Misfuelling your car is a common mistake made by drivers. It can be an expensive mistake, as it can cause a lot of damage to your vehicle. Fortunately, there are a few steps that you can take to minimise the damage and get back on the road safely.
It’s easy to accidentally fill up with the wrong gasoline, whether it’s because you’re driving a car you’ve never driven before, the pumps at the petrol station weren’t properly marked, or you simply momentarily lost focus.
It’s never convenient, and it always happens right when you have an important engagement, such as an important meeting or a flight, that you can’t afford to miss. Even if it’s too late to change what you’ve done, you can still keep your cool and follow these procedures to keep the wrong fuel from causing any further damage to your vehicle.
1. Do Not Start Your Vehicle
You may not realise you’ve put the wrong fuel in your automobile until you’re halfway down the motorway and your engine suddenly loses power. So your only option is to phone an emergency breakdown service and wait for them to arrive.
That said, if you catch yourself before starting the engine and realise you’ve put in the wrong fuel, you’re in luck and can avoid a lot of trouble. This is due to the fact that starting the engine draws fuel into the system, which might cause additional damage.
If your car is designed to use diesel, the diesel itself will typically lubricate the fuel pump, ensuring its smooth operation. Petrol, however, acts as a solvent, dissolving the lubrication and causing the metal pieces to grate against each other.
Diesel in a gasoline engine can cause the engine to smoke and perform poorly, but the damage isn’t as serious as it would be if you left it in there for too long, so it’s better to drain the diesel as soon as possible.
You can spare yourself and the mechanic a lot of trouble by waiting to start the engine until the mechanic arrives.
2. Find Out How Much of the Incorrect Fuel You’ve Put In
If you realise your mistake while you are still pumping, you may be able to avoid having to call out the repairman, even though it is usually better to drain all of the fuel from your tank.
As soon as you realise you’ve put in the wrong gasoline, you should try to determine how much of it you’ve already put in. A simple top-off with the proper fuel, and you should be good to go if the level is below 10% of the tank’s capacity. It’s better to be safe than sorry, so if you’re unsure how much gas you’ve put in, get the tank emptied, just in case.
3. Request for Help
Next, you need to get in touch with your breakdown service and have them come to your rescue. If you don’t have solid mechanical knowledge, you should always hire a reliable provider to get you back on the road as soon as possible.
If you’ve put a lot of improper fuel into your car, the breakdown service may not be able to fix it at the side of the road and may instead have to tow it to a garage.
It’s not unheard of to accidentally put the wrong fuel in your car; in 2008, an estimated 13 UK drivers every hour did so. If this happens to you, it’s essential to remain calm, turn off your motor, and contact a towing service immediately.
Conclusion
Misfuelling your car is an unfortunate mistake that can happen to anyone. Fortunately, you can take several measures to fix the problem. The three main things you should do after misfuelling your car are to contact a professional, disconnect the battery, and have the tank drained. It is important to remember to never start your car after misfuelling and to have the issue addressed as soon as possible. Taking these steps will help ensure that your car’s misfuelling does not cause any further damage and help to get your car back on the road.
If you are looking for wrong fuel specialists in the UK, look no further than our expertise here at Fuel Fixer. We are the leading wrong fuel specialists when it comes to erroneous gas fill-ups. Call us today and make yourself safe. Your car will be fixed while you wait.