(Misfuel) Petrol AND Diesel

[andyj]

When I was a spanner turner it was a regular problem both pertol in diesel and the other way round, there was not much of an issue with the petrol in the diesel, as the truckies (and when I was in the Army we did the same) would put Kerosene in the diesel tank to prevent the diesel from freezing and waxing up.........

There was always more of a problem with diesel in the petrol vehicles as diesel doesn't burn with a spark ?? but could do the top of a piston real quick and does it smoke............................

[Steane]

I have an 08 ML, so if the drain plugs were on the early models they deleted them fairly quick..........WHY????

My theory is that as they added more 'stuff' to the Triton to keep them ahead of the competition on paper, they clawed some of the cost back by removing features. Unfortunately they removed seriously useful ones, like fuel tank bungs, real diff breathers, the 3.2 cost more to make so that went, hard lid for the GLX-R went, and these are just the ones we know about...

It's called progress...

[snowman]

can anyone actually confirm a fuel drain plug in a standard early model ML please. a photo would be great.

[4wd26]

Tokirky- I have a spare "standard" tank will give you for a carton of beer.
from memory not in the best of condition (dint) but available now and in Brisbane.

[ML-VR08]

I have a drain plug on mine - april 2008 build....

[Lee-thal]

DO NOT RESTART THE CAR, emove and Drain the tank ASAP, put in fresh diesel and flush the lines, It could be a very very expensive mistake if it gets to the pump and injectors.

Cheers

[tokirky]

Tokirky- I have a spare "standard" tank will give you for a carton of beer.
from memory not in the best of condition (dint) but available now and in Brisbane.

Thanks 4wd26 I havent got a plan yet but will keep that in mind.

Tex, my tank is the same as the photo with the indent for the drain plug but no plug..june 08 build.

Seems like mine is the first of the era of 'no more drain plugs' - lucky me....at least they put one in the sump

[tav43]

Guess what I just did - #ickhead!!!!!

I was in my own little world and picked up the Vortex pump and started filling my Diesel tri.

Then i have had a thought to see what Vortex, to my surprise it was Vortex 95 unleaded.....
I stopped at 20ltrs and had a little think......wish the wife had done this.........
with half a tank to go I filled the rest (30 ltrs) with Vortex Diesel.

Then I thought whether i should start it or not or call a tow truck.

So i gave it a go and limped home, but had NO adverse affects. A little rattlier but gave it big drink of 2T - 400ml
and 'so far so good'?

Any other numb nuts out there who have done this - I cant be the first one surely
What has happened to your truck??????

lol m8ty ... my father would have a story for ya,s,lol spent yrs as a spanner jocky on big trucks doin general maintenance so he knows all bout big trucks bumper to bumper,lol.... anyways bout 10 yrs a go bout himself a 80 series4.2 turbo diesel wagon... bout 5-6 yrs a go drove into a srevo n grabed the 1st nozzle on the pump n started filling...well 145 ltrs later didnt see the prob till he went to pay for it didnt he bad news he had the hassle of draining twin tanks completely good news is i got 140 freeltes for my car@the time,lol....ps he should of known better,lol ...good thing he didnt start it

[snowman]

so it seems there was a build change between april and june 08 that saw the deletion of the drain plug.

add that to the list boys.

And Selwyn - DOH!!!!

last time i listen to you and Joe - you just get me in trouble.

[4wd26]

so it seems there was a build change between april and june 08 that saw the deletion of the drain plug.

add that to the list boys.

And Selwyn - DOH!!!!

last time i listen to you and Joe - you just get me in trouble.

what have I got to do with anything???

BTW- my April build GLX-r (first of the 17" rims and cruise control standard) does not have the fuel drain plug
Towing capacity was increased with this model update from 2300kg to 2500kg.

I think the VR models in this update also got a "shaped rear" that stopped the use of GLX-r factory rear steps being fitted.

[RockoWallaby]

Guess what I just did - #ickhead!!!!!

I was in my own little world and picked up the Vortex pump and started filling my Diesel tri.

Then i have had a thought to see what Vortex, to my surprise it was Vortex 95 unleaded.....

