Hey guys,
I've been having some issues with my fuel gauge on my '96. I'll fill it right up, then I will drive maybe 10 km, then it will be down to 3/4 or even half, now I know that my back tank does siphon to the front,so when it isn't full it siphons until it is. However, today on my way into school, I had in between half and a quarter tank, as I drove more it was steadily decreasing until I finally got to campus where both tanks were on the red line. Moral of the story, I've never seen a gas light come on, and I'm not sure how far I can push it, because I'm not sure if its actually empty or if my gauge is messed! Anybody have any suggestions? Thanks!

 

No dummy lights, more than likely your sending unit is shot-common problem when the tanks start cross-filling. Best course of action is to replace both pump assemblies. Limp around: If tanks only X-fill to front then just use the front tank, keep track of miles driven and go by 10mpg, if you put in 10 gallons refill after 100 miles. This is probably lower than what you get so every once in a while you will end up with a full tank on which you can go 200 miles on then start your counting over again. My last truck had a bad gauge and I drove it like that for 4 years.

Another insurance measure would be to drop a gallon or two in the rear every time and just use the front tank, if rear ever gets full then just run it empty. With dual tanks you shouldn't ever be concerned about running completely out of gas.

 

Fill it up, drive it till it says half, go back and fill it up again.Just to see what actually happened. Then run it down to almost empty and take it back and fill it. Just to see how much you actually used. Throw a jerry can of gas in the back and see how far it'll take you on empty.
It could be the sending unit, or it could be a voltage problem, I would guess the dash switch or a bad ground.
If it's the sending unit, you have to drop the tank and pull the pump, so you maybe want to eliminate everything else first.