a ride home. Nice guy, nice car (there's comfy seats--and heat--and speed--oh my). Drives me home, waits while I grab the gas can (mercifully full), and drives me back to my car. There are still nice folks out there and I guess, like bikers, little car guys/gals look out for each other.

Really need to fix that gas gauge, or just remember to fill up a little more often. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif
 
Pay it forward.....
 
Like I said, fix the gas gage, sender unit what ever.

How about a calabrated stick?
 
It's on the list, Jack, just not near the top yet. Might be a winter project... need to drop the tank to get it cleaned anyways, so that will be the time. Now I just use the "rock the car and listen to the gas slosh" method, when I remember to do it!

And yes, I'm always willing to help a fellow car/biker. Got to help out those friends you haven't met yet.
 
congrates on bein the 2nd forum member to run outta gas this week ; )
sometimes its the little things that count the most..haha....z
 
Zimmy, I thought of you as I refilled the tank by the side of the road. I figured you'd understand. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
[ QUOTE ]
And yes, I'm always willing to help a fellow car/biker. Got to help out those friends you haven't met yet.

[/ QUOTE ]
That's the whole idea of this place. Now we just need to change the "haven't met" to "just met".
 
Seems like a stick with notches just might be the trick for these guys.
 
Or we could just fix the dern gauges...
 
Well since you guys have empty tanks it is easy to drop them and check the sending units. :p

Or even better check the voltage where it goes into the gage at full and after you think you are at maybe half a tank. Should preaty well isolate you prob I should think.
Hay sending units are 29 bucks off the top of my head, less than 50 in any case. A half hours work installs it.

Or one of those plastic 1 gal gas cans in the cave.
 
Nice story.
 
i partially pulled my tank a month ago....
only seen 1 wire.looked ok...is that correct?
what are the common fixes for the gauge?
i ve gotta do dashlights too so ill b
under the dash soon also.............z
 
That is correct as I remember. It is grounded through the bolts to the body etc. Wire in a bugeye comes up into the cave where you can get at it easly.
 
No reason to drop the tank to replace sending unit, is there?
 
On a Bugeye you have to, hole in body is only about 1/4 inch.
 
The sending unit is on top and the tank comes down with 6 bolts. It really is pretty easy.
 
[ QUOTE ]
only seen 1 wire.looked ok...is that correct?

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, only 1 wire. It's a power wire. Tank provides the ground through the body. First thing I'd try is to make sure you have power going down to the sending unit. If you don't, start following the wires. If you have power, I'd suspect the sending unit.

My gas gauge worked, then didn't. Very frustrating. Ended up pulling the gauge out of the dash last weekend, which wasn't easy (no room up there) without removing the dashboard from the car.

Finally traced the wires down and found the wires had come off of the voltage stabilizer. Could've saved a lot of trouble by starting there and working toward the gauge.
 
I'm figuring it's a good idea to drop the tank anyways, to get it cleaned out. Planning on replacing the sender while I'm in there. Current gauge seems to read between 1/4 (while full) and almost empty when empty. Not much range there, but it does move a bit.
 
maybe its just gunked up and stuck, droo..
try a cleaning...mine doesnt work at all
so i assume electrical....z
 
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