Smirks evilly.
Least you stopped at 20L
I stopped at 45

Why I wanted a LR tank with a drain plug. Getting soaked in fuel, because the tight arses at Bitsa did away with the drain plug in the MN made me NOT happy, Jan!

[RockoWallaby]

DO NOT RESTART THE CAR, emove and Drain the tank ASAP, put in fresh diesel and flush the lines, It could be a very very expensive mistake if it gets to the pump and injectors.

Cheers

What I did. Although I did move the car 4 meters from the bowser.
Was a bloody long day...
\Had the car towed home without starting further.
Drained tank...(a bitch of a job, without a drain plug!!!)...you need "Bitsa special pump" AKA what looks like a modified marine fuel tank bulb... However, didn't use it. Just removing the hoses and the stuff pissed out!! Siphoned dry itself...and absolutely ALL over me, as I was stuck lying under the car!!. Had the crap pooling in my eye sockets!! Was NOT supposed to self-siphon, according to the retardo manual.

Drained lines. Tried to replace filter, but the arses at the factory had put it on so tight, it couldn't be removed, even when the filter assembly had been removed and put in a vice :/

Got no unleaded anywhere else in the system. The filter was still full of diesel, so escaped a bullet there.

However, I heard after from somewhere that 10 or so litres of unleaded diluted in a full diesel tank isn't a major issue.
Wasn't going to risk it tho, on a brand new car. Not with 45L

Now, I'm paranoid! Diesel...diesel..DIESEL....

[RockoWallaby]

Oh, and the hubby of one of my staff did top up the water in his new Ford Transit, a few years back. Obviously, the oil filler and the water filler must look similar, as we still ask him if he's going to change the "engine water" again

[tokirky]

[quote="RockoWallaby[/quote]

Drained tank...(a bitch of a job, without a drain plug!!!)...you need "Bitsa special pump" AKA what looks like a modified marine fuel tank bulb... However, didn't use it. [b]Just removing the hoses and the stuff pissed out!! Siphoned dry Had the crap pooling in my eye sockets!! [/b]


What hoses Rocko?? ones at the tank or in the engine bay??

pooling in your eye sockets..... not to loud i may end up the same...

[RockoWallaby]

The 2 hoses near the fuel tank where they go into the metal pipes running to the front of the vehicle. release the clamps, and make sure you have a large container handy If you get caught, let me know and I'll loan you my siphon pump.

Believe me, laying stuck under a vehicle, with eye sockets full of fuel, and not able to move cause yopu got your fingers stuck in the hose ends to stop the fuel pissing everywhere....is funny when it happens to someone else ;>

[tokirky]

I tried to siphon the fuel out yesterday but you cant get a hose down there b/c of anti thieft flap stopping it.

Plan B do as you did rocko, with my scuba mask

[tokirky]

OK so problem solved at least for now - but i dont think there will be any long term affects with mine.
This is what i did and i think its the easiest fix - apart from not misfuelling in the first place

Depending on how much misfuelling you have, this tip may change slightly, like dont drive it too far, or,
AT ALL if you are unsure!!!!
The diesel is the lubrication you need for the pump and injectors, unleaded serverly thins this out and stays mixed with the diesel, not seperated like water would, injectors will be the first to suffer and cost lots of $$$

If you are guilty of brain snaps keep some 2T in the truck somewhere and stick it in straight away even if you intend to go a couple of K's on misfuel.

First give yourself an upper cut, then crawl underneath the truck and disconnect the fuel out pipe. Its the fatter one coming out the tank on the top passenger side. As tex suggests put a clamp on the rubber hose before you pull it off the steel pipe that runs along the chassis. Rocko and I copped a face full...
Empty that fuel out into a bucket, i got 40 l out but thats not enough so I got out my compressor and put it down the the spout where the fuel nozzle goes and gave it a few big squits of air to get another 20l out.

Happy about that, then connect the fuel line back up. I had 20l of fresh diesel so I put that in with 300ml of 2T
back end sorted....
Now under the bonnet you need to disconnect the fuel line after the filter and use the primer on the filter to prime out another 1or 2l into an ice cream bucket, then I put a little squit of sewing machine oil in the hose before I connected it up, just for a little extra lube quickly for the injectors.

