Fuel reads E when full

[Mike Cardillo]

I just purchased a brand new Scarab 165 G (2016 model). Got it out for the first time this past weekend and the fuel kept reading empty. When I originally picked up the boat the dealer noticed it said empty and he mentioned they don't fill the tank but he was surprised it was empty. So I filled it before putting it in the water and it took 10 gallons (20 gallon tank). I wondered right away if there was a problem since it clearly should not have read empty at the dealer. Sure enough during the maiden voyage the gauge read empty and the low fuel warning kept going off every few minutes.

Before I take this back to the dealer (which is a pain)...I thought I would check here and see if anyone had any quick things to check. I saw one note about letting the gauges cycle through everything before starting the engine. I will try that tonight when I get home. Any other thoughts? Is it possible the float is just stuck and will free itself after some use?

Thanks!

 

[ALAN MANN SR.]

That will have to be dealt with your Dealer when you take it in for the 25 hour service. It should not have been given to you that way. Did you sea trial it before you took it?

 

[Mike Cardillo]

Dealer is not on the water so no...we did not do a sea test. Thanks for the response.

 

[Steelerville]

May not be the same problem but when I use non ethanol fuel my gauge stops working. When I do use ethanol, which is all the time since the motors are designed for ethanol. The fuel gauge works fine.

 

[Murf'n'surf]

Start with checking that the fuel tank sensor is plugged into the harness at the tank. There should be an access through the floor somewhere.

 

[Mike Cardillo]

Thanks for the responses. I did check the harness to make sure it was plugged in - it is. I might also try to remove the cap it is plugged into to see if the float is somehow just stuck. I also checked the wires inside the dash to make sure nothing was hanging loose.

Interesting comment on the fuel Steelerville. I did use ethanol free in my fill up. Might be worth trying a tank of fuel with ethanol.

 

[Murf'n'surf]

There is probably not a float but an aluminum tube with resistors inside that gauge the liquid level.

Some of these fuel senders will peg full if there is water in the bottom of the tank. That's not your issue but noted as info.

 

[Coheeba]

Take it back and get a Yammy, just joking. Do you have any other electronics not working. May be a fuse. Congrats on the new boat and sorry for your issues.

 

[Ron@Scarab]

Well since you guys are done guessing,...here goes. Take it back to your dealer since it's their fault for not doing something about it in the first place before they gave it to you. It is a part of the PDI that they have to sign off on before they give you the boat. Secondly, The fuel level float has been known to get stuck when the tank is full--it wedges itself between the tank. It is usually due to the float itself rotating on the shaft (it's not supposed to rotate). It has to be replaced permanently.

 

[Mike Cardillo]

Thanks guys. By the way...I figured I would end up taking it to the dealer sooner or later but in the interest of not wasting 1/2 day doing that I thought I would check here. Took it in this morning. They were able to fix it pretty quick. The float was oriented in the wrong direction which causes it to hit the side of the tank and not float. Changed orientation and now all is good. They were quite apologetic although sounds like it was a factory thing (which they should have noticed when gauge said E). 1/2 day gone. Boat fixed. Now we just need all the rain to stop. Thank you for your help.