How much does a fuel tank actually hold?
Do you know how much fuel your car's tank holds? 40, 50 or maybe 70 liters? The answer to this question was decided by two Ukrainian media outlets, having conducted a very interesting experiment.
The essence of the experiment itself is prompted by the practice of refueling, because it often happens that the tank holds much more than indicated by the manufacturer. At the same time, it is impossible to resolve such a dispute on the spot. Although each customer can be sure of accuracy by ordering a technical measurement in a special container (at least in Ukraine). However, more often than not, the buyer just leaves disappointed, and the opposite moment for the company that owns the gas station is its reputation.
How is the measurement done?
For the most objective picture, seven cars of different classes and years of manufacture, with different engines and, accordingly, with different volumes of fuel tanks, from 45 to 70 liters, were collected, although not without effort. Completely ordinary models of private owners, without any tricks and improvements. The experiment involved: Skoda Fabia, 2008 (45 l tank), Nissan Juke, 2020 (46 l.), Renault Logan, 2015 (50 l.), Toyota Auris, 2011 (55 l. .), Mitsubishi Outlander, 2020 (60 l.), KIA Sportage, 2019 (62 l) and BMW 5 Series, 2011 (70 l).
Why is it not easy to collect this "magnificent seven"? Firstly, because not everyone is ready to spend half a day of their working time, circling circles on the Chaika highway in Kiev, and secondly, according to the conditions of the experiment, absolutely use up all the fuel in the tank and on all pipes and fuel lines, that is, the cars completely stop. And not everyone would like this to happen to his car. For the same reason, only gasoline modifications were chosen, because after such an experiment it will be more difficult to start a diesel engine.
As soon as the car stops, it will be possible to refuel it with exactly 1 liter of gasoline, which is enough to get to the gas station next to the highway. And there it is poured "to the top". Thus, the fuel tanks of all participants are almost completely empty (i.e., the error will be minimal) and it will be possible to determine how much they actually fit.
Double experiment
As expected, all cars arrive with minimal but varying amounts of petrol in the tank. In some, the on-board computer shows that they can drive another 0 km, while in others - almost 100. There is nothing to do - the drain of "unnecessary" liters begins. Along the way, it becomes clear how far cars can go with the light of a light bulb, and there are no surprises here.
The KIA Sportage, which has the most petrol in its tank, has the most laps on the small Seagull ring. Renault Logan also makes many laps, but in the end it stops first. Pour exactly a liter into it. After a few laps, the fuel in the tank of the Nissan Juke and Skoda Fabia, and then of the other participants, runs out. Except Toyota Auris! She continues to circle and, apparently, is not going to stop, although to speed up the process, her driver increases the pace! And this despite the fact that before the start of the experiment, her on-board computer showed 0 km (!) Of the remaining run.
After all, her fuel runs out several hundred meters before refueling. It turns out that Auris with a CVT gearbox manages to drive 80 km from scratch! The rest of the participants ride with a less "empty" tank, driving an average of 15-20 km. This way, even if your car's fuel indicator is on, you can be sure that you still have a range of around 40 km. Of course, this depends on the driving style and should not be overused regularly.
Before refueling cars at the gas station, which is located about 2 km from the highway, the organizers check the accuracy of the columns using a technical tank. It should be borne in mind that the permissible error of 10 liters is +/- 50 milliliters.
Speakers and participants are ready - refueling begins! KIA Sportage first "quenches thirst" and confirms the assumptions - the tank holds 8 liters more than the declared 62. Only 70 liters, and the top one is enough for about 100 km of additional mileage. Skoda Fabia with compact dimensions holds an additional 5 liters, which is also a good increase! Total - 50 liters "up".
Toyota Auris stops at surprises - only 2 liters on top, and Mitsubishi Outlander is completely satisfied with its "extra" 1 liter. The Nissan Juke tank holds 4 liters on top. The hero of the day, however, is the modest Renault Logan, which holds 50 liters in a 69-litre tank! That is a maximum of 19 liters! With a consumption of 7-8 liters per hundred kilometers, this is an additional 200 kilometers. Quite good. And the BMW 5 Series is precise in German – 70 liters claimed and 70 liters loaded.
In fact, this experiment turned out to be both unexpected and practical. And this shows that the volume of the fuel tank indicated in the technical characteristics of the car does not always correspond to the truth. Of course, there are machines with high-precision tanks, but this is rather an exception. Most models can easily hold more fuel than advertised.
