Ever wonder how far you can push it past empty before you run out of gas?

[progmom]

Well....I found out this morning. Surprisingly not as far as I thought. x(

[miss_american_pie]

1. Uh-oh

Were you anywhere near a gas station?

[progmom]

3. My very sweet soon-to-be-ex-husband was

...and he brought me enough gas to get me to the gas station.

Thank god for cell phones. :)

[anarch]

2. it's pretty much never quite as far as you think

Not really the most fun way to start a day, is it? Hope you didn't have to walk too far or anything....

[progmom]

4. It could have been so much worse.

But yeah - not a great way to start a day.

[billyskank]

5. I used to have a friend who was expert at running out of gas

He would do it about once a week on average. :dunce:

:hi: progmom!

[progmom]

6. oh dear!

My excuse is that this is a brand new car for me...and apparently there is like no cushion after you hit empty. :(

How are you today? :hi:

[billyskank]

12. I am quite well thanks!

:loveya:

[progmom]

27. well yay

I'm glad to hear it. Cold all gone?

[billyskank]

28. Yes all gone!

:)

[Hugin]

7. Newer cars have no buffer...

When it says "E" it means "E"!

In my 1977 Buick I can drive around for days with the needle firmly
pegged.

Be careful!

[progmom]

8. well...at least i know exactly how many city miles i can get on my car...

...before i run out of gas. :D

[ET Awful]

40. Not true. My '01 Nissan had at least another 30 miles in the tank

when it said E. My new Element has another 4 gallons (give or take) after it hits E (I know this because it has approximately a 15 gallon tank and after it hit E it took me 11.2 gallons to fill it completely.

[texas1928]

9. When it says E...

It means EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

[progmom]

10. now where were you yesterday?

this information would have been more helpful then. ;)

[texas1928]

53. My PSA for yesterday was about what to do if you stab someone...

with a pencil in the ass.

[progmom]

54. oh

yeah - i would find that information slightly less useful. ;)

[texas1928]

56. I posted a new PSA just for you today.

:P

[Hugin]

63. PSA?

That's a new one on me. :shrug:

[texas1928]

65. Public Service Announcement.

SHEEESH

:eyes:

[miss_american_pie]

68. My car is empty when it says 1/2.

:shrug:

[texas1928]

72. You need to have someone look at your tank, or sensor.

something is wrong there.

[Magrittes Pipe]

11. .

[progmom]

25. .

[In_The_Wind]

13. I was wondering the very same thing on my way home from the vet.

I'm sorry you didn't make it to the station before you ran out.

Since I had Frodo with me, I'm glad I did. :hi:

[progmom]

20. How's Frodo?

And how are you? Sounds like the NY weekend was fun. :hi:

[In_The_Wind]

36. Frodo is great. It was nothing, I overreacted.

Things were going smoothly for the past few weeks. But now my house mates mom isn't doing very well. Her transplant coordinator wants Edna to be transported to a different hospital today. We've found a new home for her parrot so Paulie will be moving sometime this week.




The weekend in NYC really was great but it was the final decision maker for me about my cross country trip. I'm spoiled. I'm driving. I need my stuff. I'm looking forward to warm weather and open roads. The only down side is leaving Frodo at home where she will be safe and well cared for.

[meegbear]

14. I'll be finding out this afternoon ...

looking forward to it (not).

[progmom]

26. oh dear

good luck. :hug:

[meegbear]

50. I chickened out ...

went out at lunch and threw a few dollars in. Not up for experimenting today.

[GirlinContempt]

15. Ick

:hug:

[billyskank]

19. Hey GinC

:hi:

I estimate you got at least 24 non-kick posts. :)

[GirlinContempt]

24. *laugh*

Swag wins ;)

[EstimatedProphet]

16. When you get the chance clean out your carburetor

Or at the very least run some gas treatment through your tank. When you run your tank empty you tend to pick up sludge from the bottom of the tank that will gum up the works pretty bad.

I used to do the same thing all the time because I had a broken gauge on my old truck. Get some STP gas treatment, and that will help a lot.

[progmom]

18. I have less than 1,000 miles on this car

Do you think I should still do that?

[billyskank]

21. Your car doesn't have a carburettor

Ever since fuel injection became standard no car has one. :)

[EstimatedProphet]

31. True, which is why I said run gas treatment maybe.

I didn't know whether she had an old car or not.

Sorry about not being clear.

