What The F@$K ????

[old mans ute]

Don't Trust It

G'day all,
Only new to this forum, anyway its good (but bad) that there are others suffering the same issue im having with the fuel guage.
The most ive ever been able to fill up is about 60 litres after getting around 550-560kms. But the guage will read 0 kms left. A bit freaky thinking your about to run out of fuel in the middle of peak hour taffic only to fill up and realise there is still heaps in the tank.
Anyway i hope Holden do fix the issue soon because the empty fuel music gives me the shits.

You don't have heaps left in the tank.... or whatever is left after you have used your 60 litres is not accessible or not usable.

I ran out of fuel and from dead empty could only get in a little over 58 litres with a considerable degree of patience.

and no end of fixing gauges, calibrations, mumbo jumbo, reflashing or whatever else is going to make that tank any physically bigger or the fuel in the tank more useable.

Holden gave me a story that the "low level" pickup line in the tank may be sitting too high so at the 15k service they saidd they would take the tank out and check.

Guess what. When I came to pick up my ute they "forgot" that they were going to take the tank out and I got another useless recalibration instead.

And a service manager who said that he would be interested to see if I could get more fuel into the tank after the recalibration. What a wank.

and for Doctor Bob, I have as much faith in this "final fix" in two weeks. Your post bears a remarkable similarity to your post in the fuel gauge thread in March 2005.

In real life, if I have a 60 litre usable tank, then the software and the displays it reports are quite accurate. But the software or the hardware is more than confused. My average consumption is around 10l/100km and when I fill up DTE is usually around 740km. On my reckoning that says 70 litres in the tank (as per specification).... and I have only 58-60 max usable litres of fuel.

Holden have won with me. They have worn down my resolve with their spectacular inactivity, incompetence and arrogance over this issue even to the stage of Customer Service asking me if I know how to use a petrol pump and also telling me that I was the first they had heard of problems with VZ fuel gauges (in Feb 2005).


I really don't think Holden cares.

 

[steane]

There is light at the end of the tunnel, old mans ute. Over the next ten years the Commodore will die a slow death due to the ever increasing price of petrol. If it is still around, it will be made in China so we can look forward to a better quality product.
The person you spoke to in the customer care centre will be out of work and your call (doubtfull that you will need to make one) will be routed through to a call centre in India. They will still have no idea but not everything can be perfect.
I'm sure the mid size Commodore evolution series built by "Shanghai Motors GM" China in 2012 will have a fuel gauge that works.
It will be cheaper too, built with pride by cheap, proud Chinese factory workers and a few robots of course, which will mean all of the previously overpaid and now out of work Australian's will still be able to afford one and get to the Footy on the weekend.
See, everones a winner!!!

 

[Sammy]

i find some of these comments quite interesting, as i have no issues with my utes fuel guage .... sure it says im out of fuel when i've only used about 60 ltrs, however it has always been consistant.

they need to go back to the fuel guages i had in my EK Wagon, sure it bounced over bumps but when that thing got to below the E you were certain to run out of fuel in the next 5-10 km's

 

[Doctor Bob]

old mans ute
i can only report the advice given by Holdens Engineering department, they have been going at this problem flat out for ages now & as far as all are concerned it will be fixed.
if this post sounds similar im sorry but people ask for advice & i give it.
The problem as i explained in the other thread is tied up with a mismatch in components, the fix for one car did not work on all, that is why it is taking so long, they need to make sure it is right this time, i assure you they are aware of its importance & if you are not happy with the dealer who forgot to check your tank out, change, its simple really.

Rob

 

[Aryashahin]

i had similar problems ..and I did discuss the problem with the holden service centre and they said its completly normal ... after refulling there is some gas buildup that takes a while to settle and also hot weather and heat from car can contribute to it ... so it causes in acurate reading... which i think is dumb...

 

[old mans ute]

Advice appreciated

old mans ute
i can only report the advice given by Holdens Engineering department, they have been going at this problem flat out for ages now & as far as all are concerned it will be fixed.
if this post sounds similar im sorry but people ask for advice & i give it.
The problem as i explained in the other thread is tied up with a mismatch in components, the fix for one car did not work on all, that is why it is taking so long, they need to make sure it is right this time, i assure you they are aware of its importance & if you are not happy with the dealer who forgot to check your tank out, change, its simple really.

