If you are one of those who use cars as a means of daily transportation, you will probably encounter at least once a car won’t start right away after getting gas. This situation causes you to miss appointments, be late for work, and sometimes miss a few other essential things.
Surely you will be very frustrated, and you decide to find out what causes your car to have this problem.
However, you still haven’t found a satisfactory answer to your question. Don’t worry, and this article will detail 7 main reasons your car won’t start right away after getting gas. Find out now:
Car Won’t Start after Getting Gas

Here are the common reasons why your car won’t start after refueling.
Generator malfunction
One of the top reasons why your car won’t start is problems with the alternator. Generators are responsible for storing electrical energy and are the components that help generate electricity for your vehicle.
Moreover, it also has the function of helping to increase the engine for headlights, levers, or some related engines. In general, the generator acts as a vehicle charging system.
Thus, it can be that the generator plays a significant role, so when it fails, undoubtedly, the car starters are also affected, and of course, it may cause your car not to start.
Faulty fuel pump
Next, when your car won’t start, the cause you can think of is the fuel pump. The fuel pump plays an essential role in helping to regulate the pressure of the fuel, helping to promote the control process and start the vehicle.
Not only that, but the pump is also responsible for supplying fuel from the combustion chamber and dividing it to the engines so that the car can run smoothly.
So make sure that when the fuel pump fails or works poorly, it will be difficult for your car to start even though you have filled the tank with gas.
Fuel filter clogged
The purpose of the fuel filter in a car is to clean the oil before it reaches the engine. This work will undoubtedly leave the filter with a lot of dust or dirt and debris that will cause the filter to clog, and eventually, the most serious, to fail.
When the engine filter is damaged and clogged like that, the fuel injectors will not receive oil from the filter, which means poor engine performance, and of course, it is also the reason you have filled up with gasoline but still does not cause the car to start up.
Dead battery
One of the reasons your car is full of gas but still cannot start is a dead battery or a corroded battery. This is more common if you use an old car. Sometimes you also forget that you need to check the battery life.
In fact, the battery seems to be a less important factor, and you only check it when it shows some signs of malfunction.
Usually, the battery life of a new car will be about 3 years or more, the minimum and 6 years the maximum. In the case of buying a used car, the battery life will be less.
So if your vehicle has been purchased for a long time and it suddenly won’t start even with gas, you can determine the cause is in the car battery and go to the nearest repair shop to have it replaced.
Of course, you can buy the correct battery and replace it yourself. However, this operation requires you to understand positive and negative batteries.
Poor engine performance
Poor engine performance is the most recognizable cause compared to those mentioned earlier.
Usually, for motor-related problems, if it is malfunctioning or performing poorly, it will stop immediately or continue running but with a few clicking sounds every time the lock is started.
It may be because the engine is not engaged with the flywheel. And, of course, your car won’t start even though it’s filled with gas.
In addition, poor engine performance is also often encountered in conditions related to engine light.
Therefore, you need to go to a reputable repair center to ensure that you will not confuse these two conditions.
Exhaust gas recirculation jam
Exhaust gas recirculation controls emissions and stores harmful fuel vapors into a canister before entering the intake manifold for combustion on fire.
However, if the exhaust gas is too large and the air circulation is stuck, it will accumulate in the electric machine causing the engine to flood. So even if you have filled the gas tank, the car still cannot start.
At this time, you need to press the gas pedal to open the throttle body and help fill in the necessary air for combustion.
Wheel lock
Ultimately the cause may lie in the wheel lock. Some users often forget that they are locking the cake to prevent theft.
So when you have not turned off the wheel lock mode, that means you will not be able to turn the key to start the car even if you have refueled.
However, this is easy to fix because you need to move the wheel from left to right during the turn of the key, and you can start to start the steering wheel and move.
FAQs
A few frequently asked questions by most users that will probably provide you with helpful information:
Can too much gas cause a car not to start?
Usually, to function at its best, the car engine needs sufficient air and fuel to operate. If you overfill with energy, your carburetor will be flooded with power, and the car will not start properly.
Why is my car not starting straight away?
There are two common reasons why a car doesn’t start up right away: battery or starting problems.
However, among those two reasons, many users said they often encountered a situation where the car did not start due to a problem with the operation process. When your vehicle doesn’t start, think about fuel or spark problems.
Why does my car won’t start right away after getting gas?
Common causes include:
- Worn-out igniters (usually coils and spark plugs).
- Vacuum leaks.
- Low fuel conditions.
- Leaky injectors.
- Under-compressed vehicles.
Conclusion
Finally, before ending, I hope you can understand why cars won’t start right away after getting gas that the article has provided very clearly and thoroughly.
In general, it is impossible to say with certainty that this condition is all due to the reasons mentioned above. Still, according to our years of experience, these are the most common and common reasons.