What happens when you put petrol in a diesel car?
It is human tendency to make mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes do not have a major impact, however, sometimes they cause a lot of trouble if not dealt with urgently. The same principle follows when we interact with our cars as well. Some mistakes can be reverted but some end up causing major issues. Keeping this in mind, we brought to you an article explaining what happens when you put diesel in a petrol car. You will find the article linked below. This time, however, we will discuss the opposite situation; what happens when you put petrol in a diesel car. And believe us, finding yourself in this mess is much worse than the opposite one.
What happens when petrol enters a diesel engine?
As we discussed the previous time, the basic difference between petrol & diesel is their viscosity. Petrol is thin whereas diesel is thick. Also, petrol engines incorporate spark plugs to ignite the fuel whereas diesel engines use compression pressure to increase the temperature and auto-ignite the fuel. Fuel pumps in diesel engines are lubricated using the fuel itself which helps in reducing friction and keeping the fuel flow at its optimum performance. Petrol being a thinner fuel fails to lubricate the pump, which leads to an increase in friction. This friction results in the scraping of metal which leads to the circulation of microscopic metal particles inside the system. These particles travel to the high-pressure fuel injectors. These fuel injectors push diesel inside the cylinder chamber via small holes which have been made in accordance with the required spray pattern. These microscopic particles block these minute holes, thus robbing the cylinder of the required fuel. However, if any petrol does manage to reach the cylinder, it will undergo premature detonation due to its low compression ratio property, and will in turn damage the engine internally.
What are the solutions?
The first thing that needs to be done is to avoid turning the car on. You need to contact a mechanic as soon as possible and get the fuel drained and refuel the tank with diesel. However, if the ignition has been turned on, it would lead to major issues as soon as petrol reaches the fuel pump and ultimately the engine. The cost involved in replacing the fuel injectors and fuel pump of a diesel engine are quite high.
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