Just got my second Protege last week, a '94 DX, which still has the original manual. Says in there that the Protege has a 14.5 gallon tank, which I couldn't believe.

My previous Pro was a '92, and I never put more than 11 gallons in it. As soon at the fuel light comes on, I'm at the pump. Today, same thing--put 11.2 gallons in the '94. Do these little wonders of automotive engineering really have 14.5 gallon tanks? Has anyone ever put more than 11 gallons in their Pro? I'm wondering how far I can push it before filling up. Thanks.

 

well the 1st gen has a 14gallon capacity tank and the fuel light comes on with about a 4 gallon reserve. Which is less than a 1/4 tank.

but if you have a guage like mine (kinda broken) then you have fuel untill 1/2 way, then it just drops to empty....so i just wait for the fuel light to come on now i do have another guage, but damned if i can find time to swap it.

 

Thanks for the responses, guys. The light in my '94 comes on at just below 1/4, but now I know I can squeeze a little more out of a tank if necessary.

This Protege is my third Mazda (also had an '85 RX-7), and I'm hooked. The interiors seem to hold up better than most cars, they're generally very tight (even with 143K), and they're not bad lookers, either.

 

The one time I ran out of gas in my '90, I put 14.1 gals in to fill it up. My record fill for not running out of gas is 13.86 gals.

On trips, typically I fill up within 30 miles of the light coming on, which is usually about 12.5 gals or so. On my most recent trip, I stretched that out a bit, putting in 13.5+ gals twice.