Hi Mike,

The red area on a VW gauge indicates you are on your last 4 gallons.
It's been that way ever since the first gauges were added to beetles
and buses in the 60's.

If you're adding 11 gallons when you hit the red zone, the gauge is
operating correctly.

Happy Trails,

Greg Potts
1973/74/75/77/79 Westfakia "Bob the Tomato"
www.pottsfamily.ca/westfakia
www.busesofthecorn.com

On 22-Oct-06, at 9:50 AM, Mike Collum wrote:

> When I got my '85 Westy, the gas gauge didn't work at all.  No
> movement,
> no wiggle, nada.
>
> When I dropped the tank to replace hoses and grommets I replaced the
> sender, too.  The old one had worn slick where the wiper rides.
>
> With the new sender, when I fill up completely, the gauge reads
> "Almost"
> full and drops to 3/4 tank after about 25 miles.  The needle then
> slows
> as it moves toward empty reaching the red area about when I need 11 or
> so gallons.  Of course, I still rely heavily on the odometer,
> especially
> when traveling.
>
> I'd say I either have some poor connections (signal and/or ground) or
> the gauge itself is faulty.  I haven't checked the voltage
> regulator but
> the temp gauge seems to behave as it should.  Anyway, having the gas
> gauge work at all is better than it was when I got it.
>
> Mike