just got back from trying to fill up my brand new honda civic for the first time. Every time I pulled the handle on the gas pump it would pump for about 1 second and then click off, eventually spilling gas on my car. Any idea? Seems like a tank venting issue or something? thx.
Scott
It may just be the way you are holding the nozzle or try a different station, but I think you may be right and there may well be a problem with the vent system.
…and the solution to the problem is spelled w-a-r-r-a-n-t-y.
Take it back to the dealership and explain the problem. Keep records of their repair attempts.
In most states they are allowed a total of 3 repair attempts for the same defect before the Lemon Law kicks in. Hopefully they will fix it before you have to resort to that legal step.
Problem with a brand new car? Go back to the dealer and let them deal with it. That’s what warranties are for.
OMG - you won’t believe it. At night, when you have your lights on in the new 2009 honda civic lx-s, and you’re looking at your fuel guage in the dashboard, it doesn’t show you like a green line with all the dots or lines full when your tank is full. It actually appears like it’s empty because the only thing that shows up is a red dot or dash next to the empty indicator. So I thought the tank was empty when actually, my wife had just filled it up. So the problem was the tank was full!!
The other problem is that you have not yet read the Owner’s Manual.
Unless you take the time to read that manual, this is just the beginning of mistakes and misunderstandings that you will encounter with the car.
The first things that you need to familiarize yourself with are the sections on gauges and warning lights (obviously!), and controls. Then, you should read about things like tire changing and periodic maintenance. Over the first month, you should be able to digest the entire tome in your spare time.
I can tell you that I periodically re-read certain sections of my manual in order to make sure that I know what I am doing. A perfect example is a few months ago when my compass suddenly decided that I was always driving eastward. About 1 minute with the manual allowed me to refresh my understanding of how to reset the car’s compass.
No matter how many years you have been driving, you are going to discover some things that are unique about your new car. It is much better for you to discover them in the manual than accidentally, on the road.
Have you tried more than one pump? It may have been a bad fuel pump that needs service. If the problem repeats itself on many pumps, take it in to the dealership. If there is a problem with the car, they can fix it under warranty. If there is nothing wrong with the car, you may have to pay a diagnostic fee.
Whitey
Re-read the thread!
It turns out that the OP did not know how to read the gas gauge, and the tank was actually FULL!
(I guess that the next question that we can anticipate from the OP is, “How can I get these gasoline stains off of my fender?”.)
Yes, I saw that after I replied.
I never though I would see a car that requires you to read a manual before you can understand the fuel gauge. We aren’t smart enough to separate driving and text messaging, but now the dashboard display is more complicated than the one on the space shuttle? Something tells me my next car won’t be a Honda.
It sounds to me like the problem was a cockamaimy design by Honda. I’ll defend the OP on this one even of he didn’t read the owner’s manual. There should be some semblence of intuition built into gage design.
Perhaps it was designed by the same graduate of the University of Rube Goldberg that designed the way my daughter’s headlight bulbs are mounted in her Civic.
Perhaps it was the genius that designed the I-drive for BMW and he now works for Honda. Let’s hope not.
Kudos to the OP for admitting the mistake and for posting back to let us know.
Rough crowd.
The BMW i-Drive designer now works for Honda? Please tell me this is not true.
MB, guys don’t write OMG,that a girl talking. I see the wife part,maybe some guys do write OMG.