A car burst into flames Thursday evening at a gas station in China Grove.
Jeffrey Sprankle, Jr., 23, and his friend Daniel Burrell went to Mikey’s Convenience Store, and filled Sprankle’s 1985 Pontiac Fiero with about 10 gallons of gas
“I start my engine and all the sudden I saw black, billowing smoke,” Sprankle said.
Moments later, he said there were flames coming from the engine compartment and coming up through the center console.
That’s when Zimmerman said the pair “bailed out” of the vehicle.
“I undid my seatbelt and ran inside to get a fire extinguisher,” Burrell said, but when he turned around and saw the car completely engulfed in flames, he realized “there was nothing that could be done.”
A gas station employee called 911.
Emergency crews responded to the report of a vehicle fire at the pump the gas station located at 5810 S. Main St. in China Grove at 6:45 p.m., according to Bostian Heights Fire Chief Mike Zimmerman.
Since the fire was under the canopy of the gas station, the call was upgraded to a structure fire, and Highway Patrol blocked the road in preparation for the fire trucks.
Once firefighters arrived, the flames were extinguished in “less than 10 minutes,” Zimmerman reported.
Zimmerman said it “looks like something malfunctioned in the car,” but because of the amount of damage to the car, it could be difficult to pinpoint the problem.”
A Fire marshal was coming to the scene to investigate, and the gas company was on the way to look at the pump when fire crews left.
Gas station employees said they planned to reopen Thursday evening if they could.
“It’s going to hurt me bad,” said Temicha Bryson, the station’s manager. “I’m just thankful everyone’s okay.”
Sprankle said the car had 140,000 miles on it and he kept up with maintenance over the year he owned the car.
This was the first time he’d had issues with the vehicle.
[This message has been edited by CoolBlue87GT (edited 08-01-2014).]
Sounds like it could have been a fuel leak somewhere with it going up that fast. Of course non-Fiero people will look at it as just another Fiero that caught on fire.
He has just filled the tank - bet it was leaking from the top of the tank opening for the fuel pump/sender or filler hose. The hoses are 30-years-old (if original). Must have been a pool of leaked gas somewhere to go up that fast.
If gas, sounds like the tank or filling pluming leaked and let raw gas on the cat etc. Then any spark would ignite the fumes, like Starter motor and solenoid will spark.
If accurate, Putting 10 gallons in 85 Fiero is hard to do most times. Spec is 10.3gal but fuel pump will act as tank is empty at ~9 gallons. Is why many complain older Fiero take only ~8gal when gauge says "empty." Gauges give a buffer so you fill up BEFORE pump is sucking fumes. (Really running out can damage the fuel pump.)
Example. I have 87 w/ bigger tank (11.9 gal)... run out of gas 1 time and took 10 and tiny bit more. Gauge says "empty" at ~9 gal.
Edit to add: Depending on wind, you might not smell the leaked gas.
------------------ Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should. (Jurassic Park)
Originally posted by theogre: Edit to add: Depending on wind, you might not smell the leaked gas.
Sitting at a pump at a station, even if you smell fuel, you probably wouldn't think anything of it; especially if you saw people filling up small plastic tanks for lawn equipment and such. If it's a pump that requires you to hold the handle to keep fuel flowing, fumes coming out of the vent can also easily "stick" to your arm/clothes and you'll be smelling fuel for another 20 minutes.
If the fire started only after the key was turned to the run/start position, it was probably a fuel line that was rusted or split, and it started spewing fuel onto the exhaust.
I notice the fire started when he tried to start the car so it must have been sparks from the starter igniting fuel that was leaking, I often see reports of car fires on the evening news from Orlando Fl. so its not just a Fiero that can catch fire. I guess we all need to regularly inspect our fuel lines and hoses.
If your gauge is showing empty at 9 gallons, I would get that checked
No he is absolutely right, if the tank was empty just how do you think he drove it to the gas station on fume? as with a lot of the gauges in cars they are as he said buffered. They are just a little off on purpose and for good reasons, like so you go to the gas station before your on E.
