My wife's 2006 Chevy Uplander apparently ran out of gas (the Low Fuel message appears and the gauge is on E, even though she swears she had 1/4 tank).

I put 2 gallons of gas in the van, figuring that would be enough to get a gas station to fill it. However, now the van won't start. It is not equipped with an anti-theft device or automatic starter, so those cannot be the problem.

Does anyone have any ideas on what could be wrong? Do I need to add more than 2 gallons of gas? Is there some sort of kill switch that I don't know about? Any help will be greatly appreciated!

 

Is the vehicle parked on a slight downhill incline?

Add more gas and your van should start right away. I ran out of gas and the tow driver brought 10L (approx 2.6 gallons) and wouldn't start, he was stumped and I started telling him how the gauge moves up/down 1/8th depending on which way I park on a slight hill, same as the street I was on. He went back and got another 5 bucks (about 1.4 gallons) and it started right up first try.

I showed him how the first can of gas didn't even move the gauge, and when he added the second how it jumped almost to 1/8th. Bottom line is, when you are empty and on a hill facing downward you need at least 4 gallons to get it to start.

 

Thanks for the tip! I put another 5 gallons in and it started right up. I wish Chevy would mention something to that effect in the owner's manual (but of course, if my wife hadn't let it run dry, it wouldn't have been an issue in the first place!).

Happy New Year!

 

I have the same problem with my '09. If I back into my drieway with 1\8 of a tank, it will not start in the morning. Someone dropped the ball when they designed the tank in these things

 

I have a 2008 Uplander and I have the same problem with the gas tank. I was told that the fuel pump is in the back of the tank,. Therefore, when the gas gets to low (usually less than 1/4 tank) the fuel pump will not operate.

The dealership offered to reset the fuel gauge so that it reflects 1/4 tank earlier thus bu the time it gets to empty there is still a quarter tank.

This problem stinks...I wonder if they will adjust my payment next month becuase I can only pay 3/4 of it. They could adjust it to show that I really paid the whole amount.

Whats the difference? I didn't buy a car with 3/4 of a gas tank. I bought the whole thing.