Fuel Range

[cjmitchell5]

Here's a topic that will be argued to death. I'm just looking to get a general consensus about what would be an ideal target fuel range between what you have in tanks plus what you're carrying. It's nice to plan for how many extra fuel cans do you need. Yes, I realize that this number can vary depending on hundreds of factors such as terrain, speed, and distance between refueling points and keep in mind a fuller tank is usually considered safer.

I'm thinking 1000 miles isn't out of the question. I have one truck w/ a 38gallon tank that gets a minimum of 14mpg (usually closer to 17or18) so it has a minimum range of 532miles. The other truck has a 12gallon tank that gets a minimum of 11mpg so it has a minimum range of 132miles . I don't trust gas gauges and usually refuel by mileage.

There's a saying in aviation that the only time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.

 

[JackW]

For travel in the USA I think a range of around 500 miles is sufficient. With my diesel Defender (14.5 gallon tank) I can get around 300-320 miles on the main fuel tank. If I carry a 5 gallon jerry can that adds around 100-120 miles range.

So two additional 5 gallon fuel cans will take me about 500 miles.

 

[Overland Hadley]

There's a saying in aviation that the only time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.

I have decided to carry two 20L cans. That brings me into the 500 mile range.

I would carry more fuel if I could, but for me 2 cans seems to be the best compromise.

 

[BIGdaddy]

i think a main tank and 1-2 cans is a pretty good range, with most suvs getting between 10-20 mpg offroad.

I mean, if you know that you're going a certain distance w/o fuel, definitely carry what you need, but man, those cans of fuel weigh a ton, and with the fuel availablity in the U.S, I just don't see a need for 5-10 cans of fuel.

 

[Martinjmpr]

For some reason the number of 400 has always seemed "right" to me for base range (that is, without fuel cans or other auxiliary fuel supplies.) Probably because the first vehicle I ever put serious miles on, a 1984 Mazda B2000 pickup, could go that far on an 11 gallon tank (do the math -that's awesome MPG!)

My '90 Montero had a big 24 gallon tank and could also go around 400-425 miles, though a couple of times I think I even pushed it close to 450.

My '99 Ranger seemed to be able to hit 400 on a regular basis with a 19.5 gallon tank, at least on the highway.

My '99 Outback only had a 15.9 gallon tank but could also hit 400 miles, but just barely and I "pushed the envelope" a few times trying to get it to 400.

One of the few disappointments I have with the Taco is that the 18.5 gallon tank IMO is too small for a vehicle of this type and size. My 2wd Ranger had a 19.5 gallon tank, so I can't figure out why a 4wd truck would have such a small tank. Around town I usually get the "low fuel" warning light around 300 miles and even on the highway I can't usually get past 350 before it comes on.

Unfortunately the price for an upsized tank is north of $1000 (side note: Is it just me or does it seem like every serious mod costs at least $1000? Decent lift: $1000. ARB Locker: $1000. ARB bumper, $700 to buy and probably another $200 or so if I want someone else to install it, etc.)

Anyway, when I went to Canyonlands in March, I was a little concerned about fuel because I knew once I left Green River, I wouldn't hit any gas stations for at least a couple of days. So I bought a 5 gallon gas can for $15 and filled it up. Since I didn't like the idea of a full gas tank sloshing around in the back of the truck, I only kept the gas in there until I had run the tank about 1/4 of the way down and then I put it in the tank immediately. My only other issue then was what to do with the smelly gas can, and my solution was to wrap it in a heavy plastic bag so it wouldn't stink up the back of the truck, which was also my sleeping compartment.

I think the obvious answer here is that it depends on where you are going and what the projected fuel situation will be. Remember that not only is fuel a fire hazard, it's also heavy for its size.

I cringe when I see off-road rigs with 4 or 5 gas cans up on the roof rack - that's about 200lb of weight if full and it seems to me to be an unneccessarily risky way to carry extra fuel. Yes, I know it looks salty, but I think having that much weight up there is a bad idea. Better to put the lightweight things up high and keep the heavy stuff as low as possible.

 

[Martinjmpr]

BTW, I don't think it's an accident that the Montero had a much larger thank than my Taco. The Montero was designed for the world market and was sold in places where gas stations are not that easy to find. OTOH the Taco is sold only in North America and Toyota probably figured they could save money by putting a smaller tank on the truck and 99% of the drivers would never notice because they would rarely leave the city limits or interstate highways. A logical, if somewhat cynical, decision. LCs, Monteros and Land Rovers (I presume) all have bigger tanks because they are more "serious" off road vehicles.

