Petrol in a Diesel Renault? Keep the Engine Off
The engine is safest left off if it has not been run since you put petrol in a diesel Renault, and that includes moving your car clear of the pump. In this situation, your vehicle usually needs nothing more than a fuel drain, as the petrol hasn't yet left the tank.
Petrol in Diesel drains diesel Renault cars where they stand, on the forecourt or wherever they have come to a stop. If you would much rather talk it through before trying anything yourself, phone us. Each model has a page of its own, linked below.
Petrol in a diesel Renault: what to do straight away
- Keep your motor off, and the ignition as well. On a lot of diesels, turning your ignition on is enough to set the fuel pump priming, which pulls fuel out of the tank on to the injectors.
- Thinning the petrol down with diesel does not help. Topping up only adds to the tainted fuel to be drained from a tank that takes up to 90 litres in a diesel Renault.
- Forecourt attendants will usually help roll the vehicle clear in neutral when it's blocking a pump.
- Call 0333 366 0103 and let us know which model it is, where you are, roughly how much went in and whether your engine has run. The model name is enough to start with, for instance the Grand Espace.
Wrong fuel in your Renault: why the motor matters most
The trouble starts once wrong fuel in your Renault is pulled from the tank, and it's starting the engine that pulls it out. The injectors and the high-pressure pump depend on diesel passing through them for lubrication. Petrol thins that diesel, so the harm, where there is any, comes from driving on the blend.
When you have already been driving, pull over in a safe place and turn off. Very few cars caught early are left with lasting harm. We come out to where you've stopped to put it right.
It is the same whichever Renault you drive, including the Scenic.
The diesel Renault range and its tanks
The size of your tank counts since what matters is how much of the fuel in it is petrol, so a few litres matter more in a tank that was almost empty.
Across the diesel Renault range, tanks go from 40 to 90 litres.
Our figures put the biggest tank on the Trafic and the smallest on the Twingo.
For the Kangoo, the tank size is up to 60 litres.
There's a page for every one of the 21 diesel Renault models we have figures for, with the tank size for each version.
Got AdBlue in a diesel Renault?
If you have AdBlue in a diesel Renault because it went in the incorrect filler, the first step does not change. The key stays where it is, even when your car needs to be moved.
Made mostly of water with urea dissolved in it, AdBlue doesn't burn and does not mix with diesel. It drops to the base of the tank instead, right where your pump picks up its fuel, and gives it no lubrication. Crystals of urea build up in the filter and the lines once the water dries, and they attack the metalwork around them.
A separate AdBlue tank, if a diesel car has one, has its own filler, often beside your diesel filler under the same flap. If yours does, the AdBlue cap is generally blue and fits a narrower nozzle.
Fuel drain on your Renault: how we do it
On your drive or at the forecourt, a fuel drain on your Renault is done where the vehicle stands, so it doesn't need to be moved. Before we start your motor, the system is primed and the tank refilled with clean diesel. That follows finding out what went in and whether it has run, emptying your tank and rinsing the fuel pipes and the filter.
The Koleos holds up to 65 litres, all of which we empty.
The job finishes with the car running on fresh diesel.
AdBlue removal from a diesel Renault
Just like a petrol drain, AdBlue removal from a diesel Renault goes through the same stages, but we take more care at the base of the tank, where AdBlue collects. A car that has been started gets its lines and filter flushed through, plus a new fuel filter where needed.
The AdBlue system isn't taken out or switched off here. The term means taking AdBlue out of the diesel tank.
What a fuel drain on a diesel Renault costs
Jobs differ, so this page gives no set quote. More than anything, it depends on whether the engine has run or your vehicle has been driven. It also matters whether it took petrol or AdBlue, where your car is, and what share of your tank it filled. We can explain what will be involved once you ring with those answers.
Your queries on petrol in a diesel Renault
Can you drain any diesel Renault?
This page links to each diesel Renault model we have figures for, and the work itself covers any diesel car.
What count of diesel Renault models do you list?
Between them, the 21 diesel Renault models we list take in 163 versions.
Will I need to take my Renault to the dealer?
No. We are independent and have no link with Renault or its dealers, and this drain is done wherever your car is.
Wrong fuel in my Renault: does insurance cover it?
We come out whether you are covered or not, yet it is worth checking your policy, since not every policy includes misfuelling cover.