Speedos are also a gauge that is off my a few MPH on purpose, so you don't get a ticket for going a few miles over the speed limit. All cars have that buffer in their gauges like the gas tank and speedo for example, then their is the error that is also not built in. Someone may have changed a gauge over the last 30 years from an older 84 to a newer one or vise versa with a larger tank, that can make the gauge read wrong as well. Lots of variables here in this story that we may never know, all we do know for sure is there is one less Fiero on the road today than there was the day before.
Steve
------------------ Technology is great when it works, and one big pain in the ass when it doesn't
Originally posted by 84fiero123: Speedos are also a gauge that is off my a few MPH on purpose, so you don't get a ticket for going a few miles over the speed limit. All cars have that buffer in their gauges like the gas tank and speedo for example, then their is the error that is also not built in. Someone may have changed a gauge over the last 30 years from an older 84 to a newer one or vise versa with a larger tank, that can make the gauge read wrong as well. Lots of variables here in this story that we may never know, all we do know for sure is there is one less Fiero on the road today than there was the day before.
This is total .
Speedos do not have a buffer. The only reason your speedo would be wrong, is because your tires are a different diameter than stock, or you've got the wrong gear in the trans, or something is just broken. I've gotten plenty of speeding tickets in my life, and every time the speed quoted by the cop from his radar gun, was exactly what the speedometer in the car I was driving read.
The "gas gauge has a buffer" is also total . The gauge only moves a limited amount. The only reason there is any sort of buffer is because the float in the tank has a longer throw than the needle in the gauge. Because of this, the gauge will never be 100% accurate, and of course there will still be some fuel in the tank when the gauge reads E. In a 10 gallon tank though, if you've still got 1 gallon or more on E, then the gauge, float, or wiring has a problem. Since 1/4 tank would be 2.5 gallons, 1/8 tank would be 1.25 gallons. If the gauge is on E and functioning correctly, along with the float extending the full height of the tank properly, you shouldn't have more than 1/2 gallon in the tank, probably less.
And the idea that changing the gauge between an 84-86 car and an 87-88 car would cause the gauge to read differently because the later cars have a larger tank is just silly. The gauge, float, and fuel pump are the same on all the cars. The only difference on the 87-88 is that it has a reserve tank, which drains into the main tank, which is still the same 10 gallon tank.
30 year old fuel pumps, wiring, and gauges though, can easily lead to slightly wrong readings. I had an 85 GMC Jimmy once where the fuel gauge never worked. I had to just go by the trip odometer to know when to put fuel in.
Its a shame when things like this happen but people that own Fieros need to realize that rubber gas lines and fill tubes are not meant to last forever. They are 30+ years old and must be replaced. For a car to go up in flames that quickly, it must have been a HUGE gasoline leak. It doesn't take long for a burst pressurized fine line to spill out enough gasoline to swallow a car in flames in seconds.
------------------ " THE BLACK PARALYZER" -87GT 3800SC Series III engine, custom ZZP /Frozen Boost Intercooler setup, 3.4" Pulley, Powerlog manifold, Northstar TB, LS1 MAF, 3" Flotech Afterburner Exhaust, Autolite 104's, MSD wires, Custom CAI, 4T65eHD w. custom axles, HP Tuners VCM Suite. "THE COLUSSUS" 87GT - ALL OUT 3.4L Turbocharged engine, Garrett Hybrid Turbo, MSD ign., modified TH125H " ON THE LOOSE WITHOUT THE JUICE "
Speedos do not have a buffer. The only reason your speedo would be wrong, is because your tires are a different diameter than stock, or you've got the wrong gear in the trans, or something is just broken. I've gotten plenty of speeding tickets in my life, and every time the speed quoted by the cop from his radar gun, was exactly what the speedometer in the car I was driving read.
The "gas gauge has a buffer" is also total . The gauge only moves a limited amount. The only reason there is any sort of buffer is because the float in the tank has a longer throw than the needle in the gauge. Because of this, the gauge will never be 100% accurate, and of course there will still be some fuel in the tank when the gauge reads E. In a 10 gallon tank though, if you've still got 1 gallon or more on E, then the gauge, float, or wiring has a problem. Since 1/4 tank would be 2.5 gallons, 1/8 tank would be 1.25 gallons. If the gauge is on E and functioning correctly, along with the float extending the full height of the tank properly, you shouldn't have more than 1/2 gallon in the tank, probably less.
