If you drive a car, vehicle breakdown is something which is inevitable and various studies have suggested that tyre puncture is one of the primary reasons of breakdown. Accidents, empty fuel and low battery also play a major role in vehicle breakdown. But one barely recognized cause of breakdown is wrong fuelling in the car. While two-wheelers run on petrol only (leaving aside electric drive), cars can be powered by two types of fuel – diesel and petrol. This leads to a confusion sometimes on what fuel the car is running on, resulting in wrong fuelling.
This problem is most common with the first-time drivers who are not aware of the fuel type of their car, or someone driving someone else’s car or language barrier while you are travelling. As opposed to the other form of breakdowns like tyre puncture, battery down or empty fuel - diesel in petrol car or petrol in diesel car can lead to major damage in your vehicle. How big is this problem and how to deal with it, we tell you in our Do It Yourself Guide!
How big is the problem?
Wrong fuelling is a big troublemaker as you can’t alone deal with this situation and have to visit a service station to get it sorted. The other breakdown causes can be tackled on the spot, be it flat tyre or empty fuel. Also, wrong-fuelling can lead to engine problems leading to irreparable damage to your car's engine. Here’s what happens when you put the wrong fuel in your car-
Petrol in Diesel vehicle - The engine can sustain a few kilometres of driving
Diesel in Petrol vehicle - The engine can suffer major damage within a few seconds of starting the vehicle
How to tackle wrong fuelling?
Wrong-fuelling has become a common occurrence these days all thanks to the rapid sales of vehicles. People are moving from two-wheelers to four wheelers and they don‘t know what type of fuel their car is running on? There are two possible scenarios after wrong fuelling of the car and both of them need a different approach-
You are aware of wrong-fuelling
- The most important thing to remember is - Don't start your vehicle
- Don’t drive your car no matter what, and if need be, push your car to the nearest parking bay
- Call an emergency roadside assistance or nearest garage
- If your vehicle has an automatic transmission, you might have to start it to bring it to neutral. Turn off the engine immediately once done.
You are not aware of wrong-fuelling
- Call the emergency services as soon as you realize the issue and stop the car immediately
What are the potential damages?
Wrong fuelling can lead to severe damage in the engine, however it is very difficult to assess the damage at the exact moment. The damage depends on how early you have detected the problem and called the emergency services. Here are the vehicle components you need to check and replace-
- Fuel pump
- Injectors
- Catalytic converter
- Fuel tank
- Valve guides and valve seats