1st gas report... Funny Gas Gauge...

I just got done with my first tank of gas...<br><br>I filled up 12.4 gallons into the tank, meaning 4 gallons was still left over (gas tank is 16.4 gallons), the car had 236.2 miles on it, making for about 19.04 mpg, better than I had hoped for.<br><br>I do have some quirks with the gas gauge though. Since I've filled up (with 89 octane) I've gotten approx. 60 miles on the new tank and the pin on the gauge says I've already used a quarter tank, wierd. I guess I should be following what the mileage says after a full tank has been used.<br><br>Also, FYI, the squaking and chirping noise has disappeared. No trace of it anymore... I'll be listening for it though.

jmlagasca.geo....The gas gage is weird. It took me a while to get use to it. I'll get 50-60 miles (on average) on the 1st 1/4 tank and then 150 miles or so by the 1/2 tank mark. After that, it will drop slowly to the 3/4 tank mark and then speed up on the last quarter tank. The gas tank must be shaped weird. Small on the top, big in the middle and small on the bottom. Sort of like an out of shape hour glass. Hee hee hee.<br><br>So why are you using 89 octane? I use 87 (like the manual says) whenever I can find it and 88 when I can't. That's usually un-leaded plus which means that we have to pay more than the regular joe for fuel. If you use 89 octane, which is usually a premium grade, you're paying more for a perceived added benefit, which it isn't. Unless your vehicle manual calls for it, adding octane to your fuel doesn't serve any benefit to your engine. It's just wasted money. At least, this is what I've read.........Happy trails!

Thanks for the input pdrddr, as I said I noticed that the gauge is quite odd, I though that it was just designed that way and the quarter tank and three-quarter tank markings were just oddly placed.<br><br>As to the gas, I guess it may be force of habit. I used to run 89 octane on my last car (a 93 saturn coupe) and got really good results with it. Due to the trend in most auto engines, I've come to learn that they run more proficiently and cleanly on gas with higher octanes (the higher octane used = the more horsepower being used). Seeing that 87 octane is cheaper, I'll switch (my manual does say to use 87)!