And the idea that changing the gauge between an 84-86 car and an 87-88 car would cause the gauge to read differently because the later cars have a larger tank is just silly. The gauge, float, and fuel pump are the same on all the cars. The only difference on the 87-88 is that it has a reserve tank, which drains into the main tank, which is still the same 10 gallon tank.
30 year old fuel pumps, wiring, and gauges though, can easily lead to slightly wrong readings. I had an 85 GMC Jimmy once where the fuel gauge never worked. I had to just go by the trip odometer to know when to put fuel in.
Oh now you are going to pull the you know everything lines,
You want exact MPH, pay the extra for a certified speedo, I drove roll test at the factory, did you?
They are a couple of miles per hour under at the factory, unless they were certified speedos we put in the police cursers we built. And was what they were supposed to be, we were allowed to pass them if they were 3 MPH under but not 4 and had to flunk them if they were anymore than 1 MPH to accurate.
The gas gages were the same way, when I was a driver ferrying cars from one repair bay to another they would hit empty and still had a gallon or so in them. Remember reading a owners manual and it says when the car only has less than a 1/4 of tank of gas and you are parked up hill you can have trouble starting the car. Because they can only be so accurate and when they reach the bottom of the tank there may not be enough in the tank to get sucked up by the fuel sock.
ever drop a fuel tank and have the gauge read empty but there was still a couple of gallons, in the case of my suburban that was actually 5 gallons of gas still left in the tank and it was under E when I replaced the fuel pump in mine a few years back. My Suburban, Burb to the wife and I has a 42 gallon tank.
Sorry but this you are wrong about.
Steve
[This message has been edited by 84fiero123 (edited 08-01-2014).]
They are a couple of miles per hour under at the factory, unless they were certified speedos we put in the police cursers we built. And was what they were supposed to be, we were allowed to pass them if they were 3 MPH under but not 4 and had to flunk them if they were anymore than 1 MPH to accurate. ..
Really? Very interesting. So I guess they do the same with all the Sheriff big LED speed warning signs because they read exactly what my speedo does. Also somehow they manage to coordinate with all GPS units manufacturers and off course somehow all car manufacturers seem to use the same off threshold. Honestly I am not too convince with your statement but who knows. Maybe older cars did.
Really? Very interesting. So I guess they do the same with all the Sheriff big LED speed warning signs because they read exactly what my speedo does. Also somehow they manage to coordinate with all GPS units manufacturers and off course somehow all car manufacturers seem to use the same off threshold. Honestly I am not too convince with your statement but who knows. Maybe older cars did.
Depends on the vehicle and make,
Concerned that your new car is faster than the speedometer says? Speedometers are designed to err slightly on the fast side, but your odometer should still be accurate, says Volkswagen.
“Speedometers are designed to never show speeds lower than actual speed.” Thomas Tetzlaff, Volkswagen Canada’s media relations manager, wrote in an email. “In order to do this... they will necessarily always show speeds slightly in excess of actual speeds.”
While speedometers are calibrated to fudge the numbers a little, odometers are designed to reflect accurate mileage, Tetzlaff says.
The odometer shows the distance your vehicle has travelled, while the speedometer show how fast your vehicle is going.
How accurate are speedometers? Dan Edmunds, an automotive engineer and the director of vehicle testing at Edmunds.com, says that speedometers cannot have an error of more than 5 percent (typically expressed as plus/minus 2.5 percent relative to the actual speed) according to federal law.
ADVERTISEMENT "At 60 mph this means your speedometer should read no more than 1.5 mph higher or lower than your actual speed," Edmunds explains.
Manufacturing tolerances and difference between tire brands and air pressure can cause tire diameters to vary, which may lead to an erroneous speedometer. Automakers offer different sized wheels and tires, and, while carmakers try to match the effective rolling diameter of the larger wheels with a lower profile tire, an exact match is not always possible.
"The tires size steps are small enough that the diameter can easily be kept within a percent or two, which allows the same gearing and speedometer calibration factors to be carried over because everything still fits within the speedometer tolerance," Edmunds says.
