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StoopidFool
@libertysurf.net

StoopidFool

Anon

Diesel fuel in an unleaded tank

Today was a tough day at work and when I stopped on the way home for gas, I had a lot on my mind and wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. When I went to put the hose up after filling up my tank, I realized, to my horror, that I had just filled my tank with diesel fuel instead of the unleaded that my car (2006 Honda Civic) takes. I panicked and since my house was only about 2 miles away, I drove it home. Now I'm trying to figure out what to do. Can I still drive it without destroying the engine? Should I siphon all the gas out and put in unleaded? Or should I get it towed to the dealership where they can take care of it? I'm pretty mad at myself right now and appreciate any advise. Thanks.

Mospaw
My socks don't match.

join:2001-01-08
New Braunfels, TX

Mospaw

Removing that much fuel safely is not a do-it-yourself project if you have to ask.

DO NOT run the engine any more, just to be safe. Diesel in a gas system is a lot better than gas in a diesel system, so the likelihood of serious damage is remote. Even so, you don't want to risk it. Have the car towed to a competent mechanic (the dealership is fine, but any good mechanic can help). They can drain the diesel fuel, properly dispose of it, and flush your fuel system. You'll probably have to replace the filter(s) and a few other components as well, but it shouldn't be anything major. After that, good as new.

cowspotter
join:2000-09-11
Ashburn, VA

cowspotter

Member

I thought the filler nozzles on diesel pumps were bigger than gasoline pumps so this couldn't happen. Do I have that backwards?

ironweasel
Weezy
Premium Member
join:2000-09-13
Belen, NM

ironweasel

Premium Member

said by cowspotter:

I thought the filler nozzles on diesel pumps were bigger than gasoline pumps so this couldn't happen. Do I have that backwards?
Nope, you are 100% correct. Diesel fuel pumps / nozzles are physically larger than gasoline pumps / nozzles and will not fit into the filler neck on a gasoline car.

How the OP managed to do it is beyond me - unless we're being trolled.....

McSummation
Mmmm, Zeebas Are Tastee.
Premium Member
join:2003-08-13
Fort Worth, TX

McSummation to cowspotter

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to cowspotter
There are 2 nozzle sizes for Diesel - "truck" and "auto". "Truck" nozzles are big and have a high flow rate so they can fill up a 75 gallon tank without waiting all day. "Auto" nozzles are about the same size as unleaded nozzles.

What you may be thinking about were the "leaded" nozzles that are too big to go in an unleaded fuel tank.

imrf
Premium Member
join:2002-06-06
Utica, MI

imrf

Premium Member

Around here there is no such thing as "truck" or "auto" diesel nozzles. They are all the same and are larger than gas nozzles. Maybe at a truck stop the rigs pumps have even larger ones so I can't say for certain.

aurgathor
join:2002-12-01
Lynnwood, WA

1 edit

aurgathor to StoopidFool

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First, how much diesel diesel did you put in?

If you could drive 2 miles, than either they didn't mix completely, or there was still enough gasoline in there for the engine to work.

Based on that, I'd siphon out, say, 5 - 10 gallons, replace it with gasoline, and drive it until the mix is all used up.

I think it's gasoline in the Diesel engine that can lead to some expensive repair, but the other way, the engine simply won't work if you got too much diesel in there.

Edit: I just had to remove ~30 gallons recently -- all I needed is a $5 siphon from Harbor Freight, a gas can, and another car I could use to use up all that gas.

Lurch77
Premium Member
join:2001-11-22
Green Bay, WI

2 edits

1 recommendation

Lurch77 to imrf

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to imrf
Same here. There are no diesel nozzles that will fit in a gasoline filler neck. All diesel vehicles, including cars have a larger opening than their gasoline counterparts. You certainly cannot fit a diesel nozzle in a gasoline 2006 Civic. I have been all over the country and I have never seen a gasoline sized diesel nozzle, even at the auto (vs truck pumps) pumps.

I am calling BS on the OP.
»auto.howstuffworks.com/f ··· aded.htm
»blogs.consumerreports.or ··· kes.html

ironweasel
Weezy
Premium Member
join:2000-09-13
Belen, NM

ironweasel to McSummation

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to McSummation
said by McSummation:

There are 2 nozzle sizes for Diesel - "truck" and "auto". "Truck" nozzles are big and have a high flow rate so they can fill up a 75 gallon tank without waiting all day. "Auto" nozzles are about the same size as unleaded nozzles.

What you may be thinking about were the "leaded" nozzles that are too big to go in an unleaded fuel tank.
Nope, I'm thinking of the regular ol' diesel pumps.

