I have the man flu at the moment and am feeling quite miserable. Yesterday had to go and pick up the girls from school when fuel low light came on.

Went into the garage on the way back and put 24 litres into my diesel RR before I realised it was petrol . I didn't start the car or put the ignition on and called the assist services.

They have taken it to a garage and will call me today to let me know what the damage is. I see a major bill coming my way. The problem is that my other car is a petrol and although usually I am very careful, yesterday I wasn't.

One mistake is all it takes. Just needed to tell everyone what a muppet I was.

Moral of the story- Do not drive when feeling unwell as it can make you go doolaly.

C'mon lets hear it...who else has done it? Or am I the only one??? Never argue with an idiot as he will drag you down to his level and then beat you with experience.

Last edited by flybouy on Wed Jun 16 2010 12:27pm. Edited 1 time in total

I haven't done it personally, but we have a fleet of about 40 cars here and it happens about twice a year. Not meaning to be sexist here but it's nearly always a female member of staff that does it. Said RRS is now on order.

yes, easily done, I have both Petrol and Diesel RR's and it only takes a moments lapse. Mine was just 3 or 4 litres though, I brimmed the tank and the car was none the worse. However, this was 20 years ago pre the high pressure fuel pumps which rely on diesel to lubricate.

Going back 20 years garages and fuel comapnies used to tell you to put a few litres of petrol in your diesel to prevent the fuel system waxing up in very cold weather. These days diesel comes with additives and this isn't a problem.

If you didn't start the car, the tank just needs draining, more of a cost associated with disposing of the contaminated fuel. I would take it and use if for bonfires...

My predecessor at work had a diesel BMW 525 which she's had for a while without problems....After she was made redundant she accidentally put petrol in it and drove until it stopped ....one wrecked engine and an expensive repair bill Current: I can't say...Oh the Shame!
Gone: 2003 Audi S4 - 340BHP of Fun
Gone: 2005 RRS SE, Silver, Chrome Mirrors, Tinted with a stupid spare wheel!
Gone: Audi A4 2.5 TDi Quattro 180bhp
Gone: BMW 535i
Gone: 1985 Audi Quattro
Gone: Subaru Imprezza Turbo (rubbish)

Happened to me last year.

Fueled the tank with petrol instead of diesel the night before, because i had to go to the airport the
next day at 0500 am.
After 10 kilometers, the car started not wanting to accelerate while doing 80 km/h.
Expected engine problems, and expected that if i had to stop somewhere the engine would give up.
So i tried to make it to my destination without stopping.
Finally had to stop for the first time at the entrance of the car parking at the airport, where the engine
stalled as expected.
Fortunately, the car parking was down hill, so i let the car roll with the engine off and parked her.
In this way i could still make my flight, and would deal with the engine problem on return.

The garage first picked the car up (paid by my insurance), and then drained the tank. Then they rinsed
the tank and installed a new petrol filter.

Total cost 90 euro's (plus off course the cost of the drained unusable pertol/diesel) SW

Sometimes it is not enough to do our best;
sometimes we must do what is required.

2005 RRS HSE 2.7 TDV6
Now: 2016 RRS HSE DYNAMIC 3.0 TDV6

Never done it, never even nearly done it........but oddly always look at the pump twice before pulling the trigger!!

Kiss of death now though....will post a HELP!!! message in the next couple of days....watch this space...

my "mate" did it with his, put £95 without realising, drove 100yds before total shutdown. LR quoted £4k as every contaminated part would need replacing. "He" got it drained and cleaned and right as ninepence for £250, never had a problem with it since.  purple people eater

There are no good days, just some days that are not as bad as others!


