To fuel up or not to fuel up, that is the question.
Sorry to whine but I am going to anyway. Why do people bring their vehicles in to the shop for troubles, very nearly all requiring the vehicle to be road tested before and after repairs and maintenance, with very little fuel in the tank? It is so defeating to get the work order, grab the keys, hook up the scanner, fire up the car and start to pull out only to find the low fuel warning light on next to the fuel gauge needle buried on E.
Let me give you some information about this tricky subject. Now if the car is just getting minor maintenance service (brakes, oil changes, and regular interval service) I wouldn't worry about it too much but please at least have enough fuel for a short road test. If the vehicle just stalled out and won't run at all you might make sure it isn't out of gas completely but you also don't want to fill it up to the brim either! It makes replacing a defective fuel pump harder and more dangerous than fuel handling already inherently is anyway. If you have a "check engine" light (malfunction indicator light or MIL) on the dash it would be ideal to have ½ to ¾ a tank of fuel when you bring it into the garage. Some emission failures involve the evaporative emission system (a system that keeps gas fumes in your car and not in the air) and having more or less gas than described can make testing and verification of the repair literally impossible in some cases.
Remember that a good shop will want to duplicate your complaint, test and diagnose the problem and then road test to verify that your vehicle is properly repaired and that to the best of their ability there aren't any other hidden issues. That process is extremely important for your satisfaction and sometimes even your safety so don't freak out if they put gas in your car and charge you for it. It is your vehicle not theirs and they are most likely just being thorough.
Of course if you see your car in an unmentionable place, involved in a drive by shooting or holding up a bank then go ahead, freak out, call the owner or perhaps even the police and definitely don't pay for any additional fuel!
Hey, sometimes we are busy and just forget in a hurried schedule, but if we work together it will save us all time and money to keep this in mind.
Thank you for letting me take the wheel...
Robert