How low can you go?

When you have a truck driving job, it can often times seem that you don’t have one second to spare. Those times when you are running late to drop a load and are so close to the yard you can almost see it, one of the last things you want to have to do is stop for fuel. So, you run a quick assessment in your head- is the tank really that empty? How empty can it go before it dies? How low have I been able to make it before?

Based on these questions, you make a decision. Do you take the time to stop and get fuel or do you push it? To help you make the right decision, here are some facts that you may not know about driving with low fuel.
The most obvious fact is that by pushing your fuel levels you are setting yourself up to stall. You need fuel to keep your truck running the way it needs to. Your engine needs to be able to burn fuel and without it, all the engine gets is air. With nothing but air running through your engine, it is easy for your filters and valves to get clogged.

Your breaks will also feel heavier when you are low on fuel. This is definitely a big problem when you are driving a small vehicle, let alone a huge diesel truck. Depending on your momentum and the size and weight of your truck, you might find it impossible to stop when you need to.

You can also lose power steering if you run out of fuel. If you do this, you might find yourself strong-arming your truck’s movements. By running too low on fuel, you can also damage your fuel injectors. The fuel injectors need fuel for lubrication and cooling. If there is no fuel to inject, you may find that your injector overheats.

As you can see, running low on fuel is not a laughing matter and doing it too often can cost you some serious money. You may think that you know how far your truck can go, but do not take the risk. It is too easy to stall when low on fuel, especially if you go up or down a hill and your fuel shifts from one end of the tank to the other.

Running low on fuel is serious, particularly in the trucking industry. With a truck driving job, you are responsible for your load and if you are late to drop a load because you tried to push it and ran out of fuel, you can be sure that your superiors will not be happy.

Do not risk it. Running out of fuel can be dangerous and expensive. If you notice your truck is low, take the time to fill it up. After all, stopping for a few minutes to fill your tank is better than stopping for an hour because you ran out of fuel. Don’t wait to see how low you can go. Instead ask yourself, do you really want to know?