Double check all the connection then hit the key, and head for the nearest servo to fill her up to the brim with DIESEL and should be happy days.
PS. if you have more than 20l of unleaded in a full tank of diesel I would tow it.

[mattz]

That is one steep learning curve you have been one tokirky,
You sound like an expert now.
I am glad you got it sorted and are happy with the result

[RHKTriton]

Bad to see that I'm not the only one that's done this.

On the way home from a job at one in the morning, pull into the servo as tank nearly dry, the guy in front makes way to let me to the bowser and I start filling. Enjoying the fumes of premium I suddenly look at the pump to see 30Ls have gone into the tank!

After paying for fuel I didn't want I moved the truck to the edge of a mulched area with the view to drain the tank ; NO BUNG!

After finding the expensive siphon hose wouldn't get down the filler, I thought fitting it to the end of the fuel line under the hood may do the job - but I couldn't maintain a siphon action.

Brainwave = use the priming pump! 1hr of pumping later had the muck out and could refill.

Dearest fuel stop ever - after a bit of bother starting and leaving the engine idling for a few minutes all went well.

The other trap to look out for is people swapping the nossles into the wrong holder.

[tav43]

Bad to see that I'm not the only one that's done this.

On the way home from a job at one in the morning, pull into the servo as tank nearly dry, the guy in front makes way to let me to the bowser and I start filling. Enjoying the fumes of premium I suddenly look at the pump to see 30Ls have gone into the tank!

After paying for fuel I didn't want I moved the truck to the edge of a mulched area with the view to drain the tank ; NO BUNG!

After finding the expensive siphon hose wouldn't get down the filler, I thought fitting it to the end of the fuel line under the hood may do the job - but I couldn't maintain a siphon action.

Brainwave = use the priming pump! 1hr of pumping later had the muck out and could refill.

Dearest fuel stop ever - after a bit of bother starting and leaving the engine idling for a few minutes all went well.
The other trap to look out for is people swapping the nossles into the wrong holder.

i,ve noticed that if u look@the nozzles the they usually match wat s going thru them...ie diesel/petrol ect

[RockoWallaby]

No they don't always, least not the colour!! I've seen diesel pumps being coloured black, with premium yellow, and the other way around elsewhere!!
Standards Australia got their head up their ass on this one

After having issues with a collapsing filler hose with the Ironman tank, I took that stupid siphon blocker flap fitting out of the pipe! It's only a small plastic flap fitting at the bottom of the metal filler section. Knocks out with a screwdriver easily if the hose is off. Least now I can siphon if I need to, and my cap locks anyway by key (replaced for $15 )
Ironman tank may have had issues, but I do like the large capacity, and I do like me bung in the bottom

[Greedy]

Apparently a SA member has done it (starts with G)

Dobber. Just found this thread hence the resurrection.

[Mozza]

Further resurrection:

Just read this thread after putting 65l into the GLXR. I'm worried as I did manage 12km of driving cursing the servo for giving me 'dirty fuel' before I stopped and had a better look to assess.

@#$%!!!! Had the wife bring out jerry cans X4, 1 full of diesel, tools and a length of garden hose. After finding the anti-theft, I managed to get a siphon by attaching the garden hose to the connection where the intake to the filter is so apart from a mouthful of UL, I filled up the 3 remaning jerries. Pumped and drained the filter and drained the outtake to the engine as well. Checked the drain plug on the tank - not a drop. Chucked in the 20l of diesel, pumped the bejesus out of the primer until I was 110% certain it was diesel.

Said a few 'hail Mary's' and turned the key...

Bingo! Started first time.

She sounds fine, feels fine, the power is there, no smoke BUT, I guess I need to get her in for a check on the pump and injectors...

[tokirky]

Mate if there was something wrong with the pump or injectors you would know...........

Sounds like you got real lucky, chuck in some 2 stroke oil (search here somewhere) and away you go.

[amalinze]

Who in their right mind deleted the drain plug! I just spent hours draining my tank in what i thought to be the easiest way. Pumping using the primer pump. 75 pumps per 1.25L bottle. At this point i am ready to kill the person who took the plug out of the production line instead of charging us max $5 extra? I would have paid 500 this morning!