Have You Put Petrol in a Diesel Citroen C3?
When you have put petrol in a diesel Citroen C3 and the motor has not been turned on, leave it turned off, even to shift it clear of the petrol pump. Whilst the motor stays off that petrol sits inside the tank, and draining it is generally all that it needs to put your C3 right.
Petrol in Diesel empties misfuelled vehicles where they are, so your Citroen C3 can remain on the forecourt or wherever it ended up. Wait before attempting anything yourself till you've rung us, and we will explain what to do.
Put petrol in a diesel C3? What to do first
- Keep the engine off. A diesel C3 will usually fire up and run with petrol in the tank, and it can feel normal for a few miles, which is why drivers frequently drive away without noticing anything is wrong.
- The ignition needs to stay off as well, as turning it on starts the fuel pump priming on plenty of diesels, and your pump then pulls fuel out of your tank.
- Do not fill the remainder of the tank with diesel to thin it. Your C3 holds up to 50 litres, and topping it up just means more contaminated fuel to drain. Super unleaded counts as petrol here as well.
- A car in the way of a pump can be popped in neutral and pushed clear, and the forecourt staff are usually happy to lend a hand.
- When you ring 0333 366 0103, we want to know which C3 you have, where it is parked, how much petrol you think was put in and whether your engine has been run. The precise version is useful too when it is on the badging, for example the C3 Pluriel 1.4 HDi.
Driven the vehicle with wrong fuel in your Citroen C3?
As long as it stays inside your tank, wrong fuel in your Citroen C3 doesn't affect your engine. That only begins once it's pulled out, which is what happens when your engine is started. Whilst it flows through, diesel fuel leaves the high-pressure fuel pump and your injectors oiled, and your engine depends on that. With petrol thinning your diesel, that protection goes, and driving for any distance on it is then what can cause damage.
Look for somewhere safe to stop then turn off, when the C3 has already been driven. We empty your tank, then rinse the lines and filter through till no contaminated fuel is left, so it can still be dealt with. Lasting harm is very uncommon when it's caught soon and given a proper clean.
That holds for the C3 1.4 HDi 16V XR-T just as much as any other version of the C3.
Citroen C3 fuel tank capacity
The size of your tank counts because the danger depends on how much of your fuel in there is petrol, so the same couple of litres are more of a problem if the tank was almost empty when you fuelled up.
Tank capacities for the Citroen C3 run from 45 to 50 litres depending on which version it is.
The C3 HDi 70 is the variant with the smallest tank in our figures, and the C3 Picasso HDi 90 FAP is the one with the largest.
The C3 HDi 70 FAP has a tank holding 45 litres.
| Version | Fuel tank |
|---|---|
| Citroen C3 1.4 HDi | 45 litres |
| Citroen C3 1.4 HDi 16V | 45 litres |
| Citroen C3 1.4 HDi 16V XR-T | 45 litres |
| Citroen C3 HDi 110 | 45 litres |
| Citroen C3 HDi 110 FAP | 45 litres |
| Citroen C3 HDi 70 | 45 litres |
| Citroen C3 HDi 70 FAP | 45 litres |
| Citroen C3 HDi 90 FAP | 45 litres |
| Citroen C3 Picasso HDi 110 FAP | 50 litres |
| Citroen C3 Picasso HDi 90 FAP | 50 litres |
| Citroen C3 Pluriel 1.4 HDi | 47 litres |
Checking your diesel C3 version
Check the badge on the boot lid, which normally shows the version, then tell us what it says when you call.
On your diesel C3, the badging used is HDi.
Your engine is 1.4 litres in every version on our list.
When there is AdBlue in a diesel Citroen C3
AdBlue is a mixture of water and urea that certain diesel vehicles rely on to clean up their exhaust, and it has its own tank and filler. Even to move the vehicle, don't turn your key if you have AdBlue in a diesel Citroen C3 after it went into the wrong filler.
AdBlue drops to the bottom of the tank, where the pump draws its fuel from, because it will not blend with diesel. Being mainly water, it can't burn and gives the fuel pump no lubrication, and the diesel in a tank of up to 50 litres doesn't weaken it as it would petrol.
No matter how small the quantity, some of that is sucked into the line. Deposits of urea form in your filter, the fuel injectors and the remainder of your fuel system once the water dries off, and they corrode the metal they rest against.
Look under the fuel flap if the C3 has an AdBlue filler, since on plenty of vehicles it is right alongside your diesel filler. AdBlue caps are typically blue and take a much smaller nozzle than diesel.
Fuel drain on your Citroen C3: how it works
There is no garage needed, because we carry out a fuel drain on your Citroen C3 at your vehicle itself. First we find out what was put in and whether your engine has run. Your tank, which takes up to 50 litres on the C3, is then emptied, the pipes and fuel filter are cleaned, and the car is filled up with clean diesel and primed before we start the car.
The fuel tank in the C3 HDi 90 FAP takes 45 litres.
When we have finished, the C3 is running on fresh diesel and you can drive off in it.
What AdBlue removal from a diesel Citroen C3 means
AdBlue removal from a diesel Citroen C3 takes the same steps as a petrol drain. AdBlue gathers at the base of your tank rather than mixing in, and if the C3 has been run it can leave crystals in the lines, so we flush those through too and change the filter if it needs doing.
On this page, AdBlue removal means getting AdBlue back out of a diesel tank it was put into through the wrong filler. Disabling or removing the AdBlue system on a car is not what it means.
What decides the cost of a fuel drain on the Citroen C3
We don't publish a fixed price, as this work changes from one task to the next. These are the main things that affect it:
- whether anybody has started or driven the C3, the thing that counts most
- how much was put in compared to the capacity of your tank
- which of the two it was, petrol or AdBlue
- whether our van can safely reach the C3 where it sits
The C3 1.4 HDi 16V holds 45 litres when it is full, for comparison.
Ring with those answers and we will be able to explain what's likely to be involved.
Your queries on petrol in a diesel Citroen C3
Can you tell me the fuel tank capacity of the Citroen C3?
Between 45 and 50 litres depending on the variant, and the table above shows every one.
Does topping up with diesel help with a little petrol in my C3?
It isn't something we'd advise, as adding diesel does nothing to take out the petrol. It just reduces its share, and the petrol is still in your system once you drive off. With just a little petrol, a drain to get all of that out is usually all your C3 requires.
Is a trip to the Citroen dealer needed for my C3?
There's no need to move it anywhere. We drain and clean the C3 where it has stopped, and we're independent, with no connection to Citroen or its dealers.
Does it help to know which C3 I have?
Yes, it does. Our data cover 11 diesel versions of the C3, so tell us which one you have when you phone.
Is wrong fuel in my Citroen C3 covered by my policy?
Some policies include misfuelling cover and some do not, so it is worth looking at yours. Whichever it is, we come out and empty your vehicle for you.
Diesel in the AdBlue tank of my C3: what happens?
In this case, too, the right thing is to leave your ignition alone. If it's driven like that, a car will generally display an alert and go into limp mode. The AdBlue system needs emptying as well. Do say which tank took your diesel when you call.
I have already driven my C3. What now?
Find a safe spot to pull over, then switch your engine off and keep the car that way until we get there. Where you have pulled over, your fuel system is drained and cleaned on the spot, and caught soon like this, it very rarely leaves permanent harm.