[Hugin]

22. No problem with sludge but a little injector cleaner and lube won't hurt.

:thumbsup:

[EstimatedProphet]

34. Right

At that age there probably won't be sludge. Still, it won't hurt.

[EstimatedProphet]

32. Yes

It will help clean out any buildup that may have occurred. I'm not saying there is any, because I don't know. But it wouldn't hurt, and a bottle is only a few bucks.

[progmom]

35. cool, thanks EP!

and hugs to the Prophetess. how is she doing this week?

[EstimatedProphet]

37. She actually slept through the night in bed!

First time in 2 weeks she hasn't had to get up in the middle of the night. She's been getting up and moving to the couch for the extra support.

Unfortunately she talked all night long too, so I didn't sleep any...

[progmom]

47. well yay for her!!

and uh....that sucks for you. :hug:

[taterguy]

17. I do that on my bicycle

I go for distance rides just to see how far I can go. It's even more fun without a cell phone, facing the prospect of keeling over from exhaustion far from home.

[progmom]

23. the trick is to turn back around when you feel halfway ready to keel over

;)

[taterguy]

29. not that simple

If you stop at the exact halfway point, you'll have the same distance to cover but you won't have as much energy to pedal that distance. That's what makes it so much fun, in a perverse sort of way. (Can you tell I'm listening to Husker Du's "Dead Set on Destruction" as I type this)

[progmom]

30. well i was kind of being silly

but i know what you mean.


:hi:

[XNASA]

33. I assume we're talking about automobiles.

Because if we're not, then I always run out of gas way before I think I'm on empty.

[progmom]

44. well yes - that happens way more often

but i was talking about cars this time. :hi:

[THUNDER HANDS]

38. if you live in New York/Long Island you might understand this

I once drove from the Triboro brige to Garden City with my tank on less than empty. I was so scared, but I made it to a gas station.

[progmom]

48. yikes - glad you made it

:hug:

[Orsino]

39. Not enough to put it to the test.

You have my sympathy. Glad you made it back to your Internet(s) connection.

[Heidi]

41. Oh, man, that's rough, progmom.

:hug:

I found out when I was 16, and ran out of gas on the Shawnee Bypass bridge during rush-hour traffic in Muskogee, Oklahoma. I was on my way to work to pick up my paycheck, thinking I could just squeeze an extra seven miles out of my fumes, cash my check and fill up. I misunderestimated. Fortunately, my dad was on his way home from work and saw me stranded on the bridge. He gave me a couple of bucks and a gas can, and pointed me toward the gas station a few hundred yards away. "I'll watch your car until you get back," he said. I never again ran out of gas. :blush:

[Misunderestimator]

42. That's some tough love! LOL

[Heidi]

43. Yes, but it was good for me.

I wasn't allowed to have my oil changed at a garage until I could demonstrate to my dad that I could do it myself, and he made sure I knew how to drive a standard before teaching me to drive an automatic. His had two parenting theories:
- "If you can drive a standard, you can drive _anything_."
- "If you know how to do things yourself, you're less likely to be taken advantage of."
- "Don't talk to people in _your_ language. Talk to people in the language they _understand_."

I thought he was a real hardass when I was a teenager, but he was right about all of those things. :blush:

[Misunderestimator]

45. My dad did the same things.

That part of his parenting I agree with. He was a bit too harsh, but that's neither here nor there.

[Heidi]

61. It was the same with me.

But I understand _why_ my dad was the way he _was_ (he mellowed out a lot in his late 50s). He's one of the most liberal people I've ever met, and he wanted me to be able to live independently, and _own_ my life, rather than feel grateful to someone else (like a boyfriend or husband) for anything good that happened to me. I know this because my dad was 26, and just returned from his Army tour of Vietnam, in 1969, when he and mom adopted me. I was six years old and a "handful," and the whole spectar of _life_ must have been overwhelming to him. When he was 26, my dad had learned through a war that you can't depend on _anyone_, even your government, to look out for you. So, he was harsh. That's true.

:hug:

[Misunderestimator]

64. Wow... Lots of similarities there.

My dad was a pre-teen and teenager during WWII in Holland and he's also mellowed out tremendously in his later years. We didn't really talk for years after I left home, I only went to visit to see my Mom. He had a lot of stress with four kids and an invalid wife. After she died, he changed a lot, and only in the last 10 years have we grown close.

