Actual Fuel Capacity?

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Bob Proctor
Posts: 23
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2005 7:23 pm

Actual Fuel Capacity?

Post by Bob Proctor »

Due to a combination of events too embarrassing to relate, I recently almost ran out of gas in my 2002 24RB. The gauge buried itself in the "E" a ways before I made it to a gas station. It took 50.2 gallons to fill up. The manual says the gas tank holds 55 gal. Does anyone know if that 55 is a real, usable amount (or if there might be a few gallons reserve when the gauge says empty)?
2002 24RB
bigdipper
Posts: 353
Joined: Thu May 27, 2010 3:13 pm

Re: Actual Fuel Capacity?

Post by bigdipper »

My 2001 held 55 gallons which I learned to my chagrin waiting for non existent low fuel warning light to come on.
Ralph
Ralph
2011 24RB
Former 2001 23RK
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whemme
Posts: 2110
Joined: Mon Aug 15, 2005 8:05 pm

Re: Actual Fuel Capacity?

Post by whemme »

I take it that you didn’t think the fuel gauge needle pointing at E was telling you the truth?
Bill Hemme - Spencer, Iowa
E-mail: whemme@earthlink.net
2002 Born Free (Ford E-450 V10) 26' RSB
2016 VW Golf GTI - toad
Bob Proctor
Posts: 23
Joined: Wed Sep 14, 2005 7:23 pm

Re: Actual Fuel Capacity?

Post by Bob Proctor »

I was HOPING that the gauge reading empty would mean that the E450, like most other vehicles, still had a little bit in the tank. It looks like that is the case, and that when the gauge hits the E there is still about 5 gallons left and that those remaining gallons are actually usable. Thanks for responding!
2002 24RB
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whemme
Posts: 2110
Joined: Mon Aug 15, 2005 8:05 pm

Re: Actual Fuel Capacity?

Post by whemme »

I have a 2002 26’ RSB Born Free with the same 55 gallon tank. Actually I think the tank holds 62 gallons when filled clear to the top. I know you supposedly are not supposed to do what I am doing but if I continue slowly adding fuel when it first automatically clicks off, I can get another 7 gallons into the tank with the fuel standing at the top of the filler pipe. No problem filling my tank this way for the last 120,000 miles and 21 years. As a result I normally have a range of 400 to 450 miles between fill ups still with adequate reserve fuel.
Bill Hemme - Spencer, Iowa
E-mail: whemme@earthlink.net
2002 Born Free (Ford E-450 V10) 26' RSB
2016 VW Golf GTI - toad
Jaker32186
Posts: 6
Joined: Fri Jul 16, 2021 11:07 pm

Re: Actual Fuel Capacity?

Post by Jaker32186 »

Just for anyone else wondering, I had a similar question on our 1997 President Rear Bath, and all the info I would find said something different!

The BF manual states a 35 gallon gas tank (you can look at page 7 of the owners manual on this site!), yet being a ‘97 it was a cross over year for the chassis and multiple sources online stated 35 or 55 gallons. Which is a HUGE mileage difference on long trips. The Ford (E350 Clubwagon Chassis) manual states 55 gallons for “Super Duty” and 35 for all other models. The previous owner was ADAMANT the vehicle held 35 gallons or in his words “Fill it up every 200 miles”, and that the gas gauge was incorrect.

For a few trips we were hesitant to push the mileage and potentially wind up stranded, so every 240 miles we stopped to fill up 30 gallons at a time. This was fine but that is a lot of extra unnecessary stops IF the tank was larger than originally though! So I did the following and found the reassurance needed. Hopefully one or all of the below will help others in a similar situation!

1. Chassis VIN. The VIN under the windshield is made up of all the manufacture descriptions/options of your particular vehicle. You can check online how the chassis VIN is compiled and what each digit represents… model, brake system capacity, engine specifics, build date, etc. My VIN identified the vehicle as a Super Duty, even though there was no other emblems, decals, or identifications stating that. From the Ford Manual the Super Duty Chassis came with a 55 gallon gas tank. Again, all other sub models of that year came with a 35 gallon tank. But maybe BF swapped the Ford tank for a proprietary tank when building the coach!!!

2. Secondly, I went under the RV with a tape measure, and with a rough measurement of the rectangle gas tank, the capacity came out to 55 gallons on the nose!

3. Lastly, I average 7-9 MPG regularly. So once I had my confidence in the tank capacity, and a small 5gal gas can just in case, I pushed the vehicle over 300 miles between fill ups. The first time was nerve racking. But ultimately I filled the tank with over 40 gallons of gas. We now regularly drive 400 plus miles before stopping, leaving some buffer Just in Case. Which in turn has cut out stops in half.

Side note, when running the generator while driving I consider it using 1 gallon of gas per hour. I believe it is rated for .6 gph, but just to be on the safe side and not stranded on the side of the road.

Hopefully this helps someone. I know when I was searching for the answer online there were alot of conflicting information, especially with the older BFs. I’m assuming because the Ford chassis changed as engines and transmissions were upgraded/re-engineered. Don’t be afraid to get dirty and measure your tank. It was extremely easy and was the sanity check that I needed!
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