Put Petrol in a Diesel Fiat Stilo by Mistake?
We'd ask you to leave the motor off when you've put petrol in a diesel Fiat Stilo and not started it yet, and that counts for shifting it off the forecourt too. A drain is generally enough to set the Stilo right, provided the petrol remains in the tank, which it will while the motor is off.
There's no need to move your Fiat Stilo off the forecourt, or from any other spot where it came to a stop, as the drain is done by Petrol in Diesel wherever your vehicle sits. We'll go through it with you on the phone, so ring us before attempting anything yourself.
Got petrol in a diesel Stilo? The first steps
- With petrol inside the tank, a diesel Stilo will generally still start and run, and seem perfectly ordinary for several miles. That's why people frequently drive off without noticing a fault, and why your motor should be left off.
- Fuel can be drawn to the fuel injectors even before the engine has started, as on plenty of diesel motors your ignition on its own primes the fuel pump. Leave the ignition off as well.
- Diluting that petrol by filling up with diesel doesn't help. It just adds to the tainted fuel we drain from a tank that takes up to 58 litres in your Stilo, and super unleaded is petrol here as well.
- A vehicle blocking a pump can be put in neutral and rolled out of the way, and the forecourt attendants are generally willing to help.
- If the badge gives the exact variant, for instance the Stilo 1.9 JTD 140, give it once you phone 0333 366 0103. Let us know as well which Stilo you have and where it is parked, roughly how much petrol was put in and whether the engine has run.
Driving on wrong fuel in your Fiat Stilo
Starting the motor is what pulls the wrong fuel in your Fiat Stilo from your tank, and only then does it begin to affect the engine. The high-pressure pump and the fuel injectors in a diesel engine are lubricated by the fuel passing through them. With petrol diluting the diesel, that lubrication goes, and driving for any distance on it is then what can cause damage.
Once you've driven the Stilo on it, the thing to do is stop somewhere safe then turn your motor off. We can still put it right, by draining the tank and cleaning the lines and the filter until all of the tainted fuel is cleared. Very few vehicles that are caught soon and cleaned out properly end up with long-term harm.
It's the same whatever version of the Stilo you drive, including the Stilo Multi Wagon Uproad 1.9 1.9 Multijet 16V.
Your Fiat Stilo fuel tank capacity, version by version
The size of your tank matters because the risk depends on what proportion of your fuel in there is petrol, so the same few litres are a bigger problem if the tank was close to empty when you filled up.
The fuel tank holds 58 litres on each diesel Fiat Stilo we have figures for, so that calculation is the same whatever variant you have.
| Version | Fuel tank |
|---|---|
| Fiat Stilo 1.9 1.9 Multijet 16V | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo 1.9 1.9 Multijet 8V | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo 1.9 JTD 100 | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo 1.9 JTD 115 | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo 1.9 JTD 140 | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo 1.9 JTD 80 | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon 1.9 1.9 Multijet 16V | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon 1.9 1.9 Multijet 8V | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon 1.9 JTD 100 | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon 1.9 JTD 115 | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon 1.9 JTD 140 | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon 1.9 JTD 80 | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon Uproad 1.9 1.9 Multijet 16V | 58 litres |
| Fiat Stilo Multi Wagon Uproad 1.9 JTD 140 | 58 litres |
What diesel Stilo do you own?
More often than not the version is badged on your boot lid, and it is helpful to us to know when you call.
On your diesel Stilo, the badging found is JTD and Multijet.
The Stilo 1.9 1.9 Multijet 16V is badged Multijet, while the most common badge on our list is JTD.
The engine is 1.9 litres in every version in our list.
Our list takes in Multi Wagon versions as well.
Got AdBlue in a diesel Fiat Stilo?
To clean up their exhaust, certain diesel vehicles rely on AdBlue, a blend of water and urea that goes in its own tank through its own filler. Even to move the vehicle, do not turn the key when you've got AdBlue in a diesel Fiat Stilo after it went in the wrong filler.
AdBlue settles to the bottom of the tank, where your pump draws its fuel from, since it won't mix with diesel. Being mostly water, it cannot ignite and gives the fuel pump no protection, and the diesel in a tank of up to 58 litres does not thin it the way it would petrol.
A modest amount is still pulled into the system. Deposits of urea build up in the filter, the injectors and the remainder of your fuel system as the water dries off, and they attack the metalwork they touch.
Look under the fuel flap if your Stilo has an AdBlue filler, since on a lot of cars it sits right next to your diesel filler. The nozzle for AdBlue is much smaller than the diesel one, and the cap is usually blue.
How a fuel drain on your Fiat Stilo works
Moving the car to a garage is not needed, as a fuel drain on your Fiat Stilo is carried out right at your vehicle. On the Stilo your tank holds up to 58 litres, so we drain all of it once we have found out what was put in and whether the motor has been run. The fuel lines and your filter are rinsed after that, then we fill up with clean diesel and prime the fuel system before firing up your engine.
Once we've finished, the Stilo is running on fresh diesel and you are free to drive off in it.
AdBlue removal from a diesel Fiat Stilo, step by step
We take the same stages for AdBlue removal from a diesel Fiat Stilo as we do for draining petrol. We flush crystals out of the lines too when the Stilo has been run, and swap your fuel filter if needed, because AdBlue gathers in the base of the tank instead of blending in and may leave them there.
On this page, AdBlue removal means taking AdBlue back out of a diesel tank it was put into through the wrong filler. Switching off or taking out the AdBlue system on a car is not what it means.
The cost of a fuel drain on the Fiat Stilo
A fixed quote is not something we publish, as no two jobs need the same work. It largely comes down to the following:
- most of all, whether the Stilo has been driven or even started
- how much was put in against the size of the tank
- whether it was AdBlue instead of petrol
- the location of the Stilo and how easily we can get to it with the van
With those answers on the phone, we can let you know what the work is going to involve.
Your questions on petrol in a diesel Fiat Stilo
How many litres is the Fiat Stilo fuel tank capacity?
All the variants we have data for hold 58 litres.
Can I top up with diesel if I only put a little petrol in my Stilo?
It isn't something we would advise, as putting in diesel does nothing to take out that petrol. It only lowers its proportion, and that petrol is still in your system once you drive off. With only a little petrol, a drain to get all of it out is normally all the Stilo requires.
Must my Stilo go to the Fiat dealer?
No, we travel to it. The Stilo is drained and cleaned wherever it has stopped, by an independent business with no link to Fiat or any dealer.
Does the variant of my Stilo matter?
It is useful for us to know which one you have when you ring, as we hold data for 14 diesel versions of the Stilo.
Am I insured for wrong fuel in my Fiat Stilo?
Some policies have misfuelling cover and some do not, so it is worth looking at yours. Whichever it is, we come out and empty the car for you.
The diesel went into the AdBlue filler on my Stilo. What now?
In this case, too, the right thing is to leave the ignition alone. The AdBlue system will need emptying, and if your car is driven like that, it'll most likely show a warning and drop into limp mode. Let us know which tank the fuel was put in when you ring.
What should I do if I have already driven my Stilo?
Find a safe place to pull over, then switch the motor off and keep the car that way till we get there. Where you have stopped, the system is emptied and cleaned on the spot, and caught early like this, it very seldom leaves lasting harm.