I have done a search and from what i can see I may have been extremely lucky (i hope). I had just under a 1/4 left in the tank so I went to the garage for fuel and by mistake I started to put in Unleaded petrol, i noticed quickly and stopped at 6 litres. I called out the RAC and got towed to a 24hour garage who drained my tank completely, I didnt start the engine at all. I have put in ?40 worth of Diesel now and the car seems ok and it isnt smoking or hesitating, should I be worried?

Thanks, only just got the car to.

 

you're fine

 

As long as it didn't cycle through the fuel pump on start-up, which it didn't, you're OK.

 

You didn't start the engine, and that was the best you could do.

Everything is fine, don't worry!

 

Thanks guys, I had a bit of a sleepless night about this. The car seems fine so i decided to top up the DIESEL on the way home just to fill the tank, god its quick.

 

Now relax and get some sleep! Cheers, Calvin

PS: The more fuel you add the better as this will dilute any residual petrol that much more.

 

Well, a little bit of petrol isn't that bad (it can even be GOOD for the engine).
6 liters is too much obviously, but in my other car (Alfa Romeo 156 1.9JTD) i added a cup of petrol every year (on a full tank of diesel ofcourse).
It cleans out the nozles and burns off residual gunk stuck to your inlet manifold.

No problems there

 

hmm this sounds interesting. I wonder if I ought to try it. A cup of petrol for my tank of diesel you say. Like in a cup used for baking or a tea cup?

cheers

 

Well, you can try it, but you shouldn't.


In the past it was even recommended for Diesel engines to fill a little bit of petrol in the tank, once you are filling it up.
This was recommended for the winter times, so the car starts easier.
Today, a Diesel engine can STILL handle a small amount of petrol.
But it is not needed anymore. Not in the winter times, nor in the summer.


On todays Diesel engines it is important to know what kind of system it is.
If it is a Common Rail Direct Injection, DON'T try it! Its high pressure pump needs the oil from the diesel. If you "clean" the pump, by adding a bit of petrol, you are killing the pump! Because of the missing oil, there is rubbing. Because of the rubbing, little metal particles will be blown into the engine and damage the engine too!
On the other systems you can add petrol. You shouldn't add more than 10-15% though.
In the most user manuals you find a note how many Litres of Petrol you can add.
On some cars this can be up to 50% !!!


But as I said above, it is not needed anymore and therefore you shouldn't even thhink about trying.

 

Glad you didn't start the car and that you seem to be okay. The good news is that in the future, BMW has your back...

INCORRECT FUELLING PROTECTION SYSTEM AS STANDARD FOR ALL BMW DIESEL MODELS
01/30/2009

Munich. BMW is the first car manufacturer to equip all new diesel-powered models with an Incorrect Fuelling Protection System as standard equipment. The innovative system helps prevent cases of misfuelling at the pump and its far-reaching consequences. A special mechanism fitted to the filler neck prevents drivers from accidentally inserting the fuel filler nozzle of a standard unleaded gasoline pump into the filler neck of a diesel-powered car. This technology has been tried-and-tested in a variety of BMW models with diesel engines and will now be fitted to all diesel-powered BMW models, including the 335d Sedan and X5 xDrive35d now on sale in the US, right from the factory.
Every year, the German AA has to provide technical support in more than 5,000 cases of diesel misfuelling. Rectifying the consequences of incorrect fuelling is not just time consuming, it may also involve major costs. Even if the driver realizes their mistake before starting the engine, emptying and cleaning the fuel tank, pipes and the pump as well as changing the filter will be unavoidable.

The high number of cases of misfuelling shows that just a short moment of inattention suffices to select the wrong fuel filler nozzle at the gas station. Particularly drivers who frequently use different cars from rental companies or company fleets often have to pay extra attention ? more so, since the performance profile and acoustic insulation measures of modern diesel engines reduce the differences between diesel and gasoline-powered engines to a minimum. The difference in fuel filler nozzle diameter often prevents accidentally filling petrol engines with their narrower filler neck with diesel fuel, but during hasty filling manoeuvres, the filler nozzle for unleaded gasoline can easily and mistakenly be inserted into the filler neck of standard diesel models.

However BMW will help drivers to avoid making this mistake. The Incorrect Fuelling Protection System fitted to all BMW diesel-powered models is designed to allow only filler nozzles for diesel fuel to enter the filler neck. The filler neck of these models is fitted with a locking system that can only be released by a standardized diesel filler nozzle. An unleaded gasoline nozzle with its smaller diameter cannot make the same connection and its access is blocked.

The Incorrect Fuelling Protection System is also designed for fuelling under exceptional circumstances, when the diesel-powered model may have to be fuelled from a spare can. Narrow recesses on the outer walls of the filler neck allow the introduction of smaller amounts of fuel. Using a container for re-fuelling requires extra care, which serves to remind the driver of ensuring that they use the right type of fuel.