Refueling with the wrong fuel. What to do if we made a mistake with the dispenser?

Although no driver wants to admit that they made a mistake with fuel when refueling, such situations do happen. However, refueling with bad fuel is still the end of the world. If we find out before attempting to start the engine, the cost of restoring the car to working condition will be relatively small.

It's good to know what to do in such a situation. Thanks to this, you can avoid serious breakdowns, which means expensive car repairs.

No ignition

When we realize that we have poured the wrong fuel into the tank of our car, which it should feed on, in no case do not start the engine. If our error reaches us after starting from the transfer case, we must immediately stop the vehicle and turn off the engine. Mechanics emphasize that if, after driving a short distance from the gas station, the car suddenly starts to twitch and after a while the engine stalls, you should not try to start it again.

– Then the car should be delivered to the workshop – either in the hall or simply by calling the technical assistance service, advises Karol Kukielka, head of Rycar Bosch in Białystok. - By the way, it is worth remembering that most insurance policies, including even civil liability policies, include an assistance package that, in the event of a fuel error at a gas station, provides us with free evacuation. After handing over the car for service, clean the entire fuel system. - starting from the tank and the fuel pump, through the pipes, the fuel filter and ending with the injectors.

Karol Kukielka claims that practice shows that if we find our fundamental mistake at a gas station in time, then it is enough to pump out the fuel from the tank and all pipes and replace the fuel filter. Then fill the tank with the appropriate fuel and, perhaps with the help of the so-called starter (chemicals injected into the intake manifold to help start), start the engine.

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In most situations, such an operation helps and avoids high costs for subsequent repairs - both in the case of diesel and gasoline units. It is often worth doing computer diagnostics of the engine in order to remove errors in the controller that could appear on this occasion. The cost of a standard procedure for starting a car after refueling with the wrong fuel – provided that nothing is damaged in the fuel system – this is the amount of 300-500 zł. Of course, depending on the car model. When it turns out that, for example, nozzles are damaged, we can talk about amounts fluctuating around 5. złoty.

New engines, big problem

Modern diesel and gasoline fuel systems are very sensitive to changes in fuel parameters, so when we fill them with something that is not designed to burn, there is a big problem. Very accurate sensors or injectors are easily damaged - although there is no rule for how long and what fuel we can drive without damage. Especially vehicles with a diesel engine equipped with a diesel particulate filter are subject to irreversible and costly damage when trying to burn gasoline. In this case, the visit to the site will not be complete without an amount of several thousand zlotys.

True, experts admit that cars with diesel engines of older generations can also work with an admixture of gasoline in the tank, but you should not treat this as everyday life. However, up to 20 percent. gasoline in the tank of such a car will not create a big problem for the owner. Previously, in severe frosts, in order to avoid thickening of diesel fuel, gasoline was still poured.

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Gasoline units are less prone to errors at the filling station

It is worth emphasizing that gasoline engines are not as vulnerable to damage after filling the tank with diesel fuel. – Indeed, the motorcycle stalls after a short trip, but the consequences should not be as serious as in the case of diesel engines, admits the head of the Rycar Bosch Białystok service. – On the other hand, the injectors will need to be cleaned more often because they are clogged with diesel fuel, which is thicker than gasoline. The costs of eliminating the consequences of such an error are the same as in the case of a diesel engine, i.e. from PLN 300 to PLN 500 plus the possible cost of injector cleaning. This, in turn, is about 50 zł each.

To summarize, it is very difficult for us to make a mistake at a gas station, because the fillers and nozzles on the dispenser have different diameters, depending on the type of fuel. The petrol dispenser gun has a smaller diameter than for filling diesel fuel.. In any case, the most common mistakes are gasoline in diesel, and not vice versa.