Put diesel into petrol engine by mistake - please advice

AdrianC

roddydogs wrote: »

Is this covered "Free" to AA members, then? I thought it was a £300 drain job.

It's a much bigger job, with more expensive consequences, on a common-rail diesel than on a petrol.

The worst consequence you're likely to suffer on a petrol is having to replace the lambda sensor and cat.

On a common-rail diesel, the (very, very expensive) fuel pump may wear badly, contaminating the entire fuel system with swarf and metal particles.

iolanthe07

I don't understand this. Petrol into diesel is quite common, but diesel into petrol is impossible because the nozzle won't fit into the filler pipe.

1+1=4

iolanthe07 wrote: »

I don't understand this. Petrol into diesel is quite common, but diesel into petrol is impossible because the nozzle won't fit into the filler pipe.

not impossible because ive done it myself .however we have a very good family mechanic. got car picked up on a loader, drained and fuel filter changed.:D

BeenThroughItAll

iolanthe07 wrote: »

I don't understand this. Petrol into diesel is quite common, but diesel into petrol is impossible because the nozzle won't fit into the filler pipe.

Impossible, sadly not. Just requires quite startling commitment and/or a complete lack of mechanical sympathy.

JustinR1979

So is diesel heavy enough to push the flap down? You know the bit I mean, the bit to stop you putting diesel in by mistake.
Must have took a while.

DaveF327

BeenThroughItAll wrote: »

Impossible, sadly not. Just requires quite startling commitment and/or a complete lack of mechanical sympathy.

Sounds very much like a female trait I bet she spent a good half hour at the pump trying to force the nozzle in!

@ OP: I found this CCTV from a petrol station.. is this your missus, by any chance?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBn0yWmbd5U
:rotfl:

iolanthe07

Sounds very much like a female trait

Blimey, I hope you're wearing a hard hat and taking cover!

worried_jim

iolanthe07 wrote: »

Sounds very much like a female trait

Blimey, I hope you're wearing a hard hat and taking cover!

In defence of the ladies, when my Dad retired he got a little job delivering new Mazda's to customers who had leased them. On two occasions he put the wrong fuel in.

However, he did tell me about a new car he delivered to an office in Birmingham and the new lady owner came down to take the keys and as she looked inside she said "oh, it's a manual, I've never driven one of these before". He got her to sign for it sharpish!

geek84

Hi Folks

Further to the advice which you kind folks offered, I decided to call out a mobile motor mechanic today to have my fuel filter replaced. When he came and started on the job, he said the clip holding the unit would snap due to the cold weather, and it would be better to do the job on a warmer day!! He also went on to say that, the little bit of diesel left in the tank would not do much harm to the car engine, as long as I top up the tank every few days with petrol. Is this true?

Also, on the day the RAC man came out to drain the diesel from the car, RAC managed to convince my wife to pay £200 for this, even though we have been members of RAC for over 14 years !!

My wife said RAC say this is not part of the free service (draining out fuel). Do you think I should ring RAC to complain and ask for the £200 back?

Thanks in advance for you responses.

AdrianC

geek84 wrote: »

My wife said RAC say this is not part of the free service (draining out fuel).

It isn't.

http://www.rac.co.uk/pdfs/breakdown/310314-drive-uk-breakdown-terms-and-conditions
p25, point 10
"10. If the vehicle suffers a breakdown as a result of a mis-fuel we will not recover the vehicle under this Section B. The RAC may be able to repair the vehicle and/or arrange a recovery of the vehicle to another location for an additional cost."

Also p29, section G describing the optional mis-fuel cover.

and
http://www.rac.co.uk/breakdown-cover/wrong-fuel-recovery
"Members get £50 discount on full price"