Modern Buddy

How the heck do you fill the tank w/o dribbling gas into your pet carrier? I have only filled up once so far so I am sure I will perfect some skill for this but do any of you have tips to make sure whatever extra gas is stuck in the hose doesn't dump on entry? (insert obvious joke here )

Also, is the tank size really 1.7 gallons? I filled up at around 1/3 tank and it only gave me 0.50 gallon. Am I sticking the nozzle in to far? (again...insert obvious joke here )

aaannnnndddd......GO!

use a gas can, kitty

no insertion required!

I think it's more like 1.2 gallons. I've never had it spill out. When you look down into the hole, you'll see a ledge about 1.5 inches from the lip - never fill it above that ledge.

i think your sticking it in to far I stop pumping at one gallon. gas can works great also

go slow

I have overfilled the gas tank when I first got the scoot. You just have to remember that the scooter doesn't take much gas at all. Never pull the trigger/handle on the gas pump all the way back and slow way down as you see it getting tword the top. After dealing with a gas smell once you become very careful when filling up

After filling up one time at the gas station I decided at that time it was ridiculous to waste my time there. So now I just grab my gas cans and take those over to the cheapest station and fill them up. This way I can top off before going out on my ride to work (don't like the idea of only 1 gallon to get me around). I am also working on an extra gas container I can carry on the scoot.

I do one of two things:
1) I let them pump it - Oregon has no self serve, so there are attendants. (but scooters and motorcycles are allowed to pump their own)

2) When I pump my own, I tilt the tip of the dispenser upwards until I have it at the gas opening, then tip it in just a little ways. Pull back the rubber vapor recovery sleeve as hard as you can and pull the trigger. If it won't pump, keep messing with the vapor sleeve* until it will pump. Another alternative is to stuff a paper towel in the vapor sleeve where the opening is - one of the attendants did that before handing it to me once and it worked like a charm. Watch carefully as you pump, or you'll easily overflow it since it won't do an auto shut off when you're not using the sleeve. I've never gotten more than about 1.2 gallons in, so no, it won't hold as much as the manual claims. To remove without dropping gas into the pet carrier, tap the end a few times into the gas opening and then tip it up and out.

(* all of this assumes you have the vapor sleeves in your state)

Give it a good shake ... just like standing @ a urinal.

Ummm, isn't there an old joke about a former porn star working as a gas station attendant? Or perhaps I am thinking of a Ben Stiller movie? Or both?

kneil67@yahoo.com wrote:i think your sticking it in to far I stop pumping at one gallon. gas can works great also

im sorry i know its bad but " thats what she said"

Hwarang wrote:Give it a good shake ... just like standing @ a urinal.

VoodooKitty may not have as much experience with that as you do.

every station I've been to had a mechanism that would automatically stop fueling at a certain point to prevent overflow, after your done filling wait a second because a little gas will still come out, just give it a good shake and then your good to go *insert dirty joke here*

Fill it like you would fill a gas can. Keep the nozzle turned up until you get to your tank. Ease the nozzle tip in and keep it in a position where you can see the gas level. In other words, do not put it in like you do in a car, just barely put the gas nozzle in the tank opening. Squeeze slowly, only pulling in the lever a portion of the way. When the gas is about 1 inch from the top (always leave room or you could suffer from vapor lock, where pressure in the tank could actually cause engine trouble, temporary but annoying), so anyway, stop when the gas is about 1 inch from the opening, give the gas nozzle a little tap to get that last drip off, and then invert the nozzle again as you remove it from the bike.

Long winded, but hopefully this helps.

I know in CA (not sure about the rest of the country) over filling the gas tank will cause it to enter the carbon evap canister that is used for gas vapor/emission control. So topping off using a gas can or pulling the foreskin on the nozzle to get more gas in might reduce your MPGs inadvertantly by topping off.

I always lifted the lower slack (the part of the hose closest to the ground while pumping) of the hose above my seat level so A. I make sure no petro spills in my carrier.
B. I get every stankin cent of gas I payed for.

I knew this would be good for a laugh!

and thanks for all the tips guys! I assumed 1.7 was a pretty optimistic number so I am glad to see no one else seems to be able to attain it either.

