Fuel Guage Inaccuracies

[offabroadway]

Hey. The fuel guage on an '85 325e... how much play/leeway should it have? Its very difficult to get an accurate reading on my car because it floats around so much... we're talking 1/4 tank differences depending on the direction the car is headed, slopes, angles, fast corners, etc. Guage cluster is a VDO unit. Just wondering if that's usual, and if so, how to keep a good average idea of the gas level in mind?

Thanks.

[e30fanm3]

what ever is the lowest level it shows i would go with just to be safe

[CiscoKid]

reset the trip milege with every fill, after you figure out how far the car will go with a full tank before it runs out, you will know the ballpark of how long you can drive.

[85-325e]

my guage flies around a lot. However, after the car's been sitting for a bit it usually gives a correctish reading.