Flame on! Unleaded in an 07 Espace diesel, lil help.
Discussion
Flame proof pants in place.
Took my folks to the airport in their Espace instead of my thirsty Subaru leggy spec B. I'm collecting them on Sunday, so fueled up the Espace 2 days ago. It was showing a range of 80 miles left in the tank (no analogue displays). My off school and puking boy in the car etc. I was distracted and put £40 of fuel in the car.
Yesterday it didn't want to start in the cold which I put down to the weather but got going and drove a total of maybe 30 miles, it was running rough but I didn't put 2 and 2 together.
This morning it wouldn't start, and the battery died almost immediately. I instantly realised what I had done.
Options, the fuel inlet is a funny looking set up, is syphoning off what's in the tank and replacing with diesel a good idea?
How about topping the tank up with diesel and blasting it through on the jump leads, I think it will start with enough juice and run rough, will this do any long term damage.
We are in the AA but I understand they charge members £200 odd to drain and dispose which I'd like to avoid.
What do you think chaps, any advice mixed in with the abuse welcome.
Took my folks to the airport in their Espace instead of my thirsty Subaru leggy spec B. I'm collecting them on Sunday, so fueled up the Espace 2 days ago. It was showing a range of 80 miles left in the tank (no analogue displays). My off school and puking boy in the car etc. I was distracted and put £40 of fuel in the car.
Yesterday it didn't want to start in the cold which I put down to the weather but got going and drove a total of maybe 30 miles, it was running rough but I didn't put 2 and 2 together.
This morning it wouldn't start, and the battery died almost immediately. I instantly realised what I had done.
Options, the fuel inlet is a funny looking set up, is syphoning off what's in the tank and replacing with diesel a good idea?
How about topping the tank up with diesel and blasting it through on the jump leads, I think it will start with enough juice and run rough, will this do any long term damage.
We are in the AA but I understand they charge members £200 odd to drain and dispose which I'd like to avoid.
What do you think chaps, any advice mixed in with the abuse welcome.
I'm afraid that driving for 30 miles will have done some major irreversible damage.
I was told by an AA man that you can get away with topping it up if you only put about £5-£10 worth but some cars are more sensitive than others.
£40 worth and 30 miles will be an expensive trip to the garage I'm afraid.
I was told by an AA man that you can get away with topping it up if you only put about £5-£10 worth but some cars are more sensitive than others.
£40 worth and 30 miles will be an expensive trip to the garage I'm afraid.
My dad dropped nearly a tenners worth of unleaded into half a tank of diesel. He realized his mistake early and then topped it up with diesel then drove home.
Personally I would of thought he'd of been fine with that amount (the mixture is probably not too far away from straight diesel) but (and I presume this is Lexus seeing $$$) Lexus strongly suggested they drain the fuel system and replace the whole lot. It was covered under insurance but the grand total of the work was nearly 8 grand. They replaced pumps, lines, injectors, the works. Probably OTT for what my dad did, but you've practically ran a diesel car on petrol. Most of the damage (if there is any) will be with the injection system, not the cylinders, but on a modern diesel the high pressure injection systems are pretty much THE most expensive part.
Personally I would of thought he'd of been fine with that amount (the mixture is probably not too far away from straight diesel) but (and I presume this is Lexus seeing $$$) Lexus strongly suggested they drain the fuel system and replace the whole lot. It was covered under insurance but the grand total of the work was nearly 8 grand. They replaced pumps, lines, injectors, the works. Probably OTT for what my dad did, but you've practically ran a diesel car on petrol. Most of the damage (if there is any) will be with the injection system, not the cylinders, but on a modern diesel the high pressure injection systems are pretty much THE most expensive part.
I think you'd better pay the £200 to get the drain and refill done properly, but with the large of amount of petrol that you've pushed through the system and the mileage driven, the damage has been done. If nothing else, the high pressure fuel pump has been damaged due to being run without any lubrication.
If it runs vaguely OK after the refill, then get your Dad to sell the car on as quickly as he can There a big bill ahead.
If it runs vaguely OK after the refill, then get your Dad to sell the car on as quickly as he can There a big bill ahead.
Plus the filters if you can.
Wife did this but with £20 of petrol in an almost empty diesel. It stopped after 1/2 mile. My Polish mechanic collected it drained it changed filter and topped up and it was fine.
Not sure what damage 30 miles would do but it must have been pretty dliuted for it to travel that far without expiring.
Wife did this but with £20 of petrol in an almost empty diesel. It stopped after 1/2 mile. My Polish mechanic collected it drained it changed filter and topped up and it was fine.
Not sure what damage 30 miles would do but it must have been pretty dliuted for it to travel that far without expiring.
Working for a breakdown company 2 years ago, I can tell you that the £200 drain may not be worth it (for your particular problem that is).
