Have You Put Petrol in a Diesel Kia Ceed?
We'd urge you to keep the engine off if you've put petrol in a diesel Kia Ceed and not run it yet, and that goes for moving it off the forecourt too. As long as your engine remains off the petrol stays inside the tank, and a drain is usually all it needs to put the Ceed right.
There is no reason to move your Kia Ceed off the forecourt, or from any other place where it came to a stop, because this drain is done by Petrol in Diesel wherever your car stands. We'll go through it with you over the phone, so call us before attempting anything yourself.
Petrol in a diesel Ceed: what to do right away
- Drivers commonly drive off without realising something is amiss, since a diesel Ceed will usually fire up and run on petrol and may seem normal for the first few miles. So leave your motor off.
- Fuel can be drawn towards the fuel injectors before your engine has started, as on plenty of diesel motors your ignition on its own primes the fuel pump. Leave your ignition off as well.
- The Ceed holds up to 53 litres, so topping up the remainder of your tank with diesel to thin that petrol just means more contaminated fuel to empty out. The same goes for super unleaded, which counts as petrol too.
- When your car is in the way of a pump, put it in neutral then push the vehicle out of the way. Forecourt attendants are normally happy to help with that.
- When the badge gives the precise version, for example the Ceed 1.6 CRDi 128, mention it when you phone 0333 366 0103. Tell us too which Ceed you drive and where it is, roughly how much petrol was put in and whether the motor has run.
Wrong fuel in your Kia Ceed once the motor has been started
Starting your motor is what draws the wrong fuel in your Kia Ceed out of your tank, and only then does it begin to reach your motor. Inside a diesel engine, the fuel oils the injectors and the injection pump on its way past. Petrol thins your diesel and washes that protection away, which is why it is driving any distance on that mixture that can cause harm.
If you've already been driving your Ceed, pull over where it is safe and turn off. It can still be put right, with the tank drained and the lines and fuel filter flushed till every trace of the contaminated fuel has gone. When it is caught soon and cleaned out properly, permanent damage is very uncommon.
The Ceed sw 1.6 CRDi 128 is no different here from any other version of the Ceed.
Kia Ceed fuel tank capacity
The capacity of your tank matters because the danger hinges on what share of the fuel in there is petrol, so the same couple of litres are more of a problem if the tank was nearly empty when you filled up.
It doesn't make a difference which variant you own, as each diesel Kia Ceed in our figures uses the same tank, holding 53 litres.
| Version | Fuel tank |
|---|---|
| Kia Ceed 1.6 CRDi 115 | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed 1.6 CRDi 128 | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed 1.6 CRDi 90 | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed 2.0 CRDi | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed Sporty Wagon 1.6 CRDi 115 | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed Sporty Wagon 1.6 CRDi 128 | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed Sporty Wagon 1.6 CRDi 90 | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed Sporty Wagon 2.0 CRDi | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed sw 1.6 CRDi 128 | 53 litres |
| Kia Ceed sw 1.6 CRDi 90 | 53 litres |
Finding your diesel Ceed variant
Check the badging on your boot lid, which normally gives the variant, then tell us what it says when you ring.
On your diesel Ceed, the badging found is CRDi.
The smallest engine, 1.6 litres, is on the Ceed Sporty Wagon 1.6 CRDi 115, and the biggest, 2.0 litres, is in the Ceed Sporty Wagon 2.0 CRDi.
You will also find SW versions in the list.
AdBlue in a diesel Kia Ceed by mistake
Some diesel vehicles hold a mixture of water and urea, called AdBlue, in a tank of its own with a dedicated filler, and rely on it to clean up their exhaust. If there's AdBlue in a diesel Kia Ceed because it went into the incorrect filler, do not touch the key, even to move your car.
Even a tank holding up to 53 litres does nothing to dilute AdBlue the way it would dilute petrol. AdBlue doesn't blend with diesel, so it sinks to the base, right where the pump draws its fuel, and being mainly water it neither burns nor gives the fuel pump any protection.
A small quantity is still sucked into the fuel system. Deposits of urea form in the fuel filter, the injectors and the remainder of the system as the water evaporates, and they attack the metal they touch.
On many cars the AdBlue filler sits alongside your diesel filler under the same fuel flap, and where your Ceed has one, it might well be there too. AdBlue caps are typically blue and accept a far narrower nozzle than diesel.
Our fuel drain on your Kia Ceed, in order
Every fuel drain on your Kia Ceed is carried out beside the vehicle, so it doesn't need to go to a garage. First we find out what went in and whether the engine has run. The tank, which holds up to 53 litres on the Ceed, is then emptied, the lines and fuel filter are flushed, and your car is filled up with fresh diesel and primed before we start the engine.
By the time we leave, your Ceed is running on fresh diesel again and ready for you to drive away.
How we handle AdBlue removal from a diesel Kia Ceed
We follow the same stages for AdBlue removal from a diesel Kia Ceed as we do for draining petrol. We flush deposits out of the lines as well when the Ceed has been started, and swap your fuel filter if needed, because AdBlue settles in the base of the tank instead of blending in and may leave them there.
AdBlue removal on this page means getting AdBlue out of the diesel tank after it has been put in the wrong filler. It doesn't mean taking out or disabling the AdBlue system on your car.
What decides the price of a fuel drain on the Kia Ceed
We do not publish a fixed price, as this work differs from one task to the next. These are the biggest things that affect it:
- whether anyone has started or driven the Ceed, the thing that counts most
- how much was put in compared to the size of your tank
- what went in, petrol or AdBlue
- where the Ceed is parked, and whether we can get our van to it in safety
If you ring with those details we can let you know what the job is likely to involve.
Queries about petrol in a diesel Kia Ceed
The Kia Ceed fuel tank capacity: how many litres?
53 litres on each variant in our figures.
I just put a little petrol in my Ceed. Should I fill up with diesel?
It isn't something we would advise, since putting in diesel does nothing to take out the petrol. It only lowers its proportion, and that petrol is still in the fuel system once you drive off. A fuel drain gets all of it out, and with a modest quantity that is generally all the Ceed requires.
Does my Ceed have to go to the Kia dealer?
No, we travel to it. The Ceed is drained and cleaned wherever it is, by an independent business with no link to Kia or any dealer.
Does it matter which Ceed I drive?
We hold data for 10 diesel variants of the Ceed, and knowing which one you have helps us when you ring.
Will my insurance pay for wrong fuel in my Kia Ceed?
Misfuelling cover comes with some policies and not others, so check yours. We'll come out to drain it for you whether it does or not.
Diesel in the AdBlue tank of my Ceed: what now?
Keep your key out of your ignition in that case as well. Limp mode and an alert are what the majority of vehicles give you if they're driven in that state, and their AdBlue system will need emptying. Which tank your fuel went into is worth telling us when you ring.
Already driven my Ceed: what now?
Turn your engine off once you have pulled over somewhere safe, and keep it off until we arrive. Where you have pulled over, the fuel system is emptied and cleaned on the spot, and caught early like this, it very rarely leaves long-term harm.