What happens when your vehicle runs out of fuel on the road?

It’s a safe bet that everyone’s been in a situation where they’re nowhere close to a gas station and suddenly find their “Low Fuel” light flashing. In most instances, by divine intervention, you’ll find your way to the pump in time, but in those times that it’s too late and you run out… what then? What happens when your vehicle runs out of fuel on the road? The answer is probably less exciting than you’d expect, so let’s jump into it today. 

Processes of your car that stop when it is out of gas 

As with essential components such as motor oil and a battery, your vehicle depends on gasoline to help its engine combust and draw power when you press on the accelerator. When you run out of fuel, your engine can no longer keep up the same amount of energy, so it will shut off virtually immediately.  

However, that doesn’t mean that you’ll come right to a stop abruptly, possibly damaging your transmission, brakes, rotors or suspension. In fact, because of friction and a gradual decrease of torque output to your wheels, your slowdown will be much more gradual, giving you enough time to pull over to the side of the road before your vehicle taps out.  

How to keep your model from running out of fuel  

There’s no magic cure for an empty fuel tank, especially when you’re in the middle of the highway without a fueling station in sight. Still, when you’re going off on longer trips, it’s always a smart idea to take a portable gas tank along with you. These can always be found on the cheap, and some can carry up to two gallons of fuel. That’s more than enough to get you back up and running. In other cases, however, most roadside assistance services will offer fuel delivery if you’re in a pinch.  

More FAQs: How far can you drive your used vehicle when the “Low Fuel” light comes on?

Test drive a fuel efficient used vehicle in Grand Junction CO 

If you’re more of the idea that driving is something you’d rather be doing (as opposed to stopping every so often) then you’re more than welcome to check out our used inventory today at Carville’s Auto Mart. Many of our current models can achieve greater than 30 highway miles per gallon, and we invite you to test drive one of them today!