Here are your cars speedometer error margin Speedometers indicate the wrong speed. This shows how quickly you can drive past speed radar. Both speed radar and speedometers operate with a margin of error. Repoter: Pål Andre Skogen
In reality you can drive faster past speed radar than you think. The reason is that safety margins are built into the speed radar, the police’s mensuration and the vehicle’s speedometer.
In fact speedometers on certain vehicle models show an error of almost ten km/h when driving at a speed of 80 km/h. This varies from vehicle to vehicle and is therefore also part of our comprehensive test procedure. The measurement of error is carried out using advanced GPS equipment, and gives us the answer as to how quickly the vehicle really is moving.
The pacing method is generally used at night, since during the day a driver will easily realize that a police car is following them and slow down before the officer can get an accurate reading.
To obtain an accurate reading, police officers must follow a motorist suspected of speeding for at least 3/16 of a mile. Also, because speedometers are not always accurate, the speedometers in police cars are calibrated regularly to ensure accuracy so that evidence can be used in court. Every car has its own logbook for officers to track and record each time the speedometer is tested and calibrated.
In some cars, drivers must account for as much as a 10% margin of error in terms of speedometer accuracy; tire wear and aftermarket modifications, such as different tire sizes and gearing, can cause erroneous speedometer readings.
Most new speedometers are believed to function with a 5% margin of error. However, the margin of error still causes accused motorists of arguing in court that they were, in fact, not traveling as fast as the reported speed. In 1997, the federal standards in the United States for speedometer readings allowed for a maximum 5% error.
Most speedometers have tolerances of some ±10%, mainly due to variations in tire diameter.[citation needed] Sources of error due to tire diameter variations are wear, temperature, pressure, vehicle load, and nominal tire size. Vehicle manufacturers usually calibrate speedometers to read high by an amount equal to the average error, to ensure that their speedometers never indicate a lower speed than the actual speed of the vehicle, to ensure they are not liable for drivers violating speed limits.[citation needed]
Excessive speedometer error after manufacture can come from several causes but most commonly is due to nonstandard tire diameter, in which case the error is
Originally posted by 84fiero123: Oh now you are going to pull the you know everything lines,
You want exact MPH, pay the extra for a certified speedo, I drove roll test at the factory, did you?
They are a couple of miles per hour under at the factory, unless they were certified speedos we put in the police cursers we built. And was what they were supposed to be, we were allowed to pass them if they were 3 MPH under but not 4 and had to flunk them if they were anymore than 1 MPH to accurate.
The gas gages were the same way, when I was a driver ferrying cars from one repair bay to another they would hit empty and still had a gallon or so in them. Remember reading a owners manual and it says when the car only has less than a 1/4 of tank of gas and you are parked up hill you can have trouble starting the car. Because they can only be so accurate and when they reach the bottom of the tank there may not be enough in the tank to get sucked up by the fuel sock.
ever drop a fuel tank and have the gauge read empty but there was still a couple of gallons, in the case of my suburban that was actually 5 gallons of gas still left in the tank and it was under E when I replaced the fuel pump in mine a few years back. My Suburban, Burb to the wife and I has a 42 gallon tank.
Sorry but this you are wrong about.
Steve
Sorry, but no. Maybe you should open up one of those traffic ticket lawyer offices.
The Federal law for margin of error on speedo accuracy does not mean that all cars are manufactured with a speedo that reeds 5% faster than actual speed. But since you drove some cars across a lot for GM at some point in your life, obviously you know everything. So how about you refund everyone who has ever gotten a speeding ticket in the last 30 years in a GM made vehicle, because obviously the cop's radar gun was off despite the fact it read exactly the same as the car's speedo. For my part, that's about $500 worth of speeding tickets over those 30 years. You want to PayPal it over?
Also, pretty much every state that requires safety inspections, requires the speedometer to display accurately, as part of that inspection. The speedometer not displaying accurately is considered a safety hazard, which is why such laws about its accuracy exist in the first place.
And obviously if you're parked on a hill, if you have less fuel in the tank than the fuel pickup can reach, at whatever angle the tank is at, you're going to possibly have problems starting it, and the gauge will read empty, even if the tank isn't close to it. That has absolutely nothing to do with gauge accuracy, and everything to do with physics.
