Fuel Delivery in Orlando, FL

Pull as far onto the shoulder as you can, turn on the hazard lights, and call 911 if the car is still in a travel lane or anyone is hurt. If you are clear of traffic, call the line and give the exit or mile marker.

Exits on SR 417 and SR 528 can sit far apart, and the shoulders are narrow in some places and wide in others. Check the green mile markers or the last exit sign, and tell the operator which direction you were driving, since the operator needs to reach your side of the road. Stay in the car with the seat belt on if the shoulder is close to traffic, and keep doors shut on the traffic side. Florida's Move Over law covers a disabled vehicle with hazard lights on, so passing drivers must change lanes or slow down. Do not stand behind or between cars. If you do get out, exit away from the lane. The toll roads are run by the Central Florida Expressway Authority. Save the call time and your location in your phone.

Road Rangers is an FDOT patrol reached at *FHP (*347) that helps at no charge with limited services such as some gas, a tire change or a move to a safe spot. On the CFX toll roads they work daytime hours.

The patrol covers I-4, I-4 Express, the CFX toll roads and Florida's Turnpike, and the service is a good first call on a highway. Its limits are plain. On the toll roads their hours are daytime, roughly early morning to evening according to the CFX pages, and they do not come to driveways, parking garages, lots or side streets. They carry a small amount of fuel, and the help is limited to what the patrol can do at the roadside. If you ran dry at night, in a neighborhood like Conway or Pine Hills, in a Publix lot or at an apartment complex, a paid roadside line is the way to get fuel. Both can be right on the same trip: try the patrol on a busy day on the highway, and call the line if nobody comes or if it is outside their hours.

The operator brings enough fuel to get you to a station, which is a few gallons rather than a full tank. The amount is set by your car and your distance, and the quote is stated on the call.

A delivery is meant to restart the car and cover the drive to a pump, so the can holds what is needed for that. Tell the operator how far the nearest station is and what route you will drive. On I-4 or the Beachline, the next exit may be a short drive. On the 429 in west Orange County the exits can be spread out. Once the engine starts, drive straight to the station and fill the tank. If the fuel gauge has been on empty for a while, expect the engine to crank for a few extra seconds while the pump fills the lines. The operator can also tell you if that sounds like more than a lack of fuel, such as a bad pump, a clogged filter or a dead battery. A tow is the next step if the car still does not start.

Tell the operator the fuel your car takes before the truck is sent, since gas goes in a gas car and diesel in a diesel, and the two do not mix. If the wrong fuel is already in the tank, do not start the engine.

The fuel type is printed inside the filler door on most cars. Diesel pickups and vans are less common than gas cars around Orlando, but they run into the same empty-tank problem, and the operator needs to bring the right can. A diesel that ran completely dry may need its fuel lines primed before it starts, so mention that when you call. If someone put gas into a diesel tank, or diesel into a gas car, keep the key off and call. Running the engine spreads the wrong fuel through the pump and the injectors, and that repair costs far more than a tow. In that case the operator will talk through a tow to a shop. Never put fuel in a car by pouring from an open container on a busy shoulder; let the operator handle it.

Fuel gauges are estimates, and a hot Florida day, stop-and-go I-4 traffic and a hard air conditioner load can drain the tank faster than the display predicts. The "miles to empty" number is a guess based on recent driving.

That number is built from your recent mileage. After a long highway run it reads high, and when the next stretch is idling in the I-4 crawl near downtown, with the air conditioner blasting, the real figure drops. Fuel pumps in many cars are cooled by the fuel itself, and running low in heat is hard on them. The practical rule is to fill up when the gauge reaches a quarter tank, and to treat the low-fuel light as a time to stop at the next exit. If it already went wrong, the car likely did not break. Fuel brought to the roadside usually fixes it. If the car coughs again after a refill, tell the operator, because a fuel pump might be the culprit.

Yes, a driveway, a garage, an apartment lot or a store parking lot is a normal fuel delivery, and these are the places Road Rangers does not go. Give the operator the address or the lot name when you call.

A car that ran dry at home in Ivanhoe or Hunter's Creek, in the lot at the Florida Mall or in a parking garage near Lake Eola is easier for a truck than a highway, since there is room to work. In a covered garage, mention the level and the height clearance if you know it, since the truck may need to park outside and carry the can in. Leave the filler door unlatched, and have the key for a locking gas cap in hand if the car has one. Wait in a shaded spot or inside the building rather than in a closed car. If the car sat for a long time with an empty tank, old fuel at the bottom can cause trouble, and the operator can tell you what to look out for when it restarts.

An electric car takes no fuel, so fuel delivery does not apply; the answer is a flatbed tow to a charger. The operator needs to know the model so the car is loaded the right way.

A battery that has run to zero cannot be refilled from a can. The usual options are a tow to a public charger or home, or a mobile charge if some service offers it. For this line the plan is a tow, and an electric car is loaded on a flatbed rather than dragged on its drive wheels, since towing with the wheels turning can harm the motors. Check the car's manual or the app for the tow mode, which frees the wheels for loading. Tell the operator if the car is in a garage, if the charge port is stuck, or if the car has a 12-volt battery that has also died, since that can lock the doors. Pick the destination before the truck leaves, and the quote includes the distance to that charger. Plug-in hybrids can run on gas, so a fuel delivery can work for them.

No, stay with the car; walking on a highway or toll road shoulder is more dangerous than the wait, and many toll roads have no pedestrian access at all. Call and let fuel come to you.

Shoulders on I-4 and the toll roads are close to fast traffic, and drivers are often looking at their phones or watching the lane ahead. Heat adds to the risk. Orlando afternoons are hot, and a storm can build fast. If you are stuck and nobody has answered, call (407) 241-2139 to get a quote and a truck, and also try *347 for the patrol. Keep hazard lights on, stay buckled in, and leave your door closed. If the car is in a travel lane, call 911 and stay inside with your seat belt on unless fire or smoke makes it unsafe. If the shoulder is wide and you are well clear of the lane, standing behind the guardrail is safer than standing near the car. The same line handles tire trouble, so mention a flat or a low tire if you see one.