BIGHANK
Help... gas gauge died
Thread Starter
Racer
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 366
Likes: 1
From: Esparto ca
Help... gas gauge died
I was driving down the road with just under 1/2 tank and all of a sudden my gas gauge died and the check gauges light illuminated. Has anybody else had this problem? Where does the wire plug into the tank and where does it come from. It's like its open somewhere. Or is there a fuse. It should work on ground I thought. When I turn on the key it works for the gauge check. It goes all the way up then back down. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, adown
Last edited by adown; Nov 6, 2006 at 10:58 PM.
Drifting
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 1,592
Likes: 3
From: St Louis MO
Originally Posted by R Devil
Common issue on C5's. Sometimes easy to fix. Do a search on Fuel Gauge for a start. 
Also do a search on Techron You should find many, many stories like yours and a ton of suggestions.Cheers
Advanced
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 74
Likes: 1
Your right tank fuel level sender is probably dirty. It’s common problem. Techron helps clean it. The way most cars work the sender is submerged in gasoline almost all the time. Your Corvette has two gas tanks. The way the Corvette fuel system is plumbed the right sender is only submerged in gasoline until the fuel level goes below ½ tank. Then the right tank is empty and the sender is in gas fumes only. What little gas is I there splashes on the sender and evaporates leaving the solids from the gas. If you are mechanically inclined, the sender is not too hard to clean. If you clean it you will see the problem. The resister will have some build up on it causing some of the windings to short out and cause an incorrect output. Do a search on fuel sender and there should be a procedure on how to get to it. A pencil eraser and some contact cleaner work well to clean it. If you use techron make sure you have at least ¾ of a tank of gas or you won’t get any techron into the right tank. My experience is that techron works somewhat but cleaning really works.
Race Director
Joined: May 2000
Posts: 14,542
Likes: 5
1. Run a couple of tankfuls of Techron through it, and use the best premium you can find.
2. Go to the dealer, and have them give you the latest PCM software update (emphasis on give). A good dealer will reflash the PCM for you for free.
#2 is important, and there is a Tech Bulletin out on it. It reprograms the sensitivity of the sending unit.
2. Go to the dealer, and have them give you the latest PCM software update (emphasis on give). A good dealer will reflash the PCM for you for free.
#2 is important, and there is a Tech Bulletin out on it. It reprograms the sensitivity of the sending unit.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 2,332
Likes: 31
From: Silver Spring MD
same problem
Same symptoms. For about a week it read 7/8 full when topped off. Then yesterday while driving SUDDENLY went to ZERO and LOW FUEL appeared on the DIC.
Had one of these suckers replaced a few years ago under warranty.
GM Manual says there are 2 senders working in conjunction with each other so I didn't want to dissect the WRONG sender. Put Techron in and will see if I can get away without a day long job taking tanks down etc,
It was down about 5 gallons and it went to Zero again. Filed up with Chevron supreme with techron. Now when super full reads midway between 15/16 and FULL. Used to read SUPERFULL (above the full mark) Again which sender is likely the culprit.
Do I have to go thru the process of removing a tank and cleaning the sender. The GM manual procedure looks very nasty.
Thanks BIGHANK
Had one of these suckers replaced a few years ago under warranty.
GM Manual says there are 2 senders working in conjunction with each other so I didn't want to dissect the WRONG sender. Put Techron in and will see if I can get away without a day long job taking tanks down etc,
It was down about 5 gallons and it went to Zero again. Filed up with Chevron supreme with techron. Now when super full reads midway between 15/16 and FULL. Used to read SUPERFULL (above the full mark) Again which sender is likely the culprit.
Do I have to go thru the process of removing a tank and cleaning the sender. The GM manual procedure looks very nasty.
Thanks BIGHANK
Last edited by bighank; Nov 19, 2006 at 12:52 PM.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
Drifting
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 1,627
Likes: 143
From: Goodyear Az
Seafoam is a fuel system top-end engine cleaner, much like GM's own "Top End Engine Cleaner", but a bit lower in cost. Where I live, NAPA and Pep-Boys stores carry it.
The cleaning of the senders may not happen right away. It took my car a few tankfuls before the sender worked properly and read the correct level. The same process of using Techron and running a few tanks of gas, making sure to TOP UP to get both senders covered, worked for my car and my wife's Corvette. Good luck.
The cleaning of the senders may not happen right away. It took my car a few tankfuls before the sender worked properly and read the correct level. The same process of using Techron and running a few tanks of gas, making sure to TOP UP to get both senders covered, worked for my car and my wife's Corvette. Good luck.
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 5,987
Likes: 18
From: DuBois PA
St. Jude Donor '11-'12-'13-'14-'15
Originally Posted by C54FUN
Where to get "Seafoam"??? Never heard of it before this post...maybe its me; is it a cleaner of sorts? Appreciate the help and thanks.Joe
BIGHANK
Race Director
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 11,405
Likes: 26
From: Whippany NJ
CI 6-7-8-9 Veteran
St. Jude Donor '08-'09
NCM Sinkhole Donor
Originally Posted by adown
I was driving down the road with just under 1/2 tank and all of a sudden my gas gauge died and the check gauges light illuminated. Has anybody else had this problem? Where does the wire plug into the tank and where does it come from. It's like its open somewhere. Or is there a fuse. It should work on ground I thought. When I turn on the key it works for the gauge check. It goes all the way up then back down. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks, adown