Godstone: Petrol in a Diesel Car? Here Is What Happens
Stop. Motor off. Keep it that way — no moment on, no shifting it anywhere. Cleared then rinsed, just where it is: that's generally all an unrun diesel with petrol in it needs. Whether it remains that straightforward rests on the minutes ahead more than on anything else. Here's the sequence of things from now, wherever you're around Godstone.
Minute one: petrol in a diesel, engine off
Before anything else, the following — following this order.
- Keys out of the ignition. Switching the ignition on can be enough to prime your fuel system, while priming pulls petrol out of the tank toward the parts it harms. Leave it off altogether.
- Don't top it up with diesel. Adding diesel takes out nothing. You are left with a fuller tank of the same mixture.
- Being seen comes before the rest beside moving traffic: switch the hazard lights on, and only then deal with anything else.
- The attendants will normally help you roll it clear of the pump. Ask, then roll it by hand — not under the engine, even for a couple of yards.
- Keep the receipt: the grade and roughly how much are printed on it, and they're what we ask about first.
If you were still on the move when you noticed, pull over somewhere safe rather than pushing on for the services — on the M25, under a mile from Godstone, that means the next exit. Step one follows.
The fork in every Godstone fuel drain: has it run yet?
Everything after this stage rests on one answer.
Motor not run at all?
- Only that tank has petrol in it so far.
- A drain and flush, on the spot, is usually all of that.
- This is the best case — which is the entire point of step one.
If the engine has run, even briefly:
- Petrol has been pulled from the tank, past your filter and into the lines.
- The high-pressure fuel pump as well as the injectors see it too on a bigger run.
- The job expands with the distance — lines cleaned, filter seen to, sometimes more.
Diesel keeps the high-pressure fuel pump and the injectors protected as it runs through them. Petrol offers them nothing, and that's why the line is drawn there. A tank of petrol, left alone, hurts nothing. Pump that petrol, though, and it grinds down the very parts that move it.
Godstone, petrol in a diesel: have these prepared before you call
A little preparation is the difference between a van that finds you and a van that circles.
- Where you are. A postcode starting RH9 8 is the ideal start.
- Wherever you have parked, the road's name helps — whether that is B2236 or somewhere else — and so does the name of a car park.
- Car parks are found most easily by what they serve: say the one outside Morrisons, and it's easy.
- Tell us what the vehicle is — make, model — and confirm it's diesel.
- What went in. Petrol, or AdBlue. AdBlue is a separate job with its own page for Godstone, so say which.
- The quantity: your receipt's litres, or else how long you held the nozzle in.
- Whether it has run. Then if it has, how far and how hard.
- Hire or company car? Some agreements need the owner's authorisation for the work, and getting it before our engineers arrive is quicker than after.
Phone 0333 366 0103 once you've got that together — or, if your car is at home, going nowhere, use .
Godstone fuel drain on its way? While you wait
In the wait, the damage comes from kindly meant help — so these matter.
- Where your car has stopped decides where you wait. Exposed: away from it, clear of the traffic. Sensible: with it. Either way, safety ahead of your car.
- A kind passer-by does not start it. Nor does anyone wanting to check it still works, or rolling it a few yards.
- No additives. Two-stroke oil, injector cleaner, anything from your boot — none of it gets the petrol back out.
- No home-made clearing. Siphoning petrol into a can at the roadside is hazardous, and it leaves your fuel that has already gone beyond the tank.
- Not for the radio, not for the windows: the ignition remains off.
Van arrived? The fuel drain, one stage at a time
- Fuel, amount, whether it's run: the answers decide the job, and that's why we give a price after them rather than before.
- Out of that tank comes the polluted blend: your tank is emptied.
- If it ran, the lines are holding petrol that has shifted beyond the tank — so they're flushed.
- Cleaned, or changed if the vehicle has a usable one: your filter is seen to next.
- Bleeding the system follows after clean diesel is in.
- Starting the car. After the system is bled with fresh diesel, our engineers start the car and make sure it runs correctly.
The vehicle has clean diesel running through it before we go. When it has been spotted quickly, lasting damage is very uncommon, and the vehicle goes back to normal use straight away.
After the fuel drain is done: driving around Godstone again
- Nothing special is needed after a start with clean diesel — normal driving will do.
- Pull over and ring us back if anything looks wrong early on — a light on your dash, smoke from the exhaust, an idle that is lumpy, or a throttle with a dead spot.
- The paperwork answers the query a rental company, fleet manager or insurer may ask: what work was carried out. Keep it.
- Next time, trust the petrol pump's label instead of the colour of its handle.
About Godstone and where it is
Godstone is a village in Surrey, situated lakeside at an elevation of around 105 metres, with semi-detached housing being the predominant type of accommodation. Godstone lies approximately 18 miles south of London, near the neighbouring communities of Church Town and Tylers Green. Godstone has a population of around 1378 residents, and its location near Westminster makes it a commuter village. Godstone enjoys a scenic setting with nearby lakes and countryside walks.
Godstone and nearby: fuel drains across the area
The same vans that take petrol in diesel calls around Godstone cover Church Town, Tylers Green and White Post, and most of Surrey beyond them. Guessing does not help close to a boundary or somewhere hard to describe; a quick ring and a question will.
Ring, and leave the car off — petrol in a diesel around Surrey
Petrol in Diesel takes it from there — on your drive, by the kerbside, at the forecourt — once you have done stage one: keys out, engine off, receipt in your pocket.