And of course you might have had a few gallons left in a 42 gallon tank if you dropped it when the gauge was on E. That's a pretty damn big fuel tank. Hell, 1/4 tank is more than even fit in the 84-86 Fiero tank. And I can tell you the float in that giant tank didn't reach the bare metal bottom of the tank.
Do you just not grasp the concept of physics and math at all? Or do you just think that you really are right about everything, simply because you worked at GM for a bit?
Concerned that your new car is faster than the speedometer says? Speedometers are designed to err slightly on the fast side, but your odometer should still be accurate, says Volkswagen.
“Speedometers are designed to never show speeds lower than actual speed.” Thomas Tetzlaff, Volkswagen Canada’s media relations manager, wrote in an email. “In order to do this... they will necessarily always show speeds slightly in excess of actual speeds.”
While speedometers are calibrated to fudge the numbers a little, odometers are designed to reflect accurate mileage, Tetzlaff says.
The odometer shows the distance your vehicle has travelled, while the speedometer show how fast your vehicle is going.
How accurate are speedometers? Dan Edmunds, an automotive engineer and the director of vehicle testing at Edmunds.com, says that speedometers cannot have an error of more than 5 percent (typically expressed as plus/minus 2.5 percent relative to the actual speed) according to federal law.
ADVERTISEMENT "At 60 mph this means your speedometer should read no more than 1.5 mph higher or lower than your actual speed," Edmunds explains.
Manufacturing tolerances and difference between tire brands and air pressure can cause tire diameters to vary, which may lead to an erroneous speedometer. Automakers offer different sized wheels and tires, and, while carmakers try to match the effective rolling diameter of the larger wheels with a lower profile tire, an exact match is not always possible.
"The tires size steps are small enough that the diameter can easily be kept within a percent or two, which allows the same gearing and speedometer calibration factors to be carried over because everything still fits within the speedometer tolerance," Edmunds says.
Here are your cars speedometer error margin Speedometers indicate the wrong speed. This shows how quickly you can drive past speed radar. Both speed radar and speedometers operate with a margin of error. Repoter: Pål Andre Skogen
In reality you can drive faster past speed radar than you think. The reason is that safety margins are built into the speed radar, the police’s mensuration and the vehicle’s speedometer.
In fact speedometers on certain vehicle models show an error of almost ten km/h when driving at a speed of 80 km/h. This varies from vehicle to vehicle and is therefore also part of our comprehensive test procedure. The measurement of error is carried out using advanced GPS equipment, and gives us the answer as to how quickly the vehicle really is moving.
The pacing method is generally used at night, since during the day a driver will easily realize that a police car is following them and slow down before the officer can get an accurate reading.
To obtain an accurate reading, police officers must follow a motorist suspected of speeding for at least 3/16 of a mile. Also, because speedometers are not always accurate, the speedometers in police cars are calibrated regularly to ensure accuracy so that evidence can be used in court. Every car has its own logbook for officers to track and record each time the speedometer is tested and calibrated.
In some cars, drivers must account for as much as a 10% margin of error in terms of speedometer accuracy; tire wear and aftermarket modifications, such as different tire sizes and gearing, can cause erroneous speedometer readings.
Most new speedometers are believed to function with a 5% margin of error. However, the margin of error still causes accused motorists of arguing in court that they were, in fact, not traveling as fast as the reported speed. In 1997, the federal standards in the United States for speedometer readings allowed for a maximum 5% error.
Most speedometers have tolerances of some ±10%, mainly due to variations in tire diameter.[citation needed] Sources of error due to tire diameter variations are wear, temperature, pressure, vehicle load, and nominal tire size. Vehicle manufacturers usually calibrate speedometers to read high by an amount equal to the average error, to ensure that their speedometers never indicate a lower speed than the actual speed of the vehicle, to ensure they are not liable for drivers violating speed limits.[citation needed]
Excessive speedometer error after manufacture can come from several causes but most commonly is due to nonstandard tire diameter, in which case the error is
speedos start to get out of calibration around 70K or so. its not to the point where you would notice it but its there, also no speedo is 100% accurate, they work hand in hand with the odometer which is never 100% straight lines are what dictate the closest to actual miles on your car. DOT law requires that an odometer is allowed to read slightly higher than actual miles driven but it from the factory is never allowed to read lower than actual miles driven.
