Payton 63' and 06'

Driving home this evening with about .250 tank of gas. Suddenly my gas guage goes to 0, and it get amessage saying service fuel system. Any ideas, or has this happened to anyone else? Possibly fuel filter?

Daytona Bob

c5's had a bad fuel sender unit.

If you had an 05 I'd be more in that boat..

but you never know with ur 06... sure sounds like it.

if I recall right replacing them was a bit of a challenge and didn't always work.

Some guys use Seafoam and Techron (chevron gas) to and swear it helps.

steveb601

It is the sender unit going or gone bad. There's a lot of posts about it if you do a search. You can try using Techron fuel system cleaner but in my case the problem returned and had to have the sender replaced in the tank.

FortMorganAl

Did you check your gas cap?

talon90

My first recommendation would be to add a bottle of Techron fuel system additive to the next fuel fill. The fuel sender units on these cars can be influenced by the type of gas that you use and it will cause the exact symptom that you have described. Lower quality gas in particular can contribute. Running a bottle of Techron through once in a while can be considered a preventative maintenance item and can save a lot of headaches in the long run. Try to use Top Tier gasoline when available.

Kreuzen

That is the primary reason why I started using Chevron... eliminated the problem with my '05 and have never had an issue with my '09 ~ although there have been some improvements to the various components of the fuel system since the '05 model year.

Payton 63' and 06'

Thanks all, for the feedback. I think I will try the techron fuel system cleaner first. Every other car that I own or have owned, when you have questions on something like this you have no one to turn to for advice. But I love this forum, it seems like someone on here has experienced every single issue that you have. Great group of knowledge. Thanks again.

inthehunt2

Techron is the way to go. I use it in all my cars a couple of times per year as a preventative maintenance thing like Talon90 suggests. It's a tad on the expensive side, but well worth it.

BAMF AE

I just got the same message on mine last night. Called the dealer this morning to get an approximate idea of down-time and cost. Mechanic said, without looking at it, it is difficult to say. There are two units and it's either the right of left. He said he would have to drop the gas tank, and depending on which one, the cost can be in the upwards of 1000.00

LS WON

I use Chevron 91 to begin with and just started to add the bottle of Techron for good measure.

iridelow

Typical GM Stealership!!! Add a bottle of teachron and 99% of the time, you solved the problem! On my C5 years ago, they wanted to replace my Power sterring pump, flush the system and replace the belt because it was making noise. $750 bill! I changed the belt myself, $49 and drove the car another year before I sold it. The new owner has had it several years with no problems. I would not let a GM dealership fill my car with gas, unless it was warrantee work!!!

NavyC4S

I just fixed that by replacing my FUEL LEVEL SENDING UNIT

Not an easy fix.

BAMF AE

I will try the additive first, keeping my fingers cross that it will fix the problem.

Questions:

Before I add the additive, should I do it at my next fill-up, since I just top her off last night?

At my next fill-up, do I add the additive FIRST, then the gas?

Which particular additive do I need to buy, and how many canister/quarts is required?

TIA!

BAMF AE

Also, one other thing to my question above is......my gas needle still sweeps once the car is turned on, however it rests back on the "0" mark. Assuming the fuel system cleaner does its' job and I no longer get the "Service Fuel System" message on my DIC, will my gas needle be fixed as well?

calemasters

________________________________________ __________________

GM Fuel System Treatment PLUS is supplied by Chevron, and is the same product as the Chevron Techron fuel system additive. I use one bottle with a fuel fill at each oil change. It will help reduce the sulfur contamination to the fuel sending unit. Also, always use a Top Tier gasoline, such as Chevron, 76, Shell, Texaco, Phillips 66 plus a few others.


#05-00-89-078B: GM Fuel System Treatment PLUS, Fuel Sending Unit Corrosion and Fuel System Deposits - (Feb 6, 2008)

phileaglesfan

Techron is so good, some stealerships will charge you $70 or more for a fuel system service. I put it in about every 5k miles, use a decent gas. Chevron around here can be $.20-30 a gallon more expensive. I can almost put a bottle of techron in at that price.

Eric and Sue

[QUOTE=Payton 63' and 06';1572589680]Driving home this evening with about .250 tank of gas. Suddenly my gas guage goes to 0, and it get amessage saying service fuel system. Any ideas, or has this happened to anyone else? Possibly fuel filter?[/Q

Happened 2 times for me....1st time just one tank sender, then 2nd time...fuel pump and sender...this one was replaced under my extended Warranty. I always used top tier gas...did not help. They told me because I didn't use car enough. 2005 w/ 8000 miles. Now I use it more since I now live in Florida and not Pa.

Atomic-Vette

Mine started doing this right before winter time. I've since run at about 4 bottles of Techron through the tank and it's still not working. Guess I'm gonna have to replace the sender...

cclive

Everyone should use Chevron gas, I could use an increase in the quarterly dividend.

HOXXOH

[QUOTE=Eric and Sue;1573456964]Happened to my '08 at 8800 miles (4 months after delivery) and dealer replaced the sending unit.

And then again 3 weeks ago, but I was out of warranty at 60,000 miles. I was planning for a long weekend to fix it, but 2 days ago it magically started working again. I occasionally have to use Shell or Sunoco if I'm in the eastern US, but the last 14K have all been Chevron.

I usually don't fill up until it's below 1/4. When the gauge quit, I filled every 200-250 miles to be safe. Maybe I should keep it closer to the top. Hmmmm!