the nineth bar on the 360 gas gage! | FerrariChat

the nineth bar on the 360 gas gage!

Discussion in '360/430' started by elmani, Sep 10, 2009.

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  1. elmani

    elmani Formula Junior

    Oct 7, 2008
    253
    austin Texas
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    marc b
    #1 elmani, Sep 10, 2009
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Guys, no matter how much i fill my gas tank, i was never able to light up the nineth bar on the gas gage shown in this pic... are all the 360s like that?
    It checks ok when i turn the key on (so light bulb is ok). Should I overfill the tank beyond the handle pops?
    thx
    Image Unavailable, Please Login
     
  2. PhilNotHill

    PhilNotHill Two Time F1 World Champ
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    Jul 3, 2006
    27,855
    Aspen CO 81611
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    FelipeNotMassa
    Fill er up until you can see gas coming up the filler pipe. the gas pump auto shut off makes the 360 hard to fill. You may have to put some in an old fashioned gas can.

    If you are sure the tank is full, obviously you have something wrong with the gauge.
     
  3. elmani

    elmani Formula Junior

    Oct 7, 2008
    253
    austin Texas
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    marc b
    i will try that eventhough i do not like over-filling... had problems with previous car (not a Ferrari) leaking from the hose clamp... i will try it tomorrow though :)
    regards
     
  4. wax

    wax Five Time F1 World Champ
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    Jul 20, 2003
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    What is a nineth?
     
  5. jjsaustin

    jjsaustin Formula Junior

    May 11, 2008
    579
    Austin, TX
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    Jim
    #5 jjsaustin, Sep 10, 2009
    Last edited: Sep 10, 2009
    Keep filling it up slowly beyond the "handle pop". It will max out if you want it to.

    -Jim
     
  6. Red 27

    Red 27 Formula 3
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    Feb 2, 2008
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    San Diego, Ca
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    Dave
    #6 Red 27, Sep 10, 2009
    Last edited: Sep 10, 2009

    won more than ateth
     
  7. F360Dave

    F360Dave Karting

    May 13, 2009
    176
    Don't put the nozzle all the way in - Put it in about 75% of what you can and let the rest hang out

    Also when you fill make sure you set it on the slowest setting, or use hand pressure for even slower pressure

    After it clicks off, hand fill it up a bit - I like having all the bars lit up after getting a fresh tank of petrol
     
  8. andrewecd

    andrewecd Formula Junior

    Dec 17, 2006
    539
    Sydney
    Full Name:
    Andrew
    Mine does it too, as do a LOT of 360's. It is probably the sender unit. Doesn't bother me too much. May get around to fixing it one day.
    Check this "excellent" thread out
    http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=118530&highlight=sender+unit
     
  9. RayJohns

    RayJohns F1 Veteran
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    May 21, 2006
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    #9 RayJohns, Sep 11, 2009
    Last edited: Sep 11, 2009
    Try this:

    Drive the car until the last bar (on the left) starts to flash. At this point you should have about 2.5 to 3 gallons of gas. Note your mileage and drive to a gas station. Using 13 MPG for the city, calculate out the gas you used between when the last bar started flashing and when you arrived at the gas station. Roughly you should have between 2 and 2.5 gallons or so in the tank.

    Fill up the tank until the handle clicks off. Then try to get more gas in by turning the handle to the 9 or 3 o'clock position and giving it more gas. The tank holds 24.7 gallons. So if you can get about 21 to 22 gallons in, then the top bar should lite up no problem.

    If the top bar doesn't lite up, there are a couple of things you can do. If you are real adventurous, you can remove the left hand drip rail and pop open that rear vent (message #22, 2nd photo in the link mentioned above and also here):

    http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=118530

    When you remove the vent, you can check the fuel level with a stick or with a flash light. I think you may also be able to see which sending unit you have. I suspect you have the later one (part # 194140), because if you had the old one, you'd only be seeing 3/4 full, not 7/8th full. In any event, at least you can look in there and see how much fuel you have. Make sure you reinstall the vent in such a manner so that the hose is applying pressure to twist the vent closed, not open.

    If the gas is to the top, but the gauge is not reading full, another possible cause is that the sending unit is slightly off set and this is allowing the sending unit arm to run up against the edge of the slot in the tank where it rides up and down. You might be able to see that through the vent (not sure). You might also be able to take a wood dowel and move the sending unit arm to see if it moves freely (or if it hits the side of the slot where it rides). If it's making contact with the sides of the slot in the tank, you might be able to loosen the top of the pump/sending unit stack (the big white plastic nut on the top of the tank) and turn it slightly to properly align the sending unit.

    First thing I would do is make sure you are actually getting the proper amount of fuel into the tank by recording how much fuel is taken once the last bar starts to flash.

