Q: The stated fuel capacity of my wife's 2013 Honda Pilot is 21.0 gallons. This morning I filled it with 22.147 gallons of gas, even though the low-fuel light hadn't come on. Is the pump mis-calibrated, which results in me being overcharged by several dollars on a fill-up, or is the gas tank larger than advertised? And is there a point beyond which I shouldn't squeeze more fuel into the vehicle?

A: In reverse order of your questions, stop refueling after the automatic cutoff shuts off the fuel flow. Round off your purchase to the nearest dime, then stop. Continuing to add fuel as the shutoff repeatedly clicks off could overfill the tank, specifically the vapor recovery system. This system includes a small, separate tank-within-a-tank in many vehicles, plus a charcoal canister and its plumbing. The Evaporative Emissions System is designed to capture and collect fuel vapors from the tank, store them in the canister and then upon start-up, introduce them into the induction system through an evap valve. You may also be filling the fuel filler neck, which is not part of the rated capacity of the tank, so this may be confusing the issue a bit.

Could the pump be inaccurate? I know they show an annual state certification, but I'll admit I've wondered the same question many times in the past. We have a 2010 Passat that I often seem to fill with more than it should hold — even without "fuel packing!"

It would be interesting to see if the state would re-inspect/test the pump for accuracy. Boy, wouldn't that open a huge can of worms if it wasn't!

Q: In March I had the oil changed on my 2007 Saturn Ion. A few weeks later the oil light came on so I returned to the same garage. The mechanic said it was down a quart and added one quart of oil. Last month I had the oil changed at another neighborhood garage. After changing the oil, the garage owner showed me the antifreeze overflow container that was filled with what looked like thick butterscotch pudding. He said it looked like someone had mistakenly added oil to the antifreeze. He said the hoses would become brittle and to prevent a roadside emergency if they popped off I had all the hoses replaced at a cost of more than $650.

When I talked to the owner of the first garage, he could not explain why there was oil in the coolant. He stated without a doubt that his guys would not have made that mistake. He suggested that the problem happened because there were 7,300-plus miles between oil changes. How could this put oil in the antifreeze? As a consumer how can I sort out the story and get financial help with a problem caused by human error?

A: I can't help but wonder why the oil light would not have come on again if the quart of oil was added to the coolant reservoir. Or why some other mechanical issue didn't develop over the months of driving with the contamination. And since Saturn recommends oil/filter changes every 7,500 miles under normal driving conditions, your mileage between changes would not cause the contamination. Why did the second shop wait until after the oil change to show you the contaminated coolant? I think the second shop owner was a bit premature in suggesting an immediate change of all the hoses. I'd have suggested first checking for oil/transmission fluid contamination due to mechanical issues like head gasket failure, cracked block or cylinder head or a leak from the transmission cooler section of the radiator into the coolant. If none were found, a complete chemical flush of the cooling system along with a new thermostat and the new hoses would then be in order.

Since either shop could have been responsible, obtaining any financial relief will be difficult unless one of the shops accepts responsibility.