Originally posted by fierosound: When the wise-azzes at car shows ask "didn't they all burn?" I just smile and say "NO, but ANY car will burn if it's leaking fuel/oil on the engine".
Another guy says sarcastically "yeah - 5 times already. I just keep rebuilding it." - and some believe him
I'm just going to start bringing marshmallows and gram crackers to car shows.
Oh now you are going to pull the you know everything lines,
You want exact MPH, pay the extra for a certified speedo, I drove roll test at the factory, did you?
They are a couple of miles per hour under at the factory, unless they were certified speedos we put in the police cursers we built. And was what they were supposed to be, we were allowed to pass them if they were 3 MPH under but not 4 and had to flunk them if they were anymore than 1 MPH to accurate.
The gas gages were the same way, when I was a driver ferrying cars from one repair bay to another they would hit empty and still had a gallon or so in them. Remember reading a owners manual and it says when the car only has less than a 1/4 of tank of gas and you are parked up hill you can have trouble starting the car. Because they can only be so accurate and when they reach the bottom of the tank there may not be enough in the tank to get sucked up by the fuel sock.
ever drop a fuel tank and have the gauge read empty but there was still a couple of gallons, in the case of my suburban that was actually 5 gallons of gas still left in the tank and it was under E when I replaced the fuel pump in mine a few years back. My Suburban, Burb to the wife and I has a 42 gallon tank.
Sorry but this you are wrong about.
Steve
While the gauges may NOT be 100% accurate, they are not "buffered" on purpose so you don't run out of gas of getting speeding tickets . There is a percentage margin of error that would be acceptable as the cost of manufacture and calibration would increase cost.
I am glad that I have all new braided stainless steel lines from the fuel rail to the tank but that 30 yr old filler hose has me worried. Got to get that on the thing to do . The Fiero store sells that hose but unless I read it wrong, its a real PITA to replace. You need to work from under the car and from the wheelhouse. Advise of the day; check those old 30 yr old.
------------------ " THE BLACK PARALYZER" -87GT 3800SC Series III engine, custom ZZP /Frozen Boost Intercooler setup, 3.4" Pulley, Powerlog manifold, Northstar TB, LS1 MAF, 3" Flotech Afterburner Exhaust, Autolite 104's, MSD wires, Custom CAI, 4T65eHD w. custom axles, HP Tuners VCM Suite. "THE COLUSSUS" 87GT - ALL OUT 3.4L Turbocharged engine, Garrett Hybrid Turbo, MSD ign., modified TH125H " ON THE LOOSE WITHOUT THE JUICE "
Who here thought the last line was going to be "it's the first time it's caught fire"?
If he pumped 10 gallons there was probably a gallon all over the ground and fumes everywhere. I've found that in Texas the vapor recovery system is far too sensitive and shuts the pump off repeatedly as if the tank were full when it's not. I guess newer cars tanks are better vented. So I pretty much have to know how much the tank needs and only put in that much unless I want it to overflow, which is never good.
Originally posted by JohnWPB: If your gauge is showing empty at 9 gallons, I would get that checked
Actually My gauge "empty" at ~9.5.
GM and most others give any gauge errors towards "empty" sooner. Why? Because Fuel Flow is coolant and lube for the pump. Most pumps hate running dry. Running out of fuel will cause problem, even kill, most pumps fast. Many New cars fuel system have 1 line to engine... They just move the regulator and return out flow to the tank. That suppose to reduce engine heat from heating the tank for helping Evap Emissions reasons.
Tank Spec often does NOT = available gas. On a hill etc can run out of fuel sooner then driving on level ground. Is some tolerance how sender, sock and fuel pump is installed. Most fuel pumps won't suck the tank dry to prevent water etc causing problems. Depending on tank design etc can have quart or two to most of a gallon left when pump is sucking fumes on many cars.
