Petrol in a diesel, an expensive disaster

Historically petrol engined cars were the choice of drivers; modern technology, fuel prices and cleaner diesels have swayed the pendulum. A lot more new cars are rolling off the production line as diesels; the VW group were one of the pioneers of the modern day diesel with their TDi engines.

The TDi engines found in Audis, VWs, SEATs and Skodas revolutionised how diesels were perceived, the TDi engine was less noisy, less smoky and more powerful than normal diesels. The VW group has continued to grow its TDi engine, now with the BlueMotion range and clean diesel range. From the VW Polo to the Audi Q7, the TDi engine is a popular choice amongst drivers.

This increase in diesel engines has led to an increase of mishaps at the filling station; many drivers are new to diesel and are use to filling up with the green labelled unleaded fuel. Many have ended up filing their diesel tanks with unleaded, this is a costly mistake and means the vehicle will need to undergo major repair to make it road worthy again.

 A Blackburn Audi dealer told us that drivers of 2011 Audi A4, A5 and Q5 TDI models will no longer have to face the inconvenient and potentially expensive consequences of accidentally filling with petrol thanks to a new preventative system built into the fuel filler neck.

To prevent using the wrong fuel these cars come with a clever technology at the filler cap, the neck has been redesigned to incorporate contact points that open an internal fuel flap only when the larger diesel pump nozzle applies pressure on them. The smaller diameter petrol nozzle does not make contact, ensuring that the filler flap remains closed to prevent access to the reservoir.

Audi plans to roll this technology out throughout all its diesels models, fleet managers will be glad to hear this as I’m sure they have had to deal with many miss-fuelling incidences.