Rob

Rob. Your advice is appreciated and it lines up with the ongoing litany of excuses and fixes that I and many others with the same problem have been given from our dealers and Holden Customer Service over the past 12 months.

For Holdens Customer Service to tell me there is no ongoing or widespread problem with the fuel gauge .. and for the guys at my local dealers and at another dealer to show me the Holden service Bulletin with a purported problem fix, along with at least two software "upgrades" says that this is systemic crap... The dealer was allowed 12 minutes warranty time on the fuel gauge and they have finally been told not to do any more "interim" fixes.

I have no doubt Holden are aware of the problem... just a shame that they had such big problems in admitting it. They must have Amanda Vanstone in charge of their PR.

 

[Muzzak]

G'day,

I've recently acquired a CV8Z Monaro. I have only had it for a week and filled it up twice since. Strange situation both times. When I parked the car - the analogue gauge showed 1/4 tank full. Upon my return to the car a while later, started it up – and lo and behold the gauge is showing absolutely no fuel! And this is no hill parking, it’s perfectly level ground.

Both times - thinking I had more than enough fuel to go on about my business for considerable more K’s, I ended up in mad panic flogging it down to the closest servo to give it some juice !

Each occasion I had to put in ~60 litters. I cannot give a concrete km’s travelled from each tank as I’ve been messing around with the dash computer inadvertently resetting my trip data. This time I will start applying some science to this phenomenon.

All in all – it’s quite safe to say – Holden have done jack **** to fix this – even cars made a few weeks ago are displaying fuel gauge issues you’d only perhaps attribute to Russian made Lada’s. And all this in $60k car +on-road costs. For shame. Hopefully this racket is busted wide open if – because there is going to be hell to pay !!!


Muz

 

[kilmo]

Well here is another theory to add to the pile already, although I tend to beleive this a little more than others....I was in today for a "software" fix, but before anything happened I was asked whether it was a ute or sedan.....funnily enough if I had said sedan, it was going to be a unit sender problem, but as I said ute, the service manager stopped, turned around looked me deep in the eyes (for a second I thought he was going to come onto me...lol) then with a deep breath he explained that the fuel tank was poorly designed and as such there is a large amount ( anywhere in the vicinity of 15 - 20 L ) of unusable fuel due to the fuel tank shape.

Dunno if thats been said before.....but that was the reason behind the utes

Cheers,
Kilmo

 

[old mans ute]

Well here is another theory to add to the pile already, although I tend to beleive this a little more than others....I was in today for a "software" fix, but before anything happened I was asked whether it was a ute or sedan.....funnily enough if I had said sedan, it was going to be a unit sender problem, but as I said ute, the service manager stopped, turned around looked me deep in the eyes (for a second I thought he was going to come onto me...lol) then with a deep breath he explained that the fuel tank was poorly designed and as such there is a large amount ( anywhere in the vicinity of 15 - 20 L ) of unusable fuel due to the fuel tank shape.

Dunno if thats been said before.....but that was the reason behind the utes

Cheers,
Kilmo

My experience seems to give support to your theory. Filling up after running out of fuel took only a touch over 58 litres and that was with the patience of Job. Could also explain why the dealer "forgot" to remove my tank and check it for a "mislocated fuel pickup line".

Holden engineers, dealers and service guys should take up poker. How sorry do you feel for them when they probably know the truth but can't tell you. They even tell lies to Doctor Bob with a straight face so they will all be sent to hell for eternal damnation.

No end of bloody software fixes is going to get any more litres into my tank. I do happen to turn oiff my ignition when I am filling up the car just to make sure none of those brilliant Holden engineering guys have a magic series of solenoids, baffles and gates in there trying to protect the planet and stop me putting less fuel in the tank than its stated capacity.

Penny pinching is what it's all about. You can't tell me that the preproduction VZ ute tanks were never tested for usable capacity and that it came as a big surprise when the mug ute buyers started to complain about their fuel gauges and petrol tanks. **** design and who cares is closer to the truth.

The fuel gauge issue is no for me the minor issue. The fuel used and average consumption is incrediby accurate.... less than a middy out in a tank of fuel ...so its an easy calculation.... but I don't want to start to panic looking for a petrol station once I have used 50 litres. I do lots of country kays and I would like just a little more usable fuel.