 

[eugene]

I started out with a 1988 4x4 s10 which had a 20 gallon tank and I could run 500 miles. Made the mistake of buying a minivan (front wheel drive) with a 16 gallon tank that would just make it over 350. Then my full size truck with a 26 gallon that could fo 450-500. The minivan was a pain, everywhere we went we seemed like we had to top off the tank before we could come home, just too small of a tank. Since modifying my truck now its dropped into the 350-400 mile range.
I'm wondering what the legality is of carrying extra cans on road or do you have to wait and fill them at the entrance to the trail?

 

[shortymav]

Stock 135l Diesel main tank 95 sub 40l
average fuel consumption 10-12l per hundred km

safe range with buffer 1000km

plenty if i need to add one jerrycan

 

[roscoFJ73]

I have 2 x 90 litre factory tanks in my 75 series landcruiser.
180 litres of diesel gives me a theoretical range of 1400 klms on the highway.
Not bad for stock vehicle

 

[mauricio_28]

It depends, among others, on whether you're running petrol/gas or diesel as consumption of the former, in my experience, is more sensitive to load, gradient and altitude.

 

[roscoFJ73]

It depends, among others, on whether you're running petrol/gas or diesel as consumption of the former, in my experience, is more sensitive to load, gradient and altitude.

Although the diesels are more economical on the road ,they really shine offroad when you are crawling along for hours in low range.
The diesels really sip the fuel in those conditions.

Refuelling with diesel in remote locations is so much safer then petrol

 

[ntsqd]

In looking at the numbers for a rig a number of years ago I found that for me personally in that vehicle the magic number was 35 gallons. In a 2700 lbs vehicle any more than that started to proportionately weigh too much and would have had a large impact on range due to weight.

I've since looked at this again for my '84 yota mini and for my Suburban. In the case of the former 35 gallons is again just about the magic number. Offers about a 600 mile range without weighing too much. The Sub currently has a stock 40 gallon tank and there have been a couple times that I wished that I'd gone through with installing the 50 gallon tank that I have for it.

I'm not very interested in carrying fuel in other than the fuel tank. I realize that at times it has to be done, but I prefer to plan my trips so that it is not necessary. As the range of those trips is increasing I've started to design a pair of fuel tanks with increased capacity.

 

[lowenbrau]

I'm comfortable for about 600km using 75 of the 90l tank and carry 40 additional litres in cans on the back. I'd love to jettison those and add a small aux tank below so I could make practical use of the additional fuel. Of course there is something to be said for having fuel in reserve that is a pain to use. I'm famous for running out. We literally coasted with a dead engine into a station in death valley once. Walked to the Vegas dump to use the phone another time. Noticed the needle was on E at Scotty's castle, same trip.

In ideal terms, I'd like a 800km range. Much more and you're wasting fuel by carrying fuel.

 

[charlieaarons]

40 gallon "main" running tank, 2 X 60 gal rear tanks with electric pump feeds to main tank; 8 X 20L jerrycans. Total = 160/200gal. Highway range without/with jerrycans 1400/1800 miles; offroad/badroad ~800-1000 mi (1000-1200 with jerrycans).
I can think of only a few places I'd like to go that will require filling the jerrycans, all outside North America.
Weight of fuel and aux tanks+cans about 7% of total, equivalent to 40 gal in a 4000 lb vehicle.
For "normal" driving I use just the main tank plus the auxiliary tank on the same side; I usually buy ~90 gal.

Charlie

 

[Robthebrit]

Like Charlie starts to say you have to decide what is right for you based on the weight of the fuel as a percentage of available load, if you are carrying nothing else then the extra gas may be worthwhile but most of our vehicles, especially the smaller ones, are already running at gross so extra fuel may not be an option.

My camper mog has 2x100 gallon tanks, enough for 2400-2800 miles (12-14mpg) and about 9% of gross weight. I rarely ever fill a single tank never mind both. In North America its nice in places like death valley where diesel is is available but really expensive. I fill up at home, drive there, drive around for a week and then drive home and if I started full maybe still have 100-120 gallons left!

I'm off to Alaska in the spring and it'll be good knowing we can pretty much get there without additional fuel. We'll start with a normal amount in the tanks while in the US and Southern Canada but as things get more remote we'll fill up. We'll look for fuel when one tank is empty and we still have 1400 miles left.

I do have a spare jerry can, its normally empty and could be used for fuel but 5 gallons is not going to fill the tank enough to reach the pickup. The cans intended use is to hold used oil if I have to change oil in the field.

Rob