When do you fill up your car?

[kakeya97]

Total wrong timing for this post I know. Putting the whole panic buying fuel thing aside. Before all this did you fill up when low or like to keep topped? The whole fuel thing has sparked this conversation with Dp though.

I have major anxiety about my diesel level getting too low. If it starts getting under half a tank I'll fill up, likely before it hits half a tank though. I can't relax until it's done. I just like the comfort on having it. I live rurally. Closest station is 8 miles away and shuts at 6pm!! Longer opening and 24 hours stations are much further afield. There aren't many stations on my most widely used routes so tend to have to make a special journey for it. I like to be prepared at all times. I have two disabled children and I like to fill up so I don't have to stop with them to get it.

Dp will literally run his work vehicle on fumes for a few days before topping up - even though he works right by a station - he often takes my (family) car to work to fill up if I'm stuck too. Most of my friends are the same - they let it get really low first.

I'm all good for now and I can assure you I am not panic buying fuel. I put some in middle of last week before it all kicked off and still got 3/4 of a tank full which should last a while. I think it will really bother me when it gets under a 1/4 a tank but it rarely gets that low.

Do you let it get right down or do you keep on top of it?

Genuinely curious that's all 😅

Between a quarter to half a tank full.
The nearest hospital is a half tank return journey, and I have had to make many return trips in the past few years.

Another one living life on the edge here, I hate doing it so do it when I have to when the light is on.
I also rarely put more than £20 in, unless I'm doing a long drive. Which I am now realising is not the norm. I just hate spending loads on diesel at one time.

Unless I'm about to go on a long journey, somewhere between a quarter of a tank and about 10 milesworth of fuel left. But I'm only 2 miles from a petrol station that also happens to be the cheapest in the area, so in normal times letting it get that low is no big deal. It's a Tesco station, so I just do it when I go shopping. It once got so low that I got 58 litres into it, and the manual says the tank capacity is 55 litres. I may literally have been running on fumes!

If I'm doing a long motorway trip, I brim it before I go, because fuel is so bloody expensive at motorway services. I get about 320 miles on a tankful.

I hate filling the car. The only car-related thing I hate more is checking the tyres and putting air in.

Rarely less than quarter and I will top it up to full at any time if I know I am going somewhere so that I don’t need to worry about finding a petrol station.

I never look at the display on the pump. It’s too depressing. I just stick the nozzle in and wait for it to stop.

my diesel car does about 500 miles to the gallon.

What is it? I think I need one.

When very low or when the light comes on, usually once a month around payday, don't drive that much.

I always used to fill up as soon as it hit the ¼ tank mark, but over the last 4 or 5 years I've become a bit kamikaze and don't fill up until the red light comes on (says 50 miles left), and even then I still don't usually do it for a few trips and it often gets down to under 20 miles (no idea how accurate it's estimate is).

I always fill right up when I do finally get petrol though. Think it wasn't far off 3 figures to fill up last time I did, so goodness knows what it would cost now as they all seen to have put their prices up.
My car tells me I get around 450 miles from a full tank.

There has been quite a lot of complaining about people filling up their tanks, but I always fill up completely. I can't be doing with multiple top ups. Run it down, and fill it up. I've always done that. I was quite shocked to see the reported average fill is only £25.

I can't understand how some people have got away with only filling up a couple of quid, I thought most garages had a minimum?

What's the minimum and maximum they're allowing as I've not been yet

My ex would only fill halfway in case the car got nicked and he'd wasted all that money 🤔.

I always fill right up. It is a strange stat the the average spend is so low as I have a tiny car and it still costs me £37 for a full tank.

@Etulosba

my diesel car does about 500 miles to the gallon.

What is it? I think I need one.

Whoops! To the tank, not gallon....

Between quarter to half full depending on what I'm doing (e.g. long journeys). I'll never go below a quarter unless absolutely necessary

I also live rurally and not very close to a (not hugely inflated price) petrol station, so when I'm between 1/3 and 1/4 tank full, I'm starting to think about when I will next be on a journey that will take me near a supermarket petrol station, and planning accordingly,. I was very angsty at the beginning of the week when I only had a 1/4 tank and was unable to find anywhere for a couple of days. My kids go to school in the city where I work - 13 miles from home, no other transport - so running out of fuel would have meant them not being able to get to school (I can WFH).

@SuperstarDog

I used to fill up when it got down to 1/4 full ish, partner would wait for light to come on. We have electric cars now and very glad of them at the moment.

I have just ordered an Audi E-tron. 16 months wait though!

I am not reading all 14 pages so apologies if this has been said before - but its not sensible to run a car on low fuel, affects the fuel pump
www.compare.com/ways-to-save/vehicle/driving-on-empty

I usually fill up the whole tank when the light/alarm comes on

Really don't get the top up approach, unless you've got a long journey planned of course

I'd prefer to make as few visits to the petrol station as possible!

This was pre fuel crisis and still stands now

I'm the same as you OP get stressed and agitated if not between half full and full

I live rurally and am sole source of transport for my youngest for whom I do three hours of driving to get her to her school each day.

We are relocating soon as realised how unsustainable and rubbish this set-up is with me or the car (or fuel supplies) as single points of failure.

Thinking of going electric or hybrid for next car as I'm sure many folks are now after disrupted fuel supplies.

Always fill up to brim on payday then may need to put extra £10-15 to tide me over to next pay day, but only put this in when light comes on.
Slight issue this week that payday was on Monday and nowhere had fuel so I didn't bother driving round. Luckily I didn't have to leave the house. Managed to put £30 in today ready for back to work tomorrow. Will need to do another top up in about 3 weeks since I was unable to get a full tank.

My light comes on when I have around 50 miles left in the tank. Then I fill up. I also fill up before going on a trip of over 100 miles.

My light came on on the way to work this morning but no fuel available around here.

Normally just before the red light comes on, then fill it to the top. Sometimes before a long journey if we're going somewhere where petrol stations are few and far between (we live in a city so much easier/cheaper to stop on the way to the motorway than later in the journey).

On pay day I feel the tank up usually 80-90 quids worth. But if I've done a lot of mileage that month sometimes need to put an extra 20 or 30 in but this is when I'm well in the red by the time I got to the station the other week there was 5 miles left

When the light comes on & we're down to about 20 miles left.
We nearly ran dry on Saturday as had to go to 5 stations before we could get petrol. If the last one hadn't had petrol we'd have had to park the car until all this fiasco ended.

I've always kept my tank filled, it is almost never below a quarter of a tank.

Very very occasionally the light comes on and I mean less than ten times in 30 years of driving since I have been driving cars where the petrol light and gauge work properly .

However once in my 20s I had an old fiat Panda where the fuel light did come on randomly but I ignored it once too often end actually stopped in the middle of traffic because I ran out of fuel . The gauge did look low but to my eyes it didn't seem to be completely empty