Don’t Drive On Empty!

Have you ever looked down at your fuel gauge and seen that it was preeeetty low but still thought to yourself that it’d be fine, and you probably had at least a hundred more miles on it? Well, okay, number one – get gas! Number two, don’t do that again. Did you know that driving on empty is actually super bad for your vehicle? Here are some of the issues related to driving on empty:

1. You can wear out your fuel pump.
   The gasoline in your car acts as a coolant for the electric fuel pump motor, so when you’re running super low the pump can suck in air. This is bad, because it creates heat and causes the fuel pump to wear out prematurely – which can cause it to fail. The repair on this is in the couple-hundred-dollar range.

2. Your fuel gauge isn’t always accurate.
   The gauge is definitely more of a close-ish approximation than a 100% accurate reading of the amount of gas you have left. E could mean 35 more miles or 0 miles left, and since there’s no way of knowing, you should be keeping your gas level near a quarter of a tank at all times – at least. Don’t let it drop below that level!

3. The sediment in your gas tank can ruin your life.
   Sediment from gas settles at the bottom of everyone’s gas tank, and when your gas level is really low that sediment gets stirred up. That means your vehicle is using the dirtiest fuel in your tank, and that dirt gets into your car’s fuel line and engine. When everything gets too clogged, you’ll need a total flush, which costs a pretty penny.