From what I remember the AA will drain the tank only, and put £20 of diesel in there. They won’t do anything else (clean injectors or fuel lines etc), and unless this has been changed recently, I would just see if you can get it to the garage directly and get them to do it – as you will be charged £200 odd quid and then referred to a garage with no money returned.
Like I said, this may be different now but when I worked there it was only really catered for the individuals who was still at the petrol station.
From what I remember the AA will drain the tank only, and put £20 of diesel in there. They won’t do anything else (clean injectors or fuel lines etc), and unless this has been changed recently, I would just see if you can get it to the garage directly and get them to do it – as you will be charged £200 odd quid and then referred to a garage with no money returned.
Like I said, this may be different now but when I worked there it was only really catered for the individuals who was still at the petrol station.
Edited by Ren Esis on Friday 14th December 15:33
Try someone like http://www.fuelfixer.co.uk/ then if all the AA do is drain the tank.
There really is an awful lot of rubbish spoken on this subject! Get the fuel out of it, and fast! it is the fuel seal damage due to incompatibility that does any damage if the fuel is left in there, not driving the car. call in a specialist soon as you can. i know a fuel evacuation specialist who says he has never seen mechanical damage as a result of mis-fueling, only damage from leaving it in there.
Flatinfourth said:
There really is an awful lot of rubbish spoken on this subject!.
How ironic.Putting petrol in a diesel fuel tank won't do any damage in itself. Proving you don't start the engine of course.
Running a common rail diesel on petrol until it packs up though is a different matter.
Sorry but I have to echo some others and say: draining the tank will need to be done ( obviously ), but don't expect it to fix the car. The damage has been done
Can you claim on your car insurance?
Update: Ok thanks again guys, mainly the more optimistic ones though.
Got a mobile guy, non AA, to drain the tank and lines, change filter and put some diesel in. £144
Bit of a smokey start and it's now running as smooth as ever it did. ie not very but hey. So I guess there could be trouble down the line but the machanic said did didn't see any reason why there should be.
Long airport run tomorrow which I am a little anxious about but I'll check the levels and continue as if nothing happened, shh. Any dramas and I'll update.
Got a mobile guy, non AA, to drain the tank and lines, change filter and put some diesel in. £144
Bit of a smokey start and it's now running as smooth as ever it did. ie not very but hey. So I guess there could be trouble down the line but the machanic said did didn't see any reason why there should be.
Long airport run tomorrow which I am a little anxious about but I'll check the levels and continue as if nothing happened, shh. Any dramas and I'll update.
Flatinfourth said:
There really is an awful lot of rubbish spoken on this subject! Get the fuel out of it, and fast! it is the fuel seal damage due to incompatibility that does any damage if the fuel is left in there, not driving the car. call in a specialist soon as you can. i know a fuel evacuation specialist who says he has never seen mechanical damage as a result of mis-fueling, only damage from leaving it in there.
Sorry, but that is not true. The vast majority of high pressure diesel pumps are fuel lubricated, as are the injectors, and petrol doesn't have the lubricity to protect them, and will cause irreparable damage.When it dies is another question entirely, it might die next week, or it may have only shortened its life by a few thousand k and the car will be gone by the time it dies, but you just don't know.
Megaflow said:
Flatinfourth said:
There really is an awful lot of rubbish spoken on this subject! Get the fuel out of it, and fast! it is the fuel seal damage due to incompatibility that does any damage if the fuel is left in there, not driving the car. call in a specialist soon as you can. i know a fuel evacuation specialist who says he has never seen mechanical damage as a result of mis-fueling, only damage from leaving it in there.
Sorry, but that is not true. The vast majority of high pressure diesel pumps are fuel lubricated, as are the injectors, and petrol doesn't have the lubricity to protect them, and will cause irreparable damage.When it dies is another question entirely, it might die next week, or it may have only shortened its life by a few thousand k and the car will be gone by the time it dies, but you just don't know.
And before you tell me I'm the numpty who put the wrong fuel in, I know.
Just to give you a heads up, all of the top 3 breakdown companies will charge between £210 and £280 incl vat for a basic drainage for the most part. Some of our agents charge as little as £100 - some up to £300, and usually includes a bit of fuel back into the tanks.
From experience, in most cases there's no issues with draining and refilling with fresh fuel. But a filter change is always a good start.
Diesel is heavier than petrol though, so you could have gotten away with it and it's only now that it's sucking through petrol.
Quick Edit:
They wouldn't happen to be insured with Esure? They offer a misfuel policy that covers the cost of drainage and any repairs... good value for a £5 add on.
From experience, in most cases there's no issues with draining and refilling with fresh fuel. But a filter change is always a good start.
Diesel is heavier than petrol though, so you could have gotten away with it and it's only now that it's sucking through petrol.
Quick Edit:
They wouldn't happen to be insured with Esure? They offer a misfuel policy that covers the cost of drainage and any repairs... good value for a £5 add on.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff