The wrath of Misfueling

cellutron

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CDi SE/2003/2.2
The other day, I did it for the second time! Not to the same car though! The first time was in Spain and I was driving an Audi A4 1.9TDi, a very nice car I remember! I filled it with unleaded only to realise, just before the nozzle-auto stop kicked in! It was actually the smell that made me realise there was something not dieselly! There was no damge, as I didn't drive it, well, just about 10 meters to move away from the pump (to save myself additional embarrassment!). recovered to a back garage, the Spaniards were happy to get their hands on my hard earned contaminated fuel- some 50 ltres of it- and charge me a hefty E150 to drain it as well! The contaminated fuel ended up in the recovery truck's tank right there and then!
This time however, my 10 year old 220CDi Coupe SE, a non compromising beast, which has suffered for many unknown 'time- units' of a saddle-tank- syndrome, doesn't want to know! I did drive it for about 100 meters befor it died! Since I have drained the tank, both sides, almost 50 ltrs, put in 15 ltrs of freshly milked diesel, emptied the filter and primed it, drained all pipes that could be drained, primed the fuel line, etc, etc, etc. It started , quite easily, for a bout 60 seconds, but then died, perhaps when the priming- diesel was exhausted. During the running of the engine, I took the oportunity to check out the return- to- tank, in a jar, and it seemed a good flow, so have no reason to believe any of the bits have been damaged or are malfunctioning. I am just wondering if the slightest contamination in the fuel that might exist, still has something to do with the reluctance to start again! What is detected and where and how that occurs? Does the stop valve have anything to do with this? Or perhaps it needs to be cranked the ....out of it before it starts again, at the expense of killing the battery?
Can anyone help, please?
 

Xtractorfan

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It would seem you have run across a pocket of inferior fuel/ even air, so I can only suggest you try hooking up a second battery and give it some more churning
 
OP
C

cellutron

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Well, it started! At last! When I think about it, it was quite an easy start when I finally realised that I had the pipes to the back of the pump the wrong way round! So now I know the feed from the pre-pressure/ low pressure pump goes to the hole closest to the outer edge of the high pressure pump! Also, I have learnt that there is no special detection mechanism to guage the right fuel. The engine does tolerate a good degree of contamination, but best is to avoid it if you can! Adios!
 

Pathfinder

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CLC 220 CDi Sport Diesel Year 2008
One advantage, the petrol would have given the combustions chambers and valves a good cleaning out of carbon deposits, so no need for a dekoke anytime soon !
 

S.Speed

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Older Citroen Now :-(
You were very lucky indeed..
My stepfather filled his Jag X type with petrol and hadn't realized..
He drove off till it conked out..
AA man drained and refilled it with Diesel for a fee (obviously)..
All was well . . . For about a week..

Then it failed to start.. He needed a new high pressure pump and that was eye wateringly expensive..

As I say, you were lucky !
 

teddycatkin

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W107-SL W124-220te W123-230e W201 2.0
You were very lucky indeed..
My stepfather filled his Jag X type with petrol and hadn't realized..
He drove off till it conked out..
AA man drained and refilled it with Diesel for a fee (obviously)..
All was well . . . For about a week..

Then it failed to start.. He needed a new high pressure pump and that was eye wateringly expensive..

As I say, you were lucky !
That is a common problem on X types Simon!---just changing the fuel filtre when servicing can cost big money if you do not know what you are doing--- not much change from £1k in most cases
 
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Rory

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2005 C270CDi Avantgarde Estate. Bought 2005, sold 2022.
That is a common problem on X types Simon!---just changing the fuel filtre when servicing can cost big money if you do not know what you are doing--- not much change from £1k in most cases

Why would that be - it's basically a Mondeo underneath, isn't it?
 

ianstaley

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ML 270CDi 2001.
Yeah the "chassis" is but the rest is um Jag to a point, I would like to point out here that Jaguar have never produced a dare I say it a diesel engine. And I don't think the engine in the diesel variants are from Jag, but bought in. But it isn't Jaguar any more it's some non English make that owns it now. Come to think of it there is only Morgan and maybe Caterham and Lotus even then I'm not 100% sure. The last English car I had was a Range Rover, even that was from I think 73. maybe earlier.
 

Carabosse

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Jaguar is Indian-owned (Tata), Lotus is Malaysian-owned (Proton). Caterham is still British-owned.
 


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