adam_r Posted August 24, 2020 Report Share Posted August 24, 2020 Well some friends / neighbours of ours dropped me a message last night asking for advice... Apparently he put around 7 liters of petrol in to his wife's diesel Nissan note, this equates to around 17% of the tank capacity. He realised his mistake and brimmed the tank with diesel. What makes things worse is that he drove it home as he panicked! I'm after some general advice on what to do next. Shall I remove the fuel pump and use some clean hose to try and syphon as much of the fuel out the tank as possible, once the majority of the diesel is out I was thinking of dropping the tank to get as much of the contaminated fuel out.. I guess also to drain the fuel lines too. A fuel filter change is probably worth a shot too... Would you guys suggest anything else? Reading online it seems that this much fuel in the tank could really screw the fuel system.. But I'm hoping they are more horror stories than true or they will have an expensive issue on their hands Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMARTLY Posted August 24, 2020 Report Share Posted August 24, 2020 Maybe speak to AA or RAC, think they offer a service to clean it all out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam_r Posted August 24, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2020 They don't have cover and are not in the position to pay the £200 quoted. I offered to help them out and do it for them as I won't charge them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted August 24, 2020 Report Share Posted August 24, 2020 The diesel / petrol mix should be fine but you really need to change the fuel filter. Also warn him it will be smokey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam_r Posted August 24, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2020 Hi Tony. Petrol in a diesel is bad as it does not provide lubricant to the fuel pump Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted August 24, 2020 Report Share Posted August 24, 2020 Oh, i missed the point petrol in diesel means the cylinder head will go airborne..... Diesel in petrol is low performance and smoke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam_r Posted August 24, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2020 Why will it affect the cylinder head? Diesel engines are stronger than petrol due to higher compression rates Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liner33 Posted August 24, 2020 Report Share Posted August 24, 2020 As you say drain it , refill with fresh diesel and change filter , if the damage has been done then it will be too late to make a difference so this will save further damage , i suspect however it will be fine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted August 25, 2020 Report Share Posted August 25, 2020 15 hours ago, adam_r said: Why will it affect the cylinder head? Diesel engines are stronger than petrol due to higher compression rates What i mean is petrol have a more aggressive detonation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted August 25, 2020 Report Share Posted August 25, 2020 I'm sure I read somewhere that a small amount of petrol is ok in diesel but I guess that amount is too much. Hopefully a drain and filter change is all it needs. Having cars with both fuels I still don't see how people make that mistake. Petrol is green and diesel is black. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted August 25, 2020 Report Share Posted August 25, 2020 I read that petrol in diesel engines flush the bore resulting in a massive drain on performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liner33 Posted August 26, 2020 Report Share Posted August 26, 2020 The risk is mostly to the pumps and injectors as said it can cause loss of lubrication. I very much doubt there would be enough to cause that in this case but driving it wasn't a great idea Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam_r Posted August 27, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2020 Well. Yesterday was the day to do the job. Aim: 1)remove low pressure fuel pump and syphon out of tank using a hose 2)Clear out fuel lines 3) replace fuel filter 4)put everything back together Expected duration 2-3 hrs.. Reality : 1) could not remove 160mm cap that secures low pressure pump in the tank. We spent hours trying to get it undone with a plethora of tools and different methods. Pro tip: spend the £15 and get the proper tool in advance. We ended up getting a small drill powered pump and sucking the fuel out the tanks pump.. It worked but boy it was slow... Time taken 1hr to empty just shy of 40 liters. 2) not as easy as I expected! Ended up doing this last by putting fresh diesel in the tank and using the priming pump to pull it through, took ages! 3) to get to the fuel filter, I only had to remove the battery, airbox, intake pipe, turbo intake pipe.... The fuel filter is situated on the engine bulkhead, so 3 very awkwardly positioned nuts were undone and filter removed... At this point we find out nissan sold me the wrong fuel filter... 1h round trip to the Nissan garage to get the right one and it fits. Re fit the filter, turbo intake pipe, airbox, battery and intake pipe... Primed the system and it started up no problem, checked all fittings for leaks ect and it all looked OK. Actul time taken... 6hrs! Can I get my day back please 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted August 27, 2020 Report Share Posted August 27, 2020 Reads like a marathon of nothing but pain....... End of the day you still did it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SMARTLY Posted August 27, 2020 Report Share Posted August 27, 2020 Good job done their Adam, hope your mate rewarded you well with plenty of ale As a matter of interest what did you do with the 40 litres of fuel mix? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted August 27, 2020 Report Share Posted August 27, 2020 Donate it to a farmer.... Tractors drive on most things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoffers Posted August 27, 2020 Report Share Posted August 27, 2020 Great job. People don't help out like this as much as they used to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam_r Posted August 27, 2020 Author Report Share Posted August 27, 2020 Cheers guys. So the friends I did it for are not very well off so I only got them to pay for the replacement fuel filter and the 5l of diesel I got for them. They did transfer an extra £10 over to me which was kind of them and whilst it was a ball ache, I wasn't doing it for the cash... Most likely that £10 will go towards a nice bunch of flowers for Amy (My Wife). The 40L of diesel is sat in 2 containers in the garage, advertised for £25 on Facebook and gumtree. I have clearly stated its been tainted with about 7L of petrol, but it will be good for someone. Did have one person interested but he's a no show and over an hour late so I'm not holding My breath on this one. The AA to which they are members of said it would cost them £180 just to drain the tank, thats not including the fuel line flush that we did, or a new filter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted August 28, 2020 Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 £180 is a bit strong....... Thing is you did it and learnt along the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted August 28, 2020 Report Share Posted August 28, 2020 Well done Adam, that was very good of you to spend the whole day sorting it out. Don't you hate it when jobs never go to plan though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted August 29, 2020 Report Share Posted August 29, 2020 Especially when it involves fuel..... Get it on you it'll never wash off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickT Posted September 4, 2020 Report Share Posted September 4, 2020 How about leaving the lids off the containers and letting the petrol from the diesel evaporate/ settle (if safe to leave)? Or could be useful to use in a diesel heater for heating the garage up/ diesel generator etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam_r Posted September 5, 2020 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2020 I ended up selling the fuel a day or so ago, posted on Facebook marketplace and some pikey came and collected, paid his money and went. Got £20 for it, so it's better than just sitting in the garage smelling the place out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Posted September 5, 2020 Report Share Posted September 5, 2020 A little good luck from a bad situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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