Like imrf and Lurch, I've been all over the country (in a Freightliner Columbia no less) and I've never seen an "Auto Diesel" and "Truck Diesel" variations. Even with the larger nozzles, it still takes 5 - 10 minutes to fill two 100 gallon tanks.

My vote still goes for "trolling".

Greg_Z
Premium Member
join:2001-08-08
Springfield, IL

Greg_Z to StoopidFool

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I am sorry, but do not believe this one. For one, the filler nozzle on a Diesel pump is larger then the Unleaded. Next one please.
tcope
Premium Member
join:2003-05-07
Sandy, UT

1 recommendation

tcope to ironweasel

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to ironweasel
Yup I think this is simply a troll. If I recall correctly there was another post a few months ago from an anom poster with the same or close to the same user name.

Doctor Olds
I Need A Remedy For What's Ailing Me.
Premium Member
join:2001-04-19
1970 442 W30

1 recommendation

Doctor Olds to StoopidFool

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to StoopidFool
said by StoopidFool :

Today was a tough day at work and when I stopped on the way home for gas, I had a lot on my mind and wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. When I went to put the hose up after filling up my tank, I realized, to my horror, that I had just filled my tank with diesel fuel instead of the unleaded that my car (2006 Honda Civic) takes. I panicked and then I woke up as if it had all been a dream.....
Was this before or after consuming mass quantities of Peyote and drilling out the filler neck so the diesel pump's larger nozzle would fit?

»/r0/do ··· r029.gif

WutanG5
Premium Member
join:2001-12-12
Seaford, DE

WutanG5 to StoopidFool

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Freakin' hilarious! I didn't know there were different sizes.

Now i do

You guys are always spot on,good job!

pcdebb
birdbrain
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join:2000-12-03
Brandon, FL

pcdebb to StoopidFool

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doesnt diesel fuel smell different? I would think you'd smell the difference as it's being pumped. and diesel pumps are usually different colors and separate from the regular pumps, at least the ones i've seen

HFB1217
The Wizard Premium ExMod 2000-01

join:2000-06-26
Camelot SwFL

HFB1217 to StoopidFool

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One of the hazards of driving diesel cars has been the threat of accidentally filling the tank with gasoline. I know of several diesel-car owners who have generously lent their cars to friends, only to find that the friend has “kindly” filled the tank for them – with the wrong fuel.

Running a diesel engine with gasoline can destroy the engine. And even flushing the fuel tank and fuel system is an expensive proposition.

Gasoline-powered cars are designed to prevent accidental diesel fill-ups. The diameter of the filler receptacle is too small to fit a diesel nozzle. Unfortunately, the reverse has not been true – until now.

On its new diesel models, BMW is introducing a system that will prevent a gas nozzle from being inserted in the diesel filler neck. BMW calls the system the Incorrect Fuelling Protection System . The filler neck in these diesel models has a locking system that only a standard diesel filler nozzle can release. An unleaded gasoline nozzle with its smaller diameter cannot make the connection to open the filler flap. Our new X5 xDrive35d has this. (Look for a future test of this as well as other diesels, such as the Mercedes-Benz GL320 BlueTec and Audi Q7.)

As more diesels come on the market that meet new air quality standards, this clever, low-buck concept could remove the worries of filling up with the wrong fuel.

»blogs.consumerreports.or ··· kes.html

boogi man
join:2001-11-13
Jacksonville, FL

boogi man to StoopidFool

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well if you've been driving a big truck all over the country it's no wonder that you haven't seen the auto diesel nozzles. they are somewhat few and far between but they do exist. BP station down near parents house has them.

to the OP if you drove two miles home you are still going to need to drain off a lot of the mix. the diesel wont hurt your filters or the car but might if used in to high a concentration can lead to fouled plugs.

Amr3
Pointing out the obvious
Premium Member
join:2001-12-03
San Antonio, TX

Amr3 to StoopidFool

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"StoopidFool" because that's what he is tried to troll and failed the least he could have done is some research and switched the story and put gas in a diesel car. Next time put some effort into it kiddo.
adobolver
Premium Member
join:2007-06-09
San Jose, CA

adobolver

Premium Member

You can fill diesel on new cars. I've seen it done on a 2008 mercedes ml350. New car with latest smog equipment. So it CAN be done. My recommendation is to tow vehicle to the mechanic/technician of your choice, drain fuel tank and change all fuel filters. After tank empties from normal driving, change fuel filter again. Just my two cents.
ccode
join:2004-07-11
Minneapolis, MN

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My good friend's teenage son just did this to their 2004 Toyota Camry. It can be done!