I really like all the methods to do it at the pump that are listed here.

but this one:

agrogod wrote:After filling up one time at the gas station I decided at that time it was ridiculous to waste my time there. So now I just grab my gas cans and take those over to the cheapest station and fill them up. This way I can top off before going out on my ride to work (don't like the idea of only 1 gallon to get me around). I am also working on an extra gas container I can carry on the scoot.

makes me jealous that I didn't think of it 1st. I can be like batman and fill up in my own garage! or bruce wayne, or whatever!

either way, I'm gonna start calling my garage the "bad cave" or the "scoot cave".
I know its a leap but it makes me smile and that what scooters are about for me.

Mines not so much a garage, a shed to be specific. So I guess that makes it the "scoot shed".
"Holy scooters Lovelandstella, er Batman".

I know that my buddy's tank is a little over a gallon. Usually, I just do the math and watch the digits on the pump's meter. So if I have a 1/4 tank remaining, once the pump meter hits 0,75 gallons, I cut it off.

the gas can would be nice, if I weren't in a parking garage with hundreds of other cars. I like to eyeball it. Insert "just the tip" and watch it trickle in, careful not to overfill, then give it a little shaky shaky action before re-racking the nozzle. This thread opened up a can of worms, but it's fun to read. 1.2 is around the highest I've filled to.

I like to use ethanol free gas in my scoot . It runs better and I have not had any carburator issues with it . you can find stations with ethanol free gas here pure-gas.org . I just fill a can to keep at home . Good luck .

I use the go slow method myself, I depress the nozzle about 1/4 of the way down. I place the end of the nozzle about 1" into the filler neck and leave room so I can look into the gas filler neck. I do listen at the sound the gas makes as it is filling the tank, as the gas gets closer to the top, the pitch changes (you hear it become a higher pitch). So I have a visual and audible way of telling when it is getting full.

I also get a few paper napkins (usually located near the squeegees for cleaning windshields on cages) and have them near the gas tank opening just in case of a spill.

Some pumps are "sticky" which makes it is hard to squeeze them 1/4 or 1/2 way. So be careful when using them. Or use the squeeze and release method, so it fills a gulp at a time.

heyitsomid wrote:I know in CA (not sure about the rest of the country) over filling the gas tank will cause it to enter the carbon evap canister that is used for gas vapor/emission control. So topping off using a gas can or pulling the foreskin on the nozzle to get more gas in might reduce your MPGs inadvertantly by topping off.

Yeah, we got that thing, we call it the "damned California canister thingie" and disconnect it. Don't trust the gas pump to turn off for you, and don't top off.

I put the end of the nozzle into and leave the key to the on position and then add gas at a moderate speed. When my gas gauge gets close to 3/4 tank I slow down and add gas a little at a time-making sure to let the gas gauge have time to keep up with me-until I am just a hair under the "full" line. There, all done!

-v

I put the nozzle just under the "stop here" collar inside the tank, and watch for the gas to reach that high. If it foams that might require stopping a few times to let it settle.

Wait a minute, Voodoo Kitty, how in the hell have you only filled up once?

You need to ride more

The most gas i have ever put in my Buddy at once was 1.49 gallons and I hadn't run dry.

FWIW I fill all the way to the very brim of the tank, every time, for 20k miles.

Howard

On the topic of gas, what brand of gas do people use?

I was told to only fill up with Premium from Shell or Exxon (Esso). Today I was running on empty and there aren't really Shell or Exxon/Esso stations where I am so I filled up on Premium from Sunoco. Not sure if that's good for my buddy but when you are almost out of gas, you don't really have a choice.

mukaiboston wrote:On the topic of gas, what brand of gas do people use?

I use whatever's handy, the cheapest flavor offered. One time I even filled up at a no-name gas station / general store in the middle of nowhere, out of a pump that still had spinning dials on it. Never had any problems.

bluebuddygirl wrote:Wait a minute, Voodoo Kitty, how in the hell have you only filled up once?

You need to ride more

Because my Lucy is brand spankin' NEW! Can't wait to move so I can start taking her to work everyday!

VoodooKitty wrote:How the heck do you fill the tank w/o dribbling gas into your pet carrier?
Also, is the tank size really 1.7 gallons? I filled up at around 1/3 tank and it only gave me 0.50 gallon.
aaannnnndddd......GO!

6 Liters or right at 1.4 gallons - according to Genuine

Yet we have found some gas stations are not set exactly accurate and have gotten somewhat less or more - another way to confirm this is for no reason you suddenly get better or worse gas milage on just one tank.

One reason we use Fuelly.com on all three scooters.

We second Howard on filling up - I always top off (did I really just say that?) to try to be as accurate per "tank" as possible. We try to stay with stations that flow much slower as you can get a trickle to top it off with no splashing and no dripping.