How many of you have run out of fuel?

I have 3 times. First time was right hand tank dry and left hand tank full. Never did figure that one out as I did not drive that truck for long. Second time was a plugged vent on the left hand tank. Same result as the first only I was able to fix that one. The third time I had a 1/4 tank and thought 100 miles to the truck stop, no problem right? Wrong! Ran out of fuel 1 mile from the truckstop. What I did not realize was that this was my first time in that truck and it only had one tank. Did not even occur to me as this was the first time I had ever driven a truck with one tank. My fault but lesson learned.

Now I check the vents once a month and make sure they are clear.

 

Arkansas, US-67 mile marker 22 moving Southeast toward West Memphis. Got off route enough to miss my last viable fuel stop... Couple this with a surprise swap (driver banging on my door at 0030 - 'hey we gotta switch')... Flustered, not thinking about fuel, then not worrying about it... Learned the exact capacity of my tanks that day.

170 gallons between the pair.
*shakes head* Better days have been had.

 

I don't even know what events are on my Cascadia. I just never let it run below a quarter tank. 15 years ago when I drove for Dick Simon I ran out of fuel in Wyoming one time. It was a pain in the butt but it was summer so at least I didn't freeze to death. These days there's so many truck stops all over the country that you really don't have an excuse to let it run that low unless you drive for a company that tells you when and where you can fuel and they get their math wrong.

 

Not too often. Been very low on fuel.

If I was going to run it dry, it will be at the auction house while idling in line after 10 minutes warming up while draining the last 3 gallons of fuel the cheapstake owner tightfist Inc. Left in the fuel tanks. The result is usually a fuel filter set replacement plus additional fuel at 10.00 gallons billable to the owner right there in the barn.

There is a advantage when modern tractors have a primer that goes with the fuel filter stack where you have to work it for a half hour to refill them manually before cranking engine after loading fresh fuel into the tanks.

Back to low on fuel... I ran out in Roanoke with a E intergrated volvo when the mechanic forgot to open both fuel tanks. He left one closed off at the fuel line on my side. We had just finished 4 days of operations in 10 degree weather which gelled everything in that closed tank. It totally required the TA to dump it all, open the lines, replace the filters and refill with fresh fuel all around.

Another time I was in WI, Madison at the 76 there (That dates me but hang in there) my logs were out of hours until midnight. 5 degrees and a winter storm in progress, dipped the tanks and not much was on the bottom. Shut it off, fired the webco heater in the bunk bulkhead (To burn more of it oh joy...) until midnight. Then fueled the moment the logs said I had hours again. Sat around for 9 hours waiting till then. I blamed ATS for issuing me a truck with like a 140 gallon tank, not the usual 300 gallons in two tanks. Caused me to fuel two or three times a day. Disgusting. I eventually quit them for that reason.

Ever since then I fill at half tanks, or when entering a storm zone I fill whatever it needs just before heading into battle. Im a very expensive boy when it comes to fuel. I think wife and I burned about 85,000 dollars worth over nearabouts 7250 hours in 10 months with FFE as a team.

My last run out was with B&B in Little Rock west, he had a practice that the Paystar 9800 never used a tank for fuel weight purposes and one day I was low, I went ahead and opened it up. Made it to the silo to blow it (Bulk tanker cement) but problems arose when the 10 year old wax filthy fuel made it to the filters the next morning stranding me. They yelled. Eff them. IF they want ballast, put some tractor weights on there from the farm dumbkofts....

 

Had a disgruntled fired driver sugar my tanks going across a delta rd in the fog clog filters no place to pull over.
Luckily another driver got behind me got out a chain and towed me to a pull out.
Detroit 8/93 changed filter got going plugged up again. But got to a safe area.

 

The local truck stop did not take our cards and the closest one was 100 miles away. Either that or put up my cash. Just did not even think about it only having one tank. The other 2 trucks had full left hand tanks.

 

My lead driver ran out while I was in the sleeper. I woke up to see him walking back to the truck with two five gallon cans. He had mixed motor oil with gasoline to make enough diesel to get us to a truck stop on a two-lane road in the hills of Pennsylvania. We were going around the tunnels with a load of explosives.

 

I had vent tube plugged so one side had plenty while the other side
ran out. Frustrating because I actually physically checked fuel level; but
I only looked at the side that had fuel in it.....