Petrol light on new Ford fiesta Zetec

bamblolo

Hi i have recently purchased a new Ford Fiesta Zetec and was wondering if i have to activate the petrol warning light? On my last Fiesta it came on automatically when you only had 50 miles of petrol left. My new one does not appear to have any warning at all. Do i need to do something to activate it? Any help appreciated

worried_jim

To activate simply run the tank down to about 8 litres.

bamblolo

thanks for that but my point is i have run it down but no warning light comes on.

worried_jim

Do you have a warning light?

Ultrasonic

bamblolo wrote: »

thanks for that but my point is i have run it down but no warning light comes on.

What makes you confident you've used enough petrol that the warning light should have come on? How big is the fuel tank (check the manual if you don't know) and how much fuel did the tank take when you filled it up?

I struggle to believe that Ford would build a car without a low fuel warning light, or one that needs to be 'activated'. It could be faulty, although my bet is you simply haven't used enough fuel to trigger it.

Ultrasonic

Page 62 of this Fiesta manual shows that it should have a low fuel level warning light and says nothing I can see quickly about a need to activate it.

http://www.motorcraftservice.com/pubs/content/~WODFCN/~MGB~LEN/pdf/GBEN13FCNog1e.pdf

You should get an audible tone as well as the warning light coming on. Page 66 says this should happen when there is 6 L of fuel left.

Edit: replaced US manual with UK one.

mgdavid

have you run out of fuel yet? if not then how do you know how low you got?

agrinnall

Mine comes on with between 40 and 50 miles left to go. Could be as simple as a faulty bulb (or LED, or whatever it is these days). As you've bought it new take it back to be fixed under warranty, maybe at a point when you would expect the light to have come on.

I should also say that it beeps as well, has yours done that? If not then perhaps it's a faulty sensor.

SLITHER99

It's odd reading this post!

I used one at work last week (a 62 plate 1.0 liter jobby). The needle was all the way down when I took off, but as no light appeared and given the fleet manager's endorsement of "there's tonnes of fuel in it", I just figured that I had tonnes of fuel, maybe the gauge was broken with there being no petrol light on and carried on pootling away, thinking nothing of it.

I thought a bunch more of it when I had to push it off the main road into a side road when it did run out of fuel. If hindsight be the King of all knowledge, then call me a numpty! I mean, who the hell runs out of fuel anymore!?

I had plenty time to formulate an inspiring riposte to our fleet manager as I hiked off to the nearest petrol station, though I knew it wouldn't exactly be nearly as impressive as it sounded in my head!

But, nope, no petrol light! I only mention as it's odd reading your post about exactly the same thing! Being a base model, I just assumed after that it just didn't have one and that maybe it was an option for the higher models only? LOL. Hell, I know how it sounds and I can see the space where it should have been, but you never know what Ford will option-ise these days!

However, upon throwing £30 of fuel in, I was rather pleased with the enchanting and authoritative swish of the petrol gauge as it proudly demonstrated it's now near half-tank capacity; evidently the petrol gauge worked perfectly; a fine feat of engineering if I ever saw one - what will they think of next?!

Of course, the fleet manager would have none of it, but whatever. I'm wiser now for it!

Ultrasonic

^^^^^^
Thanks for posting. Out of interest, have you or the fleet manager contacted Ford to check that there really isn't meant to be a low fuel warning light on the model you drove, rather than this being a fault?

As you point out, low fuel warning lights are in no way necessary given the presence of the fuel gauge that we all somehow coped with in the past. I would though be interested to know if Ford really have decided the warning light (and sound) are 'luxury' items missed off from the base model.

SLITHER99

Ultrasonic wrote: »

^^^^^^
Thanks for posting. Out of interest, have you or the fleet manager contacted Ford to check that there really isn't meant to be a low fuel warning light on the model you drove, rather than this being a fault?

As you point out, low fuel warning lights are in no way necessary given the presence of the fuel gauge that we all somehow coped with in the past. I would though be interested to know if Ford really have decided the warning light (and sound) are 'luxury' items missed off from the base model.

Nope, I handed the keys in and have had no cause to ask about it or borrow it again. You could always just run it back to the dealership?