    The other thing you can do is this: when the last bar starts to flash, put exactly 10 gallons in. This should yield roughly 12.5 gallons in the tank, which is very close to half a tank. The gauge should read 1/2 on the bars for about 10 to 15 miles after that. I used to only put 10 gallons into my tank (instead of 20+) in order to save weight (10 gallons = ~ 61.5 lbs). Anyway, if you add 10 gallons when the last bar flashes, it should go to pretty much 1/2 the gauge almost every single time when everything is working properly and the sending unit is sending the proper reading to the car. From there (once you confirm 1/2 a tank - but before you drive), try adding in another 10-11 gallons. If you can do that, then you know the tank is basically full and the gauge should read to the top bar for 10 or so miles after the fill up.

    Hope this helps.

    Ray
     
  10. andrew911

    andrew911 F1 Rookie
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    Sep 8, 2003
    2,887
    Northern NJ
    Why does the car in the thread Ray attached say unleaded fuel only and elmani's gauge not say that- is it a Euro car? Just curious....
     
  11. RayJohns

    RayJohns F1 Veteran
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    I believe they changed the look of the gauge some time around 2002. On my old car (a 2001) it said unleaded fuel. My friend has a 2002 and it was as shown above. Personally I prefer the look of the 2001 gauge. Not sure why they changed it or if you can change it back some how, but I think the change occurred with the 2002 model year.

    Ray
     
  12. fc2

    fc2 F1 Veteran
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    Nov 2, 2006
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    Frank C.
    I never push the pump past it's first auto-shut off... nothing would make me feel worse than trying to fit $.50 more fuel in the tank and instead, end up with fuel all over the paint and potentially myself.

    Is it really worth that last "bar" on your gas gauge?
     
  13. RayJohns

    RayJohns F1 Veteran
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    If you keep putting more and more fuel in, the pump will start shutting off more quickly between each time. It's pretty hard to get fuel to actually come out.

    Don't be scared of the gas station :)

    Ray
     
  14. elmani

    elmani Formula Junior

    Oct 7, 2008
    253
    austin Texas
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    marc b
    Thx guys for all your input! Specially Ray! unfortunately i am overseas now for 1 month (working :( ) i will definitely try to overfilll the tank and see the glow on this nineth bar... as i mentionned earlier my only worry with overfilling is leaks in the conduits to the tank.... but i will try it one time and let you know!
    cheers
     
  15. GTVeloce

    GTVeloce Karting

    Jul 19, 2009
    207
    Kauai Hawaii
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    Dennis
    On one car I own (not a 360), it is recommended to not overfill. It can cause a CEL if the filler pipe is full of fuel. It has an effect of the emissions system.
    I agree with the poster that said why take the risk of gas all over the car and yourself.
     
  16. hawaii1

    hawaii1 Karting

    Oct 29, 2005
    109
    I think something is wrong with your fuel gauge sensor not synchronizing. Whenever I refuel on 05 360 spider, I get full bars on full tank with no problems. I am not sure, if 05 model is any different than your 02 model, if there are any issues regarding fuel gauges. You may want to have a technician check it out.
     
  17. Skidkid

    Skidkid F1 Veteran
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    Aug 25, 2005
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    Campbell, CA
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    John Zornes
    This is a common problem and well documented. The sending unit was redesigned so the post about an 05 isn't a valid comparison.

    RayJohn gave the correct answer yesterday and he provided a link to a detailed thread on the problem & replacement process. If you have a Spider, don't bother fixing it. You have to pull the top to get to the sending unit.
     
  18. marcmc8867

    marcmc8867 Formula Junior

    Jul 27, 2004
    997
    NC
    Full Name:
    Marc M.
    My '01 Spider has had this issue since I bought it 3 years ago. My independent shop said it is a sending unit and that it isn't worth the cost to fix it.

    So...I've just gotten used to it.

    As for truly filling it, as others have said, you have to do it slowly and until you can see the gas at the top to get it full. I've filled it with over 24.5 gallons a couple times but no matter how much it'll take it always takes 3-5 gallons more than the first click.

    I'm told the car has a tank on each side and that the driver's side tank pumps fuel to the passenger side. Slowly. So if you fill too fast, it'll shut off sooner since the flow rate from the pump is higher than the left-to-right flow rate.

    Anyway, no big deal, just get used to it.
     
  19. RayJohns

    RayJohns F1 Veteran
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    There are two gas tanks (one on each side of the car) and each one has its own pump. The fuel sending unit is only on the left side tank however. The tanks are connected by a tube between the two tanks on the bottom.

    As indicated above, the rate at which gas comes out of filling station pump is probably a bit faster than the tube between the two gas tanks can equalize the levels (but I doubt by all that much). This is why sometimes you have to start/stop a bit - probably in order to allow the fuel to equalize across both tanks.

    This is also why if you park your car on a hill that slants down to the right, you can get some strange readings from your fuel gauge until the car is back on level ground for a few seconds.

    Ray
     

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