Recovery Advice
Wrong Fuel Recovery: What to Do If You Misfuel Your Car
Putting diesel in a petrol car (or petrol in a diesel) is more common than you'd think. Here's exactly what to do — and what not to do.
Misfuelling — putting the wrong fuel in your car — happens to around 150,000 drivers in the UK every year. It's easy to do, particularly when you've recently changed vehicles or are driving a hire car. Here's what to do if it happens to you.
The most important rule: if you realise you've put the wrong fuel in before starting the engine, do not start the engine. Turning the engine over even once can circulate the wrong fuel through the system. Leave the ignition off, put the car in neutral, and push it to a safe location away from the pump. Then call SRL Recovery.
If you've already started the engine, stop as soon as you safely can. The longer the engine runs on the wrong fuel, the more damage can occur. Petrol in a diesel engine is particularly destructive — diesel acts as a lubricant for fuel pump components, and petrol strips this lubrication, causing rapid wear.
Diesel in a petrol engine is usually less serious in the short term. The engine typically misfires, runs poorly, and may stall. The fuel system needs to be drained and flushed before the car will run properly.
Do not attempt to drive to a garage. Even a short journey on the wrong fuel can turn a simple drain-and-flush (often recoverable for a few hundred pounds) into a full fuel system replacement.
SRL Recovery provides mobile fuel drain services across Glasgow for situations where the car hasn't been driven. For cars that have been driven on wrong fuel, we'll transport to a specialist. Call 07776 356 556 and describe exactly what happened — we'll advise on the best approach.