Loss of fuel economy overnight

[CdnFordguy2022]

I Purchased a 2018 Ford Explorer XLT 4wd in January 2021 and so far things have been great driving it aside from the normal fuel efficiency I've read about. Living out in Ontario Canada it can get very cold and lately it's been averaging -23 degrees. Needless to say it's been alot of cold starts in the morning. One evening when I went to move our family cars around I made note of my gas milage til empty which was showing my 52km the next day I started the autostart up and it ran for about 5min at most. When I got into my car however the gas milage was reading 11km. ! How can that be that I lost over 30km in one night not even driving it? Any suggestions / help.

Thank you

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum.
The Miles to Empty is not a good indicator of your fuel mileage. The fact that it idled for 5 minutes or so will greatly affect that figure.
I always have my display set to show Fuel Economy and when idling, the bar is pinned to 30L/100km. It likely could go further(higher) if the display allowed. BTW, it is not a good idea to run the tank that low, especially in the cold weather we are getting around here. The fuel is used to cool the fuel pump. I never let it get below 1/2 tank in winter or 3/4 in summer.

Peter

 

[CdnFordguy2022]

Thanks for that tip, i still am puzzled why idling drains so much gas. So can it be driven past 0 if an emergency happens is there a reserve that kicks in once it drops past 0? I've never done that just very curious . Thanks again

Welcome to the Forum.
The Miles to Empty is not a good indicator of your fuel mileage. The fact that it idled for 5 minutes or so will greatly affect that figure.
I always have my display set to show Fuel Economy and when idling, the bar is pinned to 30L/100km. It likely could go further(higher) if the display allowed. BTW, it is not a good idea to run the tank that low, especially in the cold weather we are getting around here. The fuel is used to cool the fuel pump. I never let it get below 1/2 tank in winter or 3/4 in summer.

Peter

 

[peterk9]

Thanks for that tip, i still am puzzled why idling drains so much gas. So can it be driven past 0 if an emergency happens is there a reserve that kicks in once it drops past 0? I've never done that just very curious . Thanks again

It isn't that it "drains" gas but more that the fuel economy figure goes down the tubes and that is what the 'Miles to Empty' is based on.
I believe there is some reserve figured into that figure. I believe there is some info in the Manual on that. You also run the risk of getting more condensation in a tank that is low on fuel.

Peter

 

[Odrapnew]

Welcome to the Forum.
The Miles to Empty is not a good indicator of your fuel mileage. The fact that it idled for 5 minutes or so will greatly affect that figure.
I always have my display set to show Fuel Economy and when idling, the bar is pinned to 30L/100km. It likely could go further(higher) if the display allowed. BTW, it is not a good idea to run the tank that low, especially in the cold weather we are getting around here. The fuel is used to cool the fuel pump. I never let it get below 1/2 tank in winter or 3/4 in summer.

Peter

Just a comment. The instant fuel economy will always show 'pinned' when idling and not moving. In that condition, since you aren't moving you are using an infinite amount of fuel to go nowhere.

On the US side, with the bar showing miles/gallon, it's just the opposite (no bar lit when not moving).

At that point, it's more about fuel/hour, which is used to calculate the reduction in distance-to-empty.

I agree to not let it run way down, especially in cold or hot weather.

 

[Mbrooks420]

The fuel cooling the pump is absolutely myth. The fuel is running THROUGH the pump. The fuel pump doesn’t even run hot. If it did, a great place for it to live would be inside a tank of flammable liquid and gasses.

 

[peterk9]

"The gas in your vehicle's tank keeps the electric fuel pump from overheating. ... Keeping the tank closer to full also lessens the risk of debris getting sucked into the fuel system through the strainer and into the fuel pump."

is the in tank fuel pump cooled by the fuel in the tank - Google Search

Peter

 

[Mbrooks420]

Yeah. You can also find things recommending you fill your tank in the morning when it’s cooler, because the gas is “denser”. In the hundreds of thousands of miles I’ve driven I’ve always driven until around the fuel light, and I’ve replaced exactly one fuel pump, which had over 175k on it. If it were critical, or mattered, I’m sure I’d have burned out more.

It’s pure BS.

 

[peterk9]

Everyone's entitled to their own opinion, whatever it may be.

 

[Dennis J.A.A.]

I Purchased a 2018 Ford Explorer XLT 4wd in January 2021 and so far things have been great driving it aside from the normal fuel efficiency I've read about. Living out in Ontario Canada it can get very cold and lately it's been averaging -23 degrees. Needless to say it's been alot of cold starts in the morning. One evening when I went to move our family cars around I made note of my gas milage til empty which was showing my 52km the next day I started the autostart up and it ran for about 5min at most. When I got into my car however the gas milage was reading 11km. ! How can that be that I lost over 30km in one night not even driving it? Any suggestions / help.

Thank you

Cold weather and neighbors siphoning could be good answers to think of!
BTW - I wasn't being funny because we have that problem out here too!

 

[saxons]

Cold weather and neighbors siphoning could be good answers to think of!
BTW - I wasn't being funny because we have that problem out here too!

One item of note is modern engines act the reverse of older engines. In the past, the old push-rod engines hated heat and loved the cold. MPG/KPG as well as performance always went up in the cold weather and always down in the warmer weather. Now, it's just the opposite.

 

[Dennis J.A.A.]

One item of note is modern engines act the reverse of older engines. In the past, the old push-rod engines hated heat and loved the cold. MPG/KPG as well as performance always went up in the cold weather and always down in the warmer weather. Now, it's just the opposite.

I noticed that years back when I had an F-150

 

[Sunroofguy]

We live in southern WI, about 1/2 south of Madison, with about 90% city driving. The fuel economy of our 2017 Sport is about 8 mpg during Jan/Feb and about 18 during the summer. The remote start is a real gas guslar, but our tushies definitely appreciate the convenience.

FYI; we've been using Fuelly.com to track the millage on our vehicles for the last 10 yrs.

 

[peterk9]

Cold weather and neighbors siphoning could be good answers to think of!
BTW - I wasn't being funny because we have that problem out here too!

He didn't 'lose' gas. The miles to empty took a dive because of the idling period after using remote start. Post #5 has a good explanation in that the calculations affect the miles to empty without driving. That feature is not a good indicator of fuel economy.

Peter

 

[peterk9]

...................................................................

FYI; we've been using Fuelly.com to track the millage on our vehicles for the last 10 yrs.

Me too!