Time to fill up

[LDB]

You say it's hundreds of miles yet? The gauge is still on 1/2? Well that's as good a time as any to fill up, especially now with places not having fuel. It will suck big time when the usual drive it down to 1/8 or below leads you to no fuel and the expense and problems of priming etc.. Unless you have really small fuel tanks 1/2 should be plenty of time between fills.

 

[OntarioVanMan]

You say it's hundreds of miles yet? The gauge is still on 1/2? Well that's as good a time as any to fill up, especially now with places not having fuel. It will suck big time when the usual drive it down to 1/8 or below leads you to no fuel and the expense and problems of priming etc.. Unless you have really small fuel tanks 1/2 should be plenty of time between fills.

Yes sir!!...

 

[KickStarter6]

But when it's a windchill of -20 I don't wanna lol unless where I'm going is worse then I still don't wanna lol

 

[layoutshooter]

It's always better to run off the top half of the tanks rather than the bottom half. I try to fuel when I am about at the halfway mark too. I pay more attention to that in winter when our lives could depend on it. As long as I have fuel in the tanks I can ride out a few days of being stuck somewhere. I have food, water, and can melt snow if needed and I have heat and power. No fuel, problems.

 

[LDB]

Exactly the point, plus being able to maximize IFTA benefits as well.

 

[KickStarter6]

Dumb newbie van question but what's IFTSA thingy? I'm trying to learn everything can

 

[LDB]

IFTA is the fuel tax on trucks of 26,001# and greater GVW, the fuel taxes the big trucks pay.

 

[mjmsprt40]

With those of us driving vans, fueling at the halfway point makes sense for another reason. You have an electric fuel pump in the tank, and keeping fueled up means the pump has to do less work to overcome the pressure head and it keeps the pump submerged in fuel so it runs cooler and stays well lubricated. Running a tank dry is bad business, sooner or later you will burn out the pump that way and then it's an expensive proposition to lower the tank, remove the pump and sender unit and replace them, then raise the tank back into position and replace fuel that had to be removed before lowering the tank. This job is usually too big for the do-it-yourselfer, so that means you'll pay labor charges on top of the cost of parts and the cost of the jobs you couldn't take because your van was down for fuel-pump replacement. Not to mention the cost of the tow-- when the fuel pump quits you're not going anywhere.

 

[xmudman]

For us gassers, filling up at halfway (15+ gallons) gets us a half a shower. Yippee

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[NorthernBill]

With only about 400 miles of range (sprinter van), was thinking having 10 gal's of fuel in reserve would be a good thing. What type of container would be best? Any body using the kind made for atv rack's?

 

[xiggi]

Not sure why that would be necessary. Their are tons of places you can fuel a sprinter, even in sparse areas I've never had a problem.

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[runrunner]

With those of us driving vans, fueling at the halfway point makes sense for another reason. You have an electric fuel pump in the tank, and keeping fueled up means the pump has to do less work to overcome the pressure head and it keeps the pump submerged in fuel so it runs cooler and stays well lubricated. Running a tank dry is bad business, sooner or later you will burn out the pump that way and then it's an expensive proposition to lower the tank, remove the pump and sender unit and replace them, then raise the tank back into position and replace fuel that had to be removed before lowering the tank. This job is usually too big for the do-it-yourselfer, so that means you'll pay labor charges on top of the cost of parts and the cost of the jobs you couldn't take because your van was down for fuel-pump replacement. Not to mention the cost of the tow-- when the fuel pump quits you're not going anywhere.

Believe it or not, that is a myth about running on less than 1/4 tank is hard on your fuel pump. The pump is cooled by the fuel running through it not around it. Now running out of fuel often is hard on the pump. Just like,people used to believe that having low fuel in the tank clogged your filter faster because you were sucking up debris,the fuel is always sucked in from the bottom of the tank,if full or empty,so that was a myth also. I know your gonna argue but if you research enough you will find that low fuel will not shorten pump life. I admit many people believe it.

 

[LDB]

Lower might not be detrimental but fuller absolutely isn't detrimental, presuming good quality fuel in both cases.

 

[NorthernBill]

Not sure why that would be necessary. Their are tons of places you can fuel a sprinter, even in sparse areas I've never had a problem.

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That is good new's, I really don't like handling fuel can's. The reports of bad or no fuel got me thinking what if. Also might get that shower credit!

 

[runrunner]

Dumb newbie van question but what's IFTSA thingy? I'm trying to learn everything can

International Fuel Tax Agreement

Each State or Province is worried about you running through there State using there roads,but not paying there fuel tax,because you bought your fuel in another State. So you must report the miles you travel in each State,and the amount of fuel you purchase in each State. They calculate at certain MPG based on the size of the truck. If you traveled X amount of miles in there State, but only bought Y amount of fuel in that State, then you may owe them Z amount in fuel tax. Some States will give you a refund or credit if you buy too much fuel for the miles you traveled in there State,but they all will charge you the tax if you don't buy enough. In order to drive interstate you must register with IFTA, they are the entity charged with collecting the taxes and passing them on to each State.They issue a sticker each year to place on your truck to show you are compliant. Way better than the old days of the "Bingo Card"

 

[KickStarter6]

These taxes sound really crappy to have to pay

 

[runrunner]

These taxes sound really crappy to have to pay

You pay too,at the pump,you just don't have to wonder if bought enough in what State,so you can just buy when it's cheap.

 

[Jenny]

We have a list of what the fuel tax is in each state, we compare it to what the fuel price is with the discount to determine where specifially is a better place to fuel up. When I have discussed with friends what we had to pay for last year, it was less than a few of them paid per quarter. We havent perfected our system, but its definitely working.
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[runrunner]

We have a list of what the fuel tax is in each state, we compare it to what the fuel price is with the discount to determine where specifially is a better place to fuel up. When I have discussed with friends what we had to pay for last year, it was less than a few of them paid per quarter. We havent perfected our system, but its definitely working.
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Yep,if you run smart you can keep IFTA at bay!

 

[LDB]

One quarter I was talking to a few friends and their quarterly IFTA was anywhere from $2xx to $4xx. Mine for that quarter was $4. That's money where the IFTA revenuers reach into your pocket, remove your wallet, and take the money out. I didn't always do that well. I'd usually owe $10-$12. Either way, I didn't like having my wallet raided and certainly didn't want it to be for hundreds of dollars. Price vs. Cost. It can mean a thousand dollars a year in your pocket or out the exhaust pipe.