Filled up with the wrong fuel?

Accidentally put petrol in your diesel car?
Locations in Leeds, York, Harrogate or Ripon

Here is some help and advice if you have put the wrong fuel in your vehicle and need a fuel drain.

Here we offer some advice to help you decide what to do if put the Wrong Fuel your diesel vehicle with petrol, using sources gathered from research and from personal experience.

There are several scenarios: putting a small amount of the wrong fuel in your car is not as dangerous to the vehicle than putting large amounts of the wrong fuel in your car.

First off, if your diesel car is new (after '05) then the engine is most likely of the 'common rail' type...DO NOT start the engine, call Forecourt Assist who will drain the fuel, clean and replace the fuel in your car, removing the petrol and diesel contaminated fuel.

I'm not sure if I have a 'common rail' diesel engine.

Ok, common rail diesel engines are more popular in modern diesel cars, newer cars sound more like petrol cars, explaining the rise in the wrong fuel being put in diesel cars. Normal audible clues are not there with the smoother running modern cars. If your car is quite new then DO NOT start the engine. Some new cars even come with a diesel pre ignition system, this lets the car diesel pump and pre-heat the diesel fuel as you open the door.

To be on the safe side, DO NOT unlock the doors or de-activate the alarm until the mechanic fuel draining technician arrives, make him aware that you know of this, even if they do not. I hope you haven't left your phone in the car. If your safety is at risk though, just get into the car and lock yourself in, the damage will be minimal, if any, compared to if you started and ran the vehicle.

What happens to the diesel engine when I put petrol into it?

Petrol breaks down the oily lubricant in diesel that makes it so hard to get off your hands and the soles of your shoes. This oily substance lubricates the engine while running, without it the engine will start making a nasty noise and will stop as the piston seizes against the engine block due to overheating, and also causes the high pressure pump to lose its lubrication due to the petrol and diesel wrong fuel mix and more than likely costing you a new engine.

So what if I've only put a small amount of the wrong fuel into me car?

If you fill up with diesel you should be okay with an older model, roughly early to mid 00's and older. If you are not sure DO NOT risk it, the more you run a common rail engine with petrol in it, the more it will cost you. Colder climates regularly put petrol into diesel to help stop it from freezing but using older vehicles. A good clue is: does your diesel vehicle make the classic clunky noise of a diesel engine, and is it a bit beaten up?

If the answer is yes then you are probably safe to drive it with up to a few litres of the wrong fuel and no thrashing it, if the engine starts to sound progressively noisy then it would be a good idea to pull over and call Forecourt Assist. If not, keep topping up with more diesel as often as possible to dilute the petrol. If you can afford to, drain the tank at the first opportunity and re-fill with the correct fuel. Please beware that even if you drained the car, you cannot get rid of the petrol in diesel contaminated fuel mix at your local waste site as it is classed as hazardous waste. Also make sure that the fuel draining company are properly registered and must be ISO 9001 compliant and all the equipment must have a CE mark.

Am I covered by insurance for putting the wrong fuel in my car?

In most cases the answer is no, as with most things the insurance companies will do all they can to get out of paying out. I would assume that they see you putting the wrong fuel in your car as your own fault, therefore your problem. But at Forecourt Assist we can we can fix your car no problems at any time of the day, anywhere as we have national coverage.

Feel free to contact us in Leeds, York, Harrogate, Bradford or Doncaster on 0345 4685999 for a wrong fuel mobile fuel draining appointment or just for some free advice.