It’s a question that plagues every driver: Just how far can you drive with your car’s “fuel empty” light illuminated? The detailed answer depends on all sorts of variables like the age and model of your car, how much weight you’re carrying, and what kind of driving you’re doing.
The more fun answer is “Find out the hard way!”. The results are a little less than scientific, though.
Of course, the major question in play asks when the car’s fuel light comes on in the first place. Sure, driving conditions and number of passengers will affect your car’s range after the light comes on, but if you can pinpoint how much gas is left in the tank when the warning appears, you can at least ballpark what sort of range you’ve got left.
Some folks have estimated that most cars’ “empty” lights come on once the gas level dips below an eighth of a tank or so, but some have also advocated driving until the light comes on, then immediately stopping to fill all the way up, and then comparing how much fuel your car took with the tank’s capacity published in your owner’s manual.
Once you repeat this process a few times, you should have a pretty good estimate of how much gas is left.
If you’re a bit more daring, you can always try the tactic consumer reporter John Stossel employed for a 2008 piece for ABC’s 20/20. Stossel got behind the wheel of his minivan and drove until he ran out of gas. He ended up making it 65 miles after his gas dial claimed the car was empty, including 40 miles after his van’s computerized estimate of its remaining fuel range hit zero.
The biggest challenge here is that no matter what, as of the time of publishing, this place still has an empty tank and you won't be able to fill up anything except maybe some fresh air into your lungs with getting out and grabbing this cache. :)