How many gallons do you put in when your gauge reads empty?

[GZtoSF]

Ok, so doing an experiment I drove until the needle was pretty much on E and filled the tank.

14.5 Gallons! That means that reading empty I still have 4 gallons in the tank?

Is that what everybody else experiences with their gauges?

 

[BamaFan]

Mine is similar.

 

[neuronbob]

Yup. I did a road trip from Cleveland to Cincinnati last weekend with 3/4 of a tank. I read "E" for about 40 miles and my light didn't come on and remembering that the low fuel light comes on with two gallons left, I initially kept going. I eventually chickened out and filled up only a few miles before my stop.....15 gallons. I guess the low fuel light is made for those times on the track when you're getting only 9 mpg....

 

[brettowen]

Same here. I don't think I've ever taken it down to the low fuel light level. I too chickened out.

 

[NSX2398]

I have had the low fuel light come on a number of times on long trips trying to get to my destination .. but I've never checked the fill-up quantity afterwards. However, in the back of my mind I could always hear the warning that I risked getting to levels where it may be picking up any impurities that have settled in the tank.

 

[NZNick]

There have been a few similar threads about this subject over the years, as you can imagine.
The tank (and lines) capacity is 18.5 US gallons (or 70 litres/liters, 15.4 imperial gallons)
The fuel warning light comes on (and stays on) when you have less than 2.75 US gallons in the tank. The light may come on before this, but that is due to the motion of the car and the fuel sloshing around in the tank, causing the sender to be exposed and activate the light. You should be able to drive (gently) around 50 miles (or more) before running out of fuel....
Therefore, a usual fill-up for a car that the light has come on consistently will be around 15.75 US gallons / 60 litres/liters / 13.1 imperial gallons.

The gauge isn't particularly accurate - it is simply an indicator of the approximate status of fuel in the tank - and is cautious so that you are unlikely to run out of fuel.