Gone RR 4.0 P38 Autobiography MY99 Red ( money pit)
Gone RRS MY06 2.7TDV6 HSE Rimini Red
Gone RRS MY10 3.0TDV6 HSE Bali Blue with lots of bits (never grew to love it)
Here Now - 3.6 TDV8 FFRR OVERFINCH Stornoway Grey - loving it x
My work car Ford Mondeo 2.0 TDci Zetec auto Estate in Silver

Not in the car but put £5 petrol in a diesel work van once

Its not possible to put the wrong fuel into a 2010 RRS, they have the ford system. If you attempt to put the wrong nozzle in it blocks it and you then have to use a special tool in the boot to unlock it before you can put the correct nozzle in. WINNER - 2009 ‘Just Doing What It’s Designed To Do’ Award

2010 TDV8 HSE Galway Green - Adaptive Cruise - Sunroof - Privacy Glass - 5 Spoke Alloys
2009 TDV6 3.0 HSE Buckingham Blue - GONE

if you didn't start the car or drive it then you have done absolutely no damage. You will only have a bill for draining the tank and the cost of the loss of fuel. Do not let anyone tell you parts need replacing etc. My mate has done this at least 3 times (he's a pratt). The last time, he brimmed an A4 diesel to the top and drove half a mile from the petrol station before the car conked out. Audi gave him the doom and gloom '£4k sir to replace all contaminated bits' routine. But guess what - a tank drain and refill sorted it and it has now gone on to do 70k miles since - running like a Swiss watch. If you see a bandwagon - it's too late.....

Java Black HSE TDV6 O7, alpaca, FF sunroof, adaptive Xenon headlights, SC grill, black privacy glass, clear indicators, tow-pack, colour-coded all black.Gone, but forever in my memory. Until my new one comes...
In the stables:Mercedes CLK 230K Cab W208; BMW 318d; VW Golf (LHD) 1.6 SE in Spain:New RRS to come soon...

Not fuel but I did see a woman topping up her oil one time in the garage then asked if I could help as it wouldn't start. Turns out she'd been told by her husband to top the oil as it was low. She bought more and more oil for the car as she was waiting to see it come up to the level of the filler cap................ No much wonder it wouldn't start really..........  Current, M135i in Estoril Blue with more extras than the cast of Ben Hur.

535d m-sport Platinum grey and a few extras.... Gone

X5 3.0 sd in Space Grey, 20's, Dynamic Pack, Memory Pack, Media Pack, Tow Pack, Rear DVD, Panoramic Sunroof, Steps, 7 Seat Pack, Reversing Camera with moving lines, programmable park heat, etc etc etc - Gone

Range Rover Sport Santorini, privacy, dvd, towpack GONE!!!

Nope Never Done It......But that's not to say I won't in the future..... I'm definately getting more dopey the older I get  2013 Discovery HSE Luxury - 3.0 SDV6 - Santorini Black
2013 Evoque 5 Door Pure Tech SD4 - Orkney Grey with Panoramic Roof (Mrs E's new baby)

GONE - RRS - 3.0 TDV6 HSE - Santorini (2010)
GONE - RRS - 2.7 TDV6 HSE - Java Black (2007)
GONE - Porsche Boxster S - 3.2 - Black

Got the final numbers from the repair shop. Very pleased with the result. A total damage of £150 which includes 25 litres of diesel.

The tow in was free and I avoided calling Land Rover. I think I started thinking very clearly once I realised what I had done.

Richard, mine is a 07 HSE so does not have the protection built in but I have looked at some commercial alternatives which range between 29.99 and 39.99. But the million pound question is - will I do it again????? Never argue with an idiot as he will drag you down to his level and then beat you with experience.

Last edited by flybouy on Fri Jun 18 2010 3:55pm. Edited 1 time in total

flybouy - you did exactly the right thing and you saved yourself a small fortune. For others DO NOT PUT THE KEY IN THE IGNITION CALL ASSIST IMMEDIATELY  2005 Zambezi TDV6 - Gone but not forgotten
2009 Alaska TDV8 - Gone and much missed.



WINNER - 2009 �Idler Of The Year� Award
Runner Up - 2009 �Just Doing What It�s Designed To Do� Award


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