Hello everybody, ever since I purchased my 97 Camaro the gas gauge has been reading approximately 1/3 over the actual amount that's in the tank. It hasn't really bothered me much as long as I don't let the needle get below half. But its time to get it fixed but I figured i would check here just in case its a simple fix rather than taking it somewhere and paying for labor to remove the entire tank. Any help would be great! Thank you!

 

It's either the gauge itself, or the sending unit in the tank. Most likely, it's the sending unit. If it were my car, I'd put up with it and just know where the "new" empty line is. To me, it's not worth all the expense of having it fixed. Paying to have a new sending unit installed isn't going to be a cheap repair, and then you might as well replace the pump while they're in there too.

 

If you're talking about the needle going past the full mark after filling up, that's normal. It's the wedge shape of the fuel tank. The only way to fix it would be to install a fuel cell in the back.

 

Are you saying the car will run out of gas when it reads 1/3 tank? or are you saying that when you are at 1/2 tank mark you only have about 3 gallons left and it runs to empty real fast. The first is a problem, the second is normal and not really fixable as stated above.

 

I think he's saying that the gauge is reading 1/3 more than he actually has in the tank, which would be normal.

 

Mine is 1/4 off. In fact while it was in the shop a few weeks ago, they ran it a "needles width" past 1/4 mark and it ran completely out. I just always consider it on 1/4 when it's nearly 1/2 mark and fill it back up.

 

I mean that the needle reads approximately 1/3 of a tank more than what is actually in the tank. The previous owner told me about the problem and it personally doesnt bother me that much but i didnt know if it could be a cheap repair. If its pricey, ill just deal with it.

For those that dont understand what im saying, for example: When my gas gauge needle reads 3/4 of a tank, the actual amount in the gas tank is a 1/3 less than 3/4!

 

So yes, when my tank reads 1/3 then I am out of gas. I havent let the gas get that low just because i dont want to run out driving but that is my problem.

 

When I get to 1/2 tank I have about 3 gallons left. Which would be about 1/5th of a 15 gallon tank. If your problem is that then you a part of a large club, We call ourselfs 4th gen owner, we have jackets, they don't match but ,,,,,

Your car has been like that since new. If you look at the way the fuel tank is designed and how the sending unit works there there is really no way to fix this.

 

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