Mistakes can be made by anyone and their timely realization is good to correct before big problems and much destruction happen. Wrong fuelling is one of them and it happens when your petrol car gets diesel or vice versa. Damage with this kind of mistake could be disastrous if you failed to realize it and keep running.
Whole fuel system gets choked and you need detailed repairing or replacement of the engine. Draining immediately wrong fuel can save you from this arduous repairing or replacement exercise. Cost of this mistake varies as just draining out diesel from the fuel tank is done at cost of a few hundred pounds and within a few hours, you can get your car back on road.
The moment you ignite the engine and fuel runs into pipes through fuel pump and fuel filter then your vehicle’s engine does not remain able to function anymore. Sometimes your engine can be saved but rare chances of this miracle. Cause of wrong fuelling can be a mistake due to confusion, which fuel you need to run the car or just asking for wrong fuel.
Whatever reason behind filling other than required fuel, you need to correct it immediately otherwise cost will be big. When a car is driven by a new driver this mistake could happen so it is necessary to brief the driver about fuel a car uses to run. The proximity of nozzles of both fuels at filling stations also causes this embarrassing situation. In a hurry, you can do this mistake while talking to someone.
To avoid wrong fuelling, carmakers, as well as fuel station designers, have distinguished opening of fuel tanks and nozzle sizes. A diesel filling pipe nozzle does not fit the neck of a petrol engine car. But when you are in a hurry you just start complaining and keep fuelling your car with the wrong fuel.
Fuel dispensers are also labelled differently so every possible precaution is taken to make sure no wrong fuelling could happen. When such contamination happens it affects engine and its functioning and ultimately you have to replace your car engine. Diesel in petrol car is injurious to the operation and health of the petrol engine.
Though both petrol and diesel are products of crude oil but they are different. Petrol has a strong odour and thinner whereas diesel is thick and you can distinguish both when see flowing. Usually, big vehicles use diesel as they need to produce high torque and more pulling muscle.
So when thicker fuel, diesel is present in the fuel tank of a petrol car, tries to make way through pipes not designed for this kind of fuel whole system corrupts and may choke. Combustibility of these two fuels also differ so producing power for petrol engine by using diesel is not possible. In fact both types of engines work differently so putting the wrong fuel in either of the two cause damage, which could be irreparable.
Plugs in petrol engine vehicle produce a spark to ignite engine whereas in diesel engine vehicle the engine starts functioning due to compression created inside the engine. To assist diesel engines in cold weather there is a plug called glow plug to ignite.
Diesel starts producing power to pull the car by squeezing and petrol needs spark to do the same job. Petrol in diesel tank also cause a problem and your vehicle’s engine suffers the most. Ethanol is added to diesel so that its combustibility increase as ethanol catches flame instantly.
So the nature of both fuels and combustibility are totally different so they cannot be used alternatively. The fuel injection system of your diesel engine does not work when petrol is filled in the tank. Diesel due to thickness has lubricating element and petrol on contrary drier and thinner.
The fuel pump of the diesel engine is designed to function with lubrication and dry nature of petrol damages fuel pump due to friction among parts. With friction, small metal particles can also flow with fuel and cause blockage and other problems in the proper functioning of the diesel engine. Higher combustibility of petrol is also dangerous as diesel engine use high pressure to ignite fuel so things could be worst in case of filling wrong fuel.
The number of remedies is available to such a situation but they are useful at particular stages. For example, when you instantly realize filling your vehicle tank with wrong fuel you simply turn off the engine and ask for service of emptying fuel tank.
On draining fuel completely from the tank you can refill it with right fuel again to get the car on road. Easily distinguishable labels for the two fuels have been designed so that the chances of wrong fuelling get minimized.
As we know diesel needs pressure for combustion and petrol engine does not have this function so chances are rare to get your petrol car engine start if diesel has been filled in its tank. In another way round case your diesel engine car starts and you get into bigger trouble, which surely costs so much and could lead to the replacement of car’s power unit.
