Reverse Polarity

Yep. There's 'no safe level' of petrol in a modern diesel. If you've
done it, the default is to replace the entire fuel system (and claim on
insurance). I didn't believe it, thought it was scaremongering, paid the
price, too late to claim on insurance.

 

But it's a Shakespeare quote, you ignoramus.

 

He was stuffed, the lease company insisted he pay[1]. With hindsight
of course the thing to do would have been to have paid a local garage
to drain the tank, flush everything and give a gallic shrug if it
failed later.

[1] the mistake was calling the dedicated helpline.

 

I filled my old Golf Diesel with petrol when I'd just started in my job
selling Nitro lids. That cost the firm a few hours of my time and a
fill up with diesel. It gave Pip's Peugeot 406 a full tank of slightly
contaminated petrol to run around on though, once we'd drained the
Golf's tank in a Baldock back street.

I piled a further 100K miles on that car in the next 2 years and it
never gave me a moment's bother.

 

That wasn't a common rail, though, IIRC.

 

SDI, as I recall.

Dog slow, but tough as old boots.

 

I dunno, it was a non-turbo SDi model, so pretty basic I'd have thought.

 

I screwed it up to 115mph once or twice and even got a photo of the
speedo needle there. The normal top speed on the clock was about 110 to
112. Acceleration was measured in minutes rather than seconds but it
kept up with city traffic and motorway congestion so was fine by me.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/78131584@N00/385834122/

 

I don't

Paul.

 

*I* wasn't quoting Great-great-great ... great-great-grandad Bill.

 

Oh, that was a fun morning, eh? Draining the tank through the fuel
guage hole under the back seat, sloshing it into the old Pug a gallon at
a time. **** me, the Pug pinked like a bastard for the next couple of
tanks - and smoked more than I did, too.

 

I'm not sure what you mean by 'modern' here. I put half a tank of
unleaded in my Rover 218 diesel - I realised my mistake and topped it
off with diesel, and it was fine. This would have been in about 95/96

 

Modern = common rail, which didn't exist on passenger cars in 1996.

 

I'm sure that was around the time Fiat / Alfa launched the common-rail
JTD.

 

It's a phrase that only works in some very unique situations.

 

Bugger, I blame jet lag

 

Wikipedia reckons Fiat launched their CR diesel in 1997.

 

There's nothing worse than an angry hill..

 

heh

 

I recall Irene pulling out into the M25 in that and thinking she was
going to die!