Also... when I told my father I was gay when I was 19, he said that he was glad that I would never depend on a man! :o

:hug:

[Heidi]

67. Oh, I've gotta tell ya:

When I was a sophomore in high school, a bunch of bitchy girls decided I was a lesbian and were whispering all around about it. I don't remember being particular bothered by it, except for the fact that I'd had _no_ sexual experience and hadn't proven myself to be _anything_. When I told my dad, he said, "What the hell? Lesbian is the _worst_ thing they could come up with? Well, that's just like accusing someone of being smart, or having red hair or green eyes. Not too creative, are they?" :D

Love to you, gf. :hug:

[Misunderestimator]

69. Ha!

I love that! And love right back atcha! :hug:

[XemaSab]

46. That SUCKS!

I hope you were in town.

Last year I was leaving a DFA meeting in Fresno and the car was pretty low, but Fresno scares me and I figured there were a few gas stations between Fresno and Oakhurst to get me by.

They were all closed!

The gas light went on about 5 miles out of Fresno, and I drove about 40 miles through the mountains at 11 PM with the light on before I found a gas station. I was TERRIFIED. Just TERRIFIED.

But I finally made it to a gas station and got, like, 10.859 gallons right there and then. :P

[progmom]

55. yes - i've had that experience before too

fwiw - on Sunday nights, if you're driving in New York State, there are no open gas stations between Jamestown and Bath.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

49. My dear progmom!

Oh, I am so sorry about your misadventure.......

I have never run out of gas......but my husband did......

On the San Francisco-Bay Bridge.....

He only did it once, needless to say. In his favor, I must say that the car's gas gauge was inaccurate in the extreme!

I've actually driven with the needle on the OTHER side of empty!

I cannot tell you how much I'm looking forward to my new Camry Hybrid....

FORTY miles to the gallon, here I come! :woohoo:


:loveya: :hug:

[progmom]

57. Oh dear... the San Francisco-Bay Bridge!

:scared:


So when do you get your new car?

[CaliforniaPeggy]

73. NO idea! Alas.......

The dealer was supposed to get one in around St. Valentine's Day...

And IT hasn't come yet......

So, no idea! Hopefully this spring sometime......

Believe me, you WILL hear (and see) all about it!


:loveya: :hug:

[1gobluedem]

51. My secret

Never let the gauge go below 1/4 tank. If it does, let someone else drive it so he/she will run out of gas.....:evilgrin:

Doesn't your new car have the little light and bing-bong thingy that tells you when you're down to a gallon? When we had the PT Cruiser in New England, it had a little gas pump and light and bing-bonged all through the Adirondack National Forest while my mother helpfully told me that she didn't think we'd find a gas station at any exit we passed. We cruised into Ticonderoga, NY with about a teaspoonful left. And paid $1.73/gal which we found outrageous at the time.

I know you don't have a cruiser anymore but it's still a Chrylser make...

[progmom]

58. it pings....

....but uh...I'm used to a little more driving time after the ping than the Jeep gives me. :(

[1gobluedem]

59. Well, see, that's the problem

It needs to bing-bong.

[cassandra uprising]

52. Ouch, that's no fun.

How far did you end up walking?

[progmom]

60. i was incredibly lucky

the situation could have been so much worse, since the last driving i did before i ran out of gas was in my pajamas. but this time i was fully dressed and not far from the house. :)

[Montauk6]

62. Well with TODAY'S prices,

Ever wonder how far you can let it run lower than F before worrying about running out of cash???

[RevolutionaryActs]

66. That's awful.

I'm sorry.








































No really I am sorry. :( :hug:

[politicat]

70. 83 miles from the point when the gas pump light comes on....

I never want to do that again....

I was driving from Colorado to Texas, and driving at night. I'd planned to get gas at Salina, and had bypassed Colby at half a tank. I get 40 miles to the gallon (sometimes more on highway) so I thought I'd be okay.

Gas pump light came on about 75 miles outside of Salina, and believe me, there is NOTHING out there at midnight. It's as dark as the inside of Dick Cheney's pacemaker, and the only thing on the roads were trucks and beaters. No cell service, so even roadside assistance wasn't going to do me any good (and I had roadside assistance.)

I made it to the first truckstop on the west side of Salina, and I may be an atheist, but I was praying to the car god that night....

[SOteric]

71. My sympathies, but no. Not anymore.

I wondered that once about 7 years ago. I have not been even remotely curious since then. Now I always keep it no lower than a quarter of a tank.