Guess I can count myself as lucky. I noticed gas on the garage floor and traced it to a split fuel line. It was an Orielly stainless braided line that was less than four years old. I replaced the section with twenty five dollars worth of non braided high pressure line.
such a shame. It looks like he was almost done putting the car back together.
------------------ 1984 White Fiero Sport Coupe (Juliet) in restoration //www.fiero.nl/forum/Forum1/HTML/089093.html 1988 Red Fiero Standard Coupe (Bella) in restoration 1990 Black Buick Reatta (Noir) 2002 White Chevy Impala base(Haylie)
[This message has been edited by 1984whitesc (edited 08-02-2014).]
Originally posted by dobey: Sorry, but no. Maybe you should open up one of those traffic ticket lawyer offices.
The Federal law for margin of error on speedo accuracy does not mean that all cars are manufactured with a speedo that reeds 5% faster than actual speed. But since you drove some cars across a lot for GM at some point in your life, obviously you know everything. So how about you refund everyone who has ever gotten a speeding ticket in the last 30 years in a GM made vehicle, because obviously the cop's radar gun was off despite the fact it read exactly the same as the car's speedo. For my part, that's about $500 worth of speeding tickets over those 30 years. You want to PayPal it over?
Also, pretty much every state that requires safety inspections, requires the speedometer to display accurately, as part of that inspection. The speedometer not displaying accurately is considered a safety hazard, which is why such laws about its accuracy exist in the first place.
And obviously if you're parked on a hill, if you have less fuel in the tank than the fuel pickup can reach, at whatever angle the tank is at, you're going to possibly have problems starting it, and the gauge will read empty, even if the tank isn't close to it. That has absolutely nothing to do with gauge accuracy, and everything to do with physics.
And of course you might have had a few gallons left in a 42 gallon tank if you dropped it when the gauge was on E. That's a pretty damn big fuel tank. Hell, 1/4 tank is more than even fit in the 84-86 Fiero tank. And I can tell you the float in that giant tank didn't reach the bare metal bottom of the tank.
Do you just not grasp the concept of physics and math at all? Or do you just think that you really are right about everything, simply because you worked at GM for a bit?
You know your knowledge of the automotive assembly process and tests really does amaze me for someone who has never set foot in an assembly plant, especially about the inspection process and variables allowed. I said I was utility repair and that meant if the final line driver inspector was out I also did that job as well. That job for your information included driving the cars off the ends of final line onto roll test where they went on a dyno type setup machine where there was a guy in a pit under the car that did the alignment of the car while who ever it was doing the driving that day did the other roll test inspections. one of those inspections was for the speedometers accuracy. we had to watch the speedo in the car and a large one that in the early 80s was a clock type speedo and then went to digital, that was directly in front of and above the car. they had to be within so many MPH of each other or the car went to a repair bay. along with many other inspections that were done on that same station, But I suppose you already knew that with your vast area of knowledge and degree.
And just to clarify something, I was wrong about the speedos being lower, after thinking about that overnight they were higher buy a mile or more I forget the actual spec but the speedos were higher than actual speeds of the car.
Now the gas gauge it is the other way as has been said by others as well as me, My memory isn't always infallible like yours.
quote
Originally posted by pontiackid86: speedos start to get out of calibration around 70K or so. its not to the point where you would notice it but its there, also no speedo is 100% accurate, they work hand in hand with the odometer which is never 100% straight lines are what dictate the closest to actual miles on your car. DOT law requires that an odometer is allowed to read slightly higher than actual miles driven but it from the factory is never allowed to read lower than actual miles driven.
And that is also not true, speedos also get less and less accurate the more wear there is on the tires as well, ever have a set of tires last 70,000 miles? the more they wear the farther off the speedo is.
But yes they are off as I have and others have said even brand new from the factory ! Look at some of the links I posted of the manufacturers who were taken to court because they were so far off by other manufacturers.
To all you geniuses who say they are accurate, I guess your gauge never goes above full or below empty? Now that is the sign of a very accurate gas gauge, now isn't it.
They are not accurate, not so accurate you can depend on them and really shouldn't as others have said the gasoline in a gas tank is also a coolant for the fuel pump and running it to low to often can and will cause premature pump failure.
.
