Low fuel light

[SamiS]

After running the car into the red, i've noticed the light doesnt work, warning me of low petrol.

I decided to let it go as low as possible (with some backup in the boot). I too it to past the white line and still no light (or breakdown!)

Can it be changed? I've had the dash out and can only see the glow light on that side.

[LeonNewton]

when i changed the tank on my old 318i i drove around till the light came on and then into the garadge to do the work. took moor then a full bucket of petrall out the old tank. so even wen the light is on you have ages till you runnout. keep going

[leeparkes]

You can test the light by undoing and lifting the the sensor in the tank with the ignition on.

[Ziggy]

How close was it to empty (ie how much did it take to fill it up) after you ran it 'as low as possible'?

[SamiS]

I didnt put a full tank in last time, it was £20. Last £20 lastest 170 miles.

Lee, is there a guide to that? I took the covers off, and there was 2 cables. Didnt know what one to undo the bolts for!

[asmith88]

170 miles!! you must have been close to the bottom, red light for cert should hav came on

[SamiS]

It is a 316i, not the iS as in my sig. But wasnt bad going!

[tomtomiS]

the e30 gets stupidly low before the light comes on! ive had enough e30's to say with confidence the light never fails, just keep driving!

[tomtomiS]

plus when the light is on you have roughly 40 miles in which to find a petrol station / or the money to put fuel in it in the first place!

[asmith88]

fair enough going by my isthought it wasa wee bit high, i would get 120-130 on 20 quid

[SamiS]

Is the light linked to the needle? It went through the red, out the other side and past the E!

[tomtomiS]

it does go past empty on mine before the light comes on. sometimes it blinks on when its on the red but only occasionally

[sohood]

the light isnt linked to the needle, the petrol gauge on mine, the needle shows half a tank when the light comes on, but i know it is near empty at this stage and not half as it shows!

[Brianmoooore]

The light is supposed to come on NOT when the needle gets to the red painted bit, but when it's over the piece that actually lights up. At this point, there should be around 5 - 6 litres of usable fuel left.
There have been a lot of members post on here that their light doesn't work, but I think the number of those who were right can easily be counted on the fingers of one hand, with several digits left over.
Push it as far as you dare, then fill the tank and see how much it will hold. Capacity is 55 litres.

[SamiS]

the light isnt linked to the needle, the petrol gauge on mine, the needle shows half a tank when the light comes on, but i know it is near empty at this stage and not half as it shows!

I've read this is due to a dodgy sensor, as the tank is in 2 halfs. Might be worth looking into it.

Thanks Brian. I think i'll run it until it conks out and see if it comes on!

[Brianmoooore]

the light isnt linked to the needle, the petrol gauge on mine, the needle shows half a tank when the light comes on, but i know it is near empty at this stage and not half as it shows!

If this car has always behaved like this, it could be because the fuel gauge is not the correct one for the tank. (One or the other changed at some time?)
If it has suddenly started doing it, then one of the fuel level sensors is dud. Probably the LH one.

[SamiS]

Braved it last night! Needle was on the R line, done about 15 more miles and the light came on. So about 40 miles ones it comes on?

[Brianmoooore]

Once again, BMW's engineering and design have been proved infallible. Have faith!!

[fastdiablo]

Once again, BMW's engineering and design have been proved infallible. Have faith!!

LOL . . . I sometimes run mine quite low to see what sort of consumption i'm getting . . . . You can watch the needle and it gets lower and lower, down past the bottom line and still no light but I still keep driving . . .

It feels like a sort of a test of faith from Munich to see if you have can run it till the light comes on and not go fleeing in fear like a girl to the nearest petrol station to refill

[Morat]

My light comes on with annoying regularity

[LeonNewton]

^ love it. and yay the light works

[gudgeon]

I always run mine to the light. I'm pretty glad to hear I still have at least 5L left, thanks Brian.
The furthest I've gone with the light on is about 15 miles and that made me pretty nervous.

On mine the needle randomly waves about, often indicating full, especially when nearly empty.
I always wait for the light to come on and then reset the mileage immediately, so I always know what mileage I'm getting.

[Retrespect]

Ah that's good !! I thought my light did not work and got worried I was out of petrol. I only bought mine last week!!