I have 2 questions here I hope I am not crossing any lines asking both at once-

First off I'm wondering how accurate the DTE calculator is. I take my truck on long stretches and sometimes there isn't a gas station for a long distance. I would love to be able to rely on the distance to empty on the LCD screen but it just doesn't seem that accurate. I put it to the test recently and when my fuel light came on, it said I had 60 miles left- that would be on average over an hour of driving with the fuel light on. Maybe they are just very conservative in an effort to stop people from running out of gas or maybe its just inaccurate?

Second I am running valvoline premium conventional in this truck. I haven't had any problems but I'm wondering if any of you guys think this oil is no good and I should get something more pricey?


Thanks!

 

I think mine comes on at around 60 miles on the DTE as well. I wouldn't say it's dead accurate, but if you fill the truck up as soon as the light comes on, I believe there's about 4 gallons left in the 26 gallon tank. At 15mpg that would be pretty close.

As for the oil, I've used Mobile 1 full synthetic since I purchased the truck. Put around 15k miles on it since, and four oil changes. Each time I change the oil now, it doesn't come out completely black like the conventional did when I first purchased it. The synthetic oil doesn't cost enough more that I would even consider using a dino oil in my engine. Just my

 

I personally try not to let the fuel get lower than a quarter tank, and when the fuel light comes on, I fill up at the next opportunity. I'm not so much worried about running out of fuel as I am about keeping the fuel pump submerged in fuel to keep it running cool. Dropping the fuel tank to replace the pump is not on my list of fun things to do, so I do what I can to get the most life out of it.

As for the oil, I've read numerous times that a lot of people use the Mobile 1 synthetic. It's not too much more in price, but works better and lasts longer. I am curious to try Royal Purple since I watched their ad yesterday, but I haven't really researched any on it as far as reviews. There is more than one thread on this forum concerning which oil is best, and I believe Mobile 1 Synthetic is the most popular. Walmart usually has it for an acceptable price.

 

+1 on that part. I only let the light come on when driving for long distances where numerous unnecessary stops just don't make sense.

 

CHIT!! My DTE comes on at about 20 miles left

 

Short answer: the computer is not accurate enough for this. But like Ron said, you should NEVER get that low on fuel. Fuel pumps cost a chunk of change and ain't easy to replace. When the gauge gets down to 1/4, start looking for gas. Your wallet will appreciate it and you'll be less likely to get stranded somewhere with a dead fuel pump. I know - done there, been that.