Fuel Gauge isn't steady

[Amnesia]

Hey all!

I'm hoping someone has been down this road before & has some advice for me. My fuel gauge has been acting up for almost a couple years now. It used to be nice & steady, but one day it started to fluctuate a lot when the vehicle is in motion. The rise & fall of the needle corresponds with turning, vehicle attitude, and apparent fuel sloshing.

I finally broke down & replaced the fuel sending unit, because I had heard that it had a "resistor" in it that dampened this action. I finally got around to swapping them out yesterday and no joy. The problem is still the same.

I wonder if our tank has internal baffles in it that may came loose, but I don't hear anything odd going on inside. Or maybe, the "dampening resistor" is part of the instrument cluster.

Anyway - Hopefully someone on here has some insight they could share!

[H3_VX]

Hey all!

I'm hoping someone has been down this road before & has some advice for me. My fuel gauge has been acting up for almost a couple years now. It used to be nice & steady, but one day it started to fluctuate a lot when the vehicle is in motion. The rise & fall of the needle corresponds with turning, vehicle attitude, and apparent fuel sloshing.

I finally broke down & replaced the fuel sending unit, because I had heard that it had a "resistor" in it that dampened this action. I finally got around to swapping them out yesterday and no joy. The problem is still the same.

I wonder if our tank has internal baffles in it that may came loose, but I don't hear anything odd going on inside. Or maybe, the "dampening resistor" is part of the instrument cluster.

Anyway - Hopefully someone on here has some insight they could share!

I can't really help you out on that yet, but I've noticed that whenever I fill up it takes a while to actually show that I put any gas in it. I know my Isuzu is not a Lambo, but for a car that originally cost $30k or more it has some issues that should not happen in a vehicle that expensive. Don't get me wrong though, I'm in love with the thing.

[VXobsession]

Mine's been fluctuating since I've had her.......turning sharply to the right REALLY drops my gauge, especially if I'm already low.

[vt_maverick]

Mine's been fluctuating since I've had her.......turning sharply to the right REALLY drops my gauge, especially if I'm already low.

+1 - Best (and by far the cheapest) solution is just to reset your trip meter at each fill-up, then learn your VX's average fuel economy and judge by that.

[PittVXr]

I consider my fuel gauge to be a "rough estimate" of how much fuel I have left. Going up and down hill can cause it to move almost a 1/4 of a tank. I just do what vt maverick suggests, reset the trip meter at each fill up and stop at the gas station every 200 miles. Yeah I get 10miles per gallon....

[Scott Larson]

You could have a bad ground strap somewhere, just a thought...

[samneil2000]

I usually fill up at 250 miles and get 16 gallons or so. Not too bad considering I'm running 33 inch MT tires.

[Buffy]

Mine does the same thing. I was considering replacing the sending unit, glad I didn't now.

[Amnesia]

Thanks all for the input. Yeah, I always reset my ODO & use the gauge for a ball-park estimate. It's really pretty accurate when it gets down below 1/4... Thing is, it use to be rock solid & steady. Then one day, it got the floaties! (Like the baffles in the gas tank were removed... asssuming it has internal baffles... baffles me.)

I just finally got tired of watching the needle bob around, and so I'm on the hunt now! I lived with the CEL for most of it's 211,000+ miles & I just recently got that to go away. (Or maybe it burned out?!) lol

Anyway - Still looking for a solution. I'll have to maybe go on a ground strap hunt and see if that helps. In the meantime... If anyone needs a fuel sending unit, I have a spare that I could cut you a deal on!

[tom4bren]

The dancing fuel guage is typical. I just consider it an added entertainment aspect of the VX.

When Boy is driving it, I ask him if he needs gas. His usual response is no ... I've got 1/4, 1/2, 1/4, 1/2 tank.

[VXobsession]

I actually get about 300 miles between fill-ups, sometimes a little less, depending on what kind of driving I'm doing. I noticed the harder and faster I drive her, the better gas mileage I get....yes, I know, that doesn't sound right but it's true. If I'm just farting around, driving the speed limit and being courteous, she sucks up the gas like she's starving for it. My fiance' is a mechanic and he hooked up his fancy expensive scanner to her while I was driving one day. He had an explanation for it, it was right there, on the screen, why she gets better gas mileage the harder I drive her........I don't understand it necessarily, but who actually understands that mechanic language anyway...

[Amnesia]

OK - I discovered that the fuel gauge itself can be replaced w/o replacing the entire cluster assy... For about the same price as I paid for a new fuel sending unit. (Didn't fix my dancing fuel gauge.)

So who wants to be the guinna pig & try this out? $88.55
Here is the p/n & link: 8-97211-467-0
http://myisuzuparts.com/

Then go here to put the p/n in to determine pricing: http://isuzuparts.com/partscat.html

C'mon, I already blew roughly $80 on the fuel sending unit...

[vxnewb]

I had the exact same issue with my 01. It actually drove me nuts, every time I drove it, thats what I stared at. I did a-lot of research on the net on fuel gauges, and found there is a resistor tied into the gauge to damper the quick movement of the sending unit. So I ordered the new Fuel/Temp gauge from Merlin 4/9/13, he informed me it was on back order. I received it 7/30/13. I installed it, took very little time to do so, I also changed a couple bulbs out in the dash while I was in there.

After 2 full tanks, I can confirm that it is fixed!! Every corner I turn, the gauge stays still where it is supposed to be. No more erratic gauge!

Any questions go ahead and ask

[Mile High VX]

Looks to be about a $100 fix...

[vxnewb]

Looks to be about a $100 fix...

yes sir, I can't remember exact price. it really surprised me I had forgotten all about it, until I got the package 4 months later lol.