Put Petrol in a Diesel Seat by Mistake?
When you have put petrol in a diesel Seat and the motor hasn't been started, keep the vehicle switched off, even to shift it clear of the petrol pump. Till your motor is started, the petrol remains in your tank, which means a drain is normally enough.
Your diesel Seat can remain on the forecourt, or wherever it has stopped, as Petrol in Diesel empties cars where they stand. If you would sooner talk it through before trying anything yourself, ring us. Each model gets a page of its own, listed below.
The first steps after petrol in a diesel Seat
- Fuel can be pulled from the tank towards the injectors before the engine has started, because on many diesels your ignition alone sets the fuel pump priming. So keep both the ignition and your engine off.
- Diesel Seat models hold up to 70 litres, so filling the rest of the tank with diesel to water down the petrol only leaves more contaminated fuel to drain.
- Forecourt attendants will normally help push your vehicle clear in neutral if it's blocking a pump.
- Tell us which model you have when you ring 0333 366 0103, even if it's just the name, for instance the Leon. We also want to know where you are, whether the engine has been run and roughly how much was put in.
Wrong fuel in your Seat: why your engine counts most
Starting the motor is what pulls wrong fuel in your Seat out of your tank, and till then it doesn't cause trouble. Petrol thins the fuel that lubricates the high-pressure pump and your injectors while it passes through them, and that's why any real distance driven on that mix can cause damage.
Look for somewhere safe to stop and turn off, if you have already been driving. Very few cars caught early are left with lasting damage. We come out to wherever you've stopped to sort it out.
Each Seat is the same in this respect, the Ibiza included.
Diesel Seat models and their tanks
In a tank that was nearly empty, a couple of litres of petrol make up more of the fuel, and that proportion is what matters, so the size of your tank makes a difference.
Tank capacities run from 34 to 70 litres throughout the diesel Seat range.
Our figures place the biggest tank on the Alhambra and the smallest on the Arosa.
On the Altea, the tank takes up to 55 litres.
There is a page for each of the 8 diesel Seat models we hold figures for, with the tank capacity for each variant.
AdBlue in a diesel Seat
AdBlue in a diesel Seat, after a mix-up at your pump, calls for the same first instruction. Don't turn the key, even to move the car.
The fuel pump has no protection from AdBlue, which is mostly water carrying dissolved urea and won't burn. It won't blend with diesel either, so it sinks under your diesel inside the tank, where your pump draws from. When the water dries out, the urea forms crystals in the pipes and the filter and corrodes the metalwork around it.
If a diesel car keeps its AdBlue in a separate tank, that tank has its own filler as well, often sharing a flap with the diesel filler. If yours does, the AdBlue cap is usually blue and fits a narrower nozzle.
Fuel drain on your Seat: how we do it
There's no need to shift your vehicle, because we carry out a fuel drain on your Seat wherever it stands, at the forecourt or on your drive. We find out what was put in and whether your motor has run, drain the tank, and clean your fuel pipes and the filter. Then we fill up with clean diesel and prime the system before starting your engine.
For the Toledo, the tank we drain holds up to 55 litres.
When we leave, the car is running on clean diesel.
AdBlue removal from a diesel Seat
AdBlue collects in the bottom of the tank, so AdBlue removal from a diesel Seat needs more care there, though it follows the same stages as draining petrol. A vehicle that has been run needs its lines and filter flushed through, and a new fuel filter if it needs one.
Taking out or disabling the AdBlue system is not what this means. It means taking AdBlue out of your diesel tank.
What a fuel drain on a diesel Seat costs
There is no fixed price on this page, because jobs differ. Starting the motor or driving your car changes our price most. How much was put in against the size of the tank counts too, along with whether it was petrol or AdBlue and where your vehicle is parked. We can tell you what will be involved once you ring with those answers.
Replies on petrol in a diesel Seat
Is there a diesel Seat you do not drain?
This page links to every diesel Seat model we hold figures for, and the work itself covers any diesel car.
How many diesel Seat models do you cover?
Together, the 8 diesel Seat models we list cover 72 variants.
Should my Seat go to the dealer?
You do not need to. As an independent firm, we have no tie with Seat or any of its dealers. We drain the vehicle wherever it has stopped.
Will my insurance cover wrong fuel in my Seat?
It's worth checking your policy, as misfuelling cover is included in some but not all. We come out whatever it says.