battlewagon
Full Access Member
2015 Tahoe, 4WD
115k miles
One day, the fuel gauge stopped displaying accurate level, was 95% full but displaying at-or-near E with low fuel light on. Topped tank off to 100%, gauge did not move.
Three days later, gauge isn't working still and it dies while driving. In the two hours it takes for a tow truck to arrive, I attempted to start it every 15-20 minutes or so. Just spins, won't crank. Once or twice it would crank but barely; hard idle, died within seconds. Towed to shop.
Next morning, shop calls and says truck started absolutely fine, idled for an hour fine. No OBDII codes, nothing. I go to pick it up the next day, truck starts perfectly. Gauge still not reading accurately.
Drive about 15 miles, dies on highway. Dies, same symptoms, will not crank at all. Gas is still good, because all in all less than 50 miles have been driven since the full tank. Towed to dealer.
Dealer calls the next day and says they added a gallon of gas and it started right up, that fuel level is low, and they drove and put 3 more gallons in and it is idling fine now, and that fuel gauge is at half tank. Their assessment is that the truck was bone dry out of gas and that adding gas was the solution.
I told them the scenarios and that the gauge isn't working. They insist it was empty and that idling after adding gas proves that, despite me telling them it starts and idles fine every time after sitting overnight. Nevermind the simple logic that if it was bone dry, adding four gallons of gas wouldn't bring the gas gauge to half. They supposedly started it and idled it the next day and it started and ran fine (as it always does after sitting overnight), so they're calling it good.
Going to go pick it up tomorrow, probably won't make it home based on the drive time before it dies again, so I'll have to pull off the road, leave it disabled on the side of the road for the night, and then go start it the next day and finish the trip because I'm $400 into it just in tow bills already and don't need anymore.
Anyways, thoughts on these symptoms? The truck dying makes me think that of fuel, spark, air, that is is fuel since the gas gauge is not properly displaying as well. l am shooting in the dark that it is a fuel sending unit.
I talked to a few really good friends, some of who are Master Techs for other brands and have been around the block. Their only concern is with just slapping a fuel pump on it, that the gas gauge not displaying properly maybe indicative of a larger system overall having issues. And as I understand it these things have a high pressure fuel pump at the engine.
Really bummed because even if I had a mechanic friend slap a fuel pump on it it doesn't really instill confidence that it has resolved the overall issue. When you don't have confidence in your car there's not much difference between a lack of confidence in a running car versus a car on jack stands in the driveway missing the engine and four wheels, since I'm not going to put my wife and family in it unless I am fairly certainly it is 100% fixed.
Thanks in advance for any input.
115k miles
One day, the fuel gauge stopped displaying accurate level, was 95% full but displaying at-or-near E with low fuel light on. Topped tank off to 100%, gauge did not move.
Three days later, gauge isn't working still and it dies while driving. In the two hours it takes for a tow truck to arrive, I attempted to start it every 15-20 minutes or so. Just spins, won't crank. Once or twice it would crank but barely; hard idle, died within seconds. Towed to shop.
Next morning, shop calls and says truck started absolutely fine, idled for an hour fine. No OBDII codes, nothing. I go to pick it up the next day, truck starts perfectly. Gauge still not reading accurately.
Drive about 15 miles, dies on highway. Dies, same symptoms, will not crank at all. Gas is still good, because all in all less than 50 miles have been driven since the full tank. Towed to dealer.
Dealer calls the next day and says they added a gallon of gas and it started right up, that fuel level is low, and they drove and put 3 more gallons in and it is idling fine now, and that fuel gauge is at half tank. Their assessment is that the truck was bone dry out of gas and that adding gas was the solution.
I told them the scenarios and that the gauge isn't working. They insist it was empty and that idling after adding gas proves that, despite me telling them it starts and idles fine every time after sitting overnight. Nevermind the simple logic that if it was bone dry, adding four gallons of gas wouldn't bring the gas gauge to half. They supposedly started it and idled it the next day and it started and ran fine (as it always does after sitting overnight), so they're calling it good.
Going to go pick it up tomorrow, probably won't make it home based on the drive time before it dies again, so I'll have to pull off the road, leave it disabled on the side of the road for the night, and then go start it the next day and finish the trip because I'm $400 into it just in tow bills already and don't need anymore.
Anyways, thoughts on these symptoms? The truck dying makes me think that of fuel, spark, air, that is is fuel since the gas gauge is not properly displaying as well. l am shooting in the dark that it is a fuel sending unit.
I talked to a few really good friends, some of who are Master Techs for other brands and have been around the block. Their only concern is with just slapping a fuel pump on it, that the gas gauge not displaying properly maybe indicative of a larger system overall having issues. And as I understand it these things have a high pressure fuel pump at the engine.
Really bummed because even if I had a mechanic friend slap a fuel pump on it it doesn't really instill confidence that it has resolved the overall issue. When you don't have confidence in your car there's not much difference between a lack of confidence in a running car versus a car on jack stands in the driveway missing the engine and four wheels, since I'm not going to put my wife and family in it unless I am fairly certainly it is 100% fixed.
Thanks in advance for any input.
