Motorists who fill their vehicles with the wrong fuel risk damage bills of up to $10,000, the RACQ warned today.
RACQ Executive Manager Technical and Safety Policy Steve Spalding said the state’s peak independent motoring body was hearing of more “mis-fuelling” incidents affecting mainly diesel-engine vehicles.
“It’s too easy to pick up the wrong pump nozzle, particularly if there are multiple fuel choices at the same bowser,” Mr Spalding said.
“Inconsistent labelling has added to the confusion, with retailers using different colours for different fuels.”
RACQ has called on the Federal Government and industry to reform legislation and standardise labelling of fuels at the bowser to provide clarity to motorists and prevent mis-fuelling.
“We’ve proposed that a standardisation of labelling be adopted by retailers right across Australia,” Mr Spalding said.
“This would require petrol retailers to use certain colours, words or numbers to clearly display each type of fuel.” Mr Spalding said the most common example of mis-fuelling was filling up a diesel car with petrol. The problem was compounded by the fact the number of diesel-powered cars on the roads was growing."
“The drivers of diesel-powered vehicles need to be extra vigilant when filling up,” he said.
“The consequences of mis-fuelling a diesel vehicle – particularly one fitted with a common-rail fuel system – can be disastrous, with the repair bill reaching up to $10,000 if key components are damaged.”
Mr Spalding said the best advice for the motorist who mis-fuelled a diesel-powered vehicle was to not attempt to start the engine. “If the vehicle has been started, stop the engine as quickly as possible to minimise damage,” he said.
“This is one situation where the vehicle cannot be driven; it must be towed to a repair shop. Providing the mis-fuelling problem is tackled immediately and a vehicle’s fuel system has been drained and cleaned before too much contamination has occurred, the motorist may be saved from an expensive repair bill.”
"Putting the wrong fuel in your car could be costly continued Mr Spalding said while the incidence of motorists putting diesel into petrol-powered cars was less common, it still happened.
“We tend to hear more about driver confusion in choosing the right type of petrol. The best advice is to double check when selecting the fuel nozzle and, if in doubt, ask before filling up,” Mr Spalding said.
Image from Microsoft Office.