Combat Chuck
Too Many Cannibals
Premium Member
join:2001-11-29
Verona, PA

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Combat Chuck to boogi man

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said by boogi man:

well if you've been driving a big truck all over the country it's no wonder that you haven't seen the auto diesel nozzles. they are somewhat few and far between but they do exist. BP station down near parents house has them.
I've seen them too. Every Sheetz I've bought Diesel from had the smaller nozzles. In addition if your in the Pittsburgh area, Tony Tyke's Citgo at the intersection of Stroschein and WM. Penn Highway in Monroeville has them I believe; and they're even on the same pump as the gasoline. I seem to remember them at BP too but I'm not sure, I rarely used BP because my company credit card rarely worked there.

If you're driving a large OTR truck you'll never see them because they don't put them on the pumps made to be easy for trucks to pull into.

Ask your friendly neighborhood FedEx or UPS driver, if their station doesn't have their own pumps, they've likely seen them.

Thinkdiff
MVM,
join:2001-08-07
Bronx, NY

Thinkdiff to StoopidFool

MVM,

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I've filled up my Jetta TDI all across the country (drove cross country last summer). I only ran into a full-size nozzle once. My Jetta accepts both the small nozzle and large nozzle diesel pumps. Some diesel cars only accept the small nozzle. If the "auto diesel" is not the same exact size as gasoline nozzles, it's extremely close and would probably fit.

I'm surprised he didn't notice the different colored pump (diesel here is almost always a different color than the gasoline).

KrK
Heavy Artillery For The Little Guy
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join:2000-01-17
Tulsa, OK
Netgear WNDR3700v2
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Honda Civic's don't typically have huge gas tanks.

If I was you I'd siphon out the fuel into some gas cans and refill the tank with gasoline. A little diesel in the gasoline won't hurt. Just get out as much as you can and then refill with gas, and maybe some injector cleaner as well and I think you'll be ok.

skipon11
Premium Member
join:2005-06-09
Pittsburgh, PA

skipon11 to ironweasel

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Where I work we have gas trucks and diesel trucks. We have had people put the wrong fuel in both types of vehicles. So it can be done.

boogi man
join:2001-11-13
Jacksonville, FL

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usually is a different color green typically is what i see with red white and blue for the different grades of gas. a lot of stations are going to a single nozzle for gas and one for diesel then the user selects product type and grade via buttons.

sadly my dad did it to his gold wing a while back same thing rough week super bad day just an oversight grabbed last nozzle on the right thinking it was premium and pump 6 gallons of diesel into his bike. in the end we made it harder than it had to be but we got it fixed.

gar187er
I DID this for a living
join:2006-06-24
Seattle, WA

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i drive a diesel for work, and let me tell you for the thousands of miles driven, there are auto sized diesel pumps....

dont know why, but there are....my 3500 chevy van has an auto sized tank, so when i have to go into an actual truck stop, i need to hold the pump because it doesnt fit inside my tanks nozzle...

we had a guy put gas in a diesel....its on its thrid motor and still has problems...

in anycase, didnt you notice when you picked diesel the 'normally' different colored handle (or that there was more handles then normal), and/or the price increase?

cork1958
Cork
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join:2000-02-26

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cork1958 to tcope

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said by tcope:

Yup I think this is simply a troll. If I recall correctly there was another post a few months ago from an anom poster with the same or close to the same user name.
Yes,
There was too. I remember that.

jowolf359
join:2008-12-22
Lamesa, TX

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It can be done, I wachted a woman force the nozzle of a diesel hose into her Dodge Camry, She filled the tank and drove off. I saw her getting towed back to town and hour later. I would just drain the tank, flush the fuel system and then refill and add STP gas treatment.

pmohr
Premium Member
join:2002-09-22
Maryville, TN

pmohr

Premium Member

said by jowolf359:

It can be done, I wachted a woman force the nozzle of a diesel hose into her Dodge Camry, She filled the tank and drove off. I saw her getting towed back to town and hour later. I would just drain the tank, flush the fuel system and then refill and add STP gas treatment.
They sure do have some odd cars in Lamesa, TX...

Cho Baka
MVM
join:2000-11-23
there

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It can be done.

I have seen it done 3 times. (on different vehicles)

The work-order for the one I had to work on read "Vehicle would not restart after refueling"

treetop1000
join:2003-11-07
Lexington, KY

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Diesel in a gas engine makes lots of oily white smoke, up to the point the engine refuses to burn it.
At that point, you cannot restart it.
Did the same thing to my new Lawnboy mower (new 4 stroke)
watched the smoking thing get really bad and then the mower stopped. Had to drain the tank, refill it with gas and then squirted gas (with an oiler can that I refilled with a little gas) into the carb to get it running again. Third time I restarted it, all trace of the diesel was gone from the carb and it's run fine since... YMMV.