Starting Fuel is fixed

[Sue46]

You can now enter partial tanks of fuel again in the Starting Fuel option.

[chriscowles]

Hi. The app no longer crashes but the fill amount doesn’t update automatically. My expectation was that the fill amount would update dynamically as the route leading up to the stop changed.

I tested it by adding a stop for a fill, checked the box, then dragged the route before that to a ridiculous distance. The arrival fuel amount correctly calculated to a negative amount. Obviously I'd have at least 0 when I coasted into the station but that's not the issue. What I expected was for the refill amount to update to the max tank capacity. It didn't.

If that’s not what it's supposed to do, it doesn’t add much. I could already type “99” as a fill amount and the app would recalculate the maximum I could add, limited by the capacity of the tank. The problem is that it’s a one-time static calculation. Changing the route didn't change the fill amount. I thought the “fill tank” option would make updates automatically?

[Mike8253]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

Hi. The app no longer crashes but the fill amount doesn’t update automatically. My expectation was that the fill amount would update dynamically as the route leading up to the stop changed.

I tested it by adding a stop for a fill, checked the box, then dragged the route before that to a ridiculous distance. The arrival fuel amount correctly calculated to a negative amount. Obviously I'd have at least 0 when I coasted into the station but that's not the issue. What I expected was for the refill amount to update to the max tank capacity. It didn't.

If that’s not what it's supposed to do, it doesn’t add much. I could already type “99” as a fill amount and the app would recalculate the maximum I could add, limited by the capacity of the tank. The problem is that it’s a one-time static calculation. Changing the route didn't change the fill amount. I thought the “fill tank” option would make updates automatically?

I think this Top Off Fuel button is designed to require the user's input. It's an easy, single click vs. number input to fill your tank, it's a feedback mechanism to verify what you've done, and the user's input is required to assure that he's not violated any pre-set constraints (such as more fuel upload than the capacity of your tank). A set and forget button, currently, would not assure that the results of the auto fuel upload wouldn't be nonsensical. You'll note, also, that when you leave your trip and then return, none of the Top Off Fuel buttons are illuminated anymore.

It is interesting to note, however, that there is not anything in the current setup to prevent auto-calculating a fuel upload quantity that is more than the established capacity of the fuel tank. I've induced calculations of well over 100 gallons of fuel for my 80-gallon tank using the Top Off Fuel button. So, I do think there is a need to add a dynamic limit to the calculation that prevents fuel upload that is more than the capacity of the fuel tank.

[Sue46]

This has been reported.

[Sue46]

Response: Fueling has always worked this way(which it has). All the numbers work out in the end but it is hard to wrap our brains around this.

[Mike8253]

Originally Posted by Sue46

Response: Fueling has always worked this way(which it has). All the numbers work out in the end but it is hard to wrap our brains around this.

"Fueling has always worked this way..." Agreed. Previously, you had to do the fuel-add calculation yourself, then the self-correct function was included for those of us who couldn't add. And finally, you got lots of input to add the functionality to just punch a button to auto-calculate. Now it's quick, efficient and "mindless". The impact is just the placement of the next fill-up warning if you overfill. Maybe that doesn't call for a caution. You all can make that judgment. But Murphy says it's going to happen.

[chriscowles]

Originally Posted by Sue46

Response: Fueling has always worked this way(which it has). All the numbers work out in the end but it is hard to wrap our brains around this.

So is the trip off fuel button simply a quick way to calculate the max amount to fill and does not update as the route changes? If so, nothing changed. You could already do that by typing in your total tank capacity. The app adjusts down to account for what you already have in the tank.

[Mike8253]

Originally Posted by chriscowles

So is the trip off fuel button simply a quick way to calculate the max amount to fill and does not update as the route changes? If so, nothing changed. You could already do that by typing in your total tank capacity. The app adjusts down to account for what you already have in the tank.

I think the real question you've actually posed is whether the Top Off Button should be in Settings (Default and/or Trip) vs. at each Gas Stop, because if you want the button to automatically recalculate for prior route adjustments, by default, you'd want that recalc to cascade thru every subsequent Gas Stop. And then you'd have to check every subsequent route segment to see if the impact of the recalc is acceptable to your existing plan. Depending on the # of routing adjustments you make and the size of your tank (the smaller the tank the greater the potential planning impact), if you don't recheck everything, you could find yourself being surprised.

My personal preference is to use the Button per stop, and then plan subsequent stops accordingly. I never add gas stops (my preference) to a trip until I have the trip essentially set first, otherwise I'd be uselessly churning establishing/removing Gas Stops thru the whole process. So, for that reason, I value the quick click 1-time fuel upload function of the Button instead of having to key the numbers in (I'm an older guy thankful to be able to minimize any key strokes), and I really don't see auto-recalc as a net effort saver. JMO.