What's the Fuel Tank Reserve on the Santa Fe?

I’ve had my 24 hybrid Santa Fe for a few months now, and I’ve noticed that despite having a fuel tank size of 17.7 gallons, I’ve never added more than 15 gallons to the tank.

On my old car, when you got close to 0 miles remaining, a fill-up actually gave close to the fuel tank capacity.

From what I can tell, the Santa Fe has a “virtual” reserve tank and removes somewhere between 1-2 gallons when calculating mileage left, as well as the % remaining in the app.

It seems after you run it down to 0 miles, the hybrid should be able to go another 30-60 miles. Has anyone tested this?

So I’ve noticed that when the low fuel warning light comes on, I have about 15-17 litres remaining when I fill up. That’s somewhere north of 22% of the fuel tank capacity that is remaining. I will say I think the fuel tank on this thing is way too small.

@Amelia
The gas version probably has slightly below-average range for its size class in the US, though really nothing too out of the ordinary. The hybrid is probably well above average in terms of range.

Europe tends to have more efficient cars with smaller engines, so the Santa Fe is probably less range competitive across the pond.

@StephieStephie
300 to 350 on a single tank. Not that bad. That’s city driving too, so probably much better on the highway.

madisonwilson said:
@StephieStephie
300 to 350 on a single tank. Not that bad. That’s city driving too, so probably much better on the highway.

I get almost 400 miles out of mine. 60% highway/40% city. Right now my Low Fuel notification came on as I got to work. I’m at 363 miles. Says I still have 38 miles until empty.

@Amelia
For the hybrid, I feel like the gas tank is a good size, but I could see that for the non-hybrid. With hybrid, I should be able to easily get over 500 miles or 800 kilometers. That feels like plenty.

@Steve
I’m hitting about 960 km with the hybrid. It’s great.

@Amelia
If your warning light is coming on and you still have 15-17 litres, then something is wrong; take it in to the dealer.

@Amelia
The warning light is a computed estimate of how much further you can drive based on fuel remaining and current fuel efficiency (plus probably more magic). It doesn’t represent how much gas is left in the tank; it’s a warning that you have enough gas for around another 30-50 miles / 50-80 km. For example, if you are driving up a hill or into a strong headwind, there will be more gas in the tank when the light comes on compared to driving downhill or with a strong tailwind.

My Ford Flex got around 14 mpg city / 26 mpg highway. That meant in the city when the light came on warning me I had ~50 miles left, there was ~3.5 gallons in the tank. On the highway, it was ~2 gallons.

You shouldn’t run the tank to empty anyway. Keep it above 1/8th and save yourself any fuel pump issues.

britney said:
You shouldn’t run the tank to empty anyway. Keep it above 1/8th and save yourself any fuel pump issues.

Hopefully this doesn’t double post. I agree running on fumes is not good practice, though whether or not there is a reserve impacts knowing when you have 1/8th of a tank left.

@StephieStephie
Just go to 1/8 on the gauge and not worry about it.

britney said:
@StephieStephie
Just go to 1/8 on the gauge and not worry about it.

I mean that’s fine, but what I was getting at is whether or not you fill up at 1/8th or at empty, you still lose 30-60 miles of range regardless of your SOP. I agree, not everyone cares about having less range.

I got 580 miles on a tank in my hybrid. Didn’t mean to, but it happened. Love this thing.

Miltan said:
I got 580 miles on a tank in my hybrid. Didn’t mean to, but it happened. Love this thing.

Mine shows 577 miles, but reality is about 524 miles before the fuel warning lights up. Now when full, it only shows 544 miles range. I’m getting an average of 31 mpg after 3800 miles on my hybrid. It’s not that great compared to other reported mpg. I normally get about 32 mpg, if lucky 34 mpg. Otherwise, anything from 26-29 mpg are most frequent. I use mainly eco mode driving.