kangta13

Not me .. my girlfriend.. need some help.. it's her car.. but i'm looking for info..

story goes...

almost empty tank... she filled up 3-4 gallons diesel.. she then realized and filled the rest with 91.. noted overall driving to work car doesn't start up and clean.. little bit of a lag.. other than that no pinging or other noise.. we also went the course of buying 2 bottles of techron further raise the octane.. but never finished out the tank to find out if it'd work..

problem asking about.. well she took the car to a mechanic on the advice of her friend to resolve the starting issue.. so mechanic says he's gonna have to empty the gas tank, flush the diesel out, and blah blah replace the spark plugs. he made it seem like he was gonna flush the system with a fancy chemical with his wording.. but when i asked him what chemical he would use, he said no chemical.. he would just fill up the tank... the mechanic seemed a little shady.. he said he drained and refilled 18.6 gallons to the tank.. and she ended up paying 300 dollars and the car still starts slow..

my major question is?? --> is there a way to tell if the tank was actually drained.. i'm suspicious because is it possible to actually fill the tank 18.6 gallons..on which his receipt he said he filled?? also is there no longed a drain plug on the 2009 tsx's.. did alot of searching and it seems the first gen's had em.. also is there a fuel filter on the tsx's?? or just a screen.. just would feel bad if my girlfriend paid the mechanic for draining the tank, if he didn't actually do it..

and just to let everyone know.. she really loves her car.. it's her first new car.. and she felt so bad that she had put diesel in possibly messing up her car.. so sad.. well thanks for any help..

MMsTSX

well, good news is it will not ruin the car.
bad news is that mechanic is shady and the car starts slow.
but then again, the good news is that tsx's always start slow, so it depends
on what you mean by start slow.

if the mechanic replaced the spark plugs, then he should have had the sense to
replace the fuel filter as well. I'm sure the 09 tsx must have a fuel filter.

and did he drain and flush it, as he was supposed to? or just drain it and refill?

it's basically a matter of changing plugs and filters, and draining and flushing the fuel
system. then it's back to normal. if there is a bit of diesel left, it will burn off, much
like a bit of oil would burn off if it were in the gas.

kangta13

cool some relief knowing not permanent damage.. hopefully it'll start the way it use to before..

the mechanic i think he just filled it... and never really drained it.. not sure.. definitely not fuel flush.. receipt said filled 18.6 gallons.. my question.. if he filled it from empty.. he must have driven it to a gas station.. and then filled it.. not sure on that.. and i know he didn't do anything saturday morning because we came back to drop off the key in the afternoon and car wasn't on a lift.. just sitting there... and his shop is closed sunday and monday.. so being today was tuesday.. and my girlfriend called him in the morning to pick up car..?? again i'm very doubtful anything was done other than topping off the tank..

oh car starts slow meaning.. normally you'll turn the key and

ee ee catch.. instead its..
ee ee luuuuul catch.. like it's almost gonna miss but then finally is able to start.. i drive the car almost like a full time butler.. so i know dese things .. plugs i'm gonna do myself so hopefully it's better.. thanks for the advice.. any way to verify he drained it??

LukeaTron

I have to disagree with you MMs. Putting diesel in a gas engine will fuxor it up. Even diluted in the gas. You might get away with it if you don't run the engine more than a few minutes but otherwise, you've probably done some damage. What the mechanic did is exactly what he should have done in the best case scenario. It sounds like you might have bigger problems if it's still giving you trouble though. I suggest finding a mechanic you can trust to look over it.

Oh, and there is no fuel filter in the TSX, just a screen at the pump in the tank.

kangta13

lukeatron.. thanks for the opinion.. it's running okay.. just the start up is a little lagging..


just found out something also... does anyone know if draining the gas tank would require unhooking the battery?? anyone know off hand..?? just took the car for a drive.. and noticed radio settings for bass.. treble.. fade etc.. all the same as when i've listened to it before and the time is correct 1000pm approx.. just asking if battery would need to be unhooked, cuz if it were wouldn't everything reset?? anybody know??

MMsTSX

oh, well okay.
will you shed some light for us then with some links or info or something please?
thx.

kangta13

i've done so much googling.. prior to posting here or even buying the techron stuff.. most that have had experience w/ diluted amounts of diesel in their car seem to be okay.. the most i've seen is if someone ran only diesel eg. being empty tank and trying to add 3-4 gallons and running it like that.. or if they completely filled with diesel than thats bad.. for the most part i believe the diesel doesn't burn.. and possibly might clog the system... or cause pinging.. but no pinging present currently.. okay mmstsx any idea on the battery?? @_@

MMsTSX

nope.
I have no idea what the proper procedure is for draining the tank.
not sure if you have to undo the battery or not. I wouldn't think so off hand,
but I really am not sure on that one. did the mechanic at least refill it with
premium supposedly?

kangta13

we had used maybe 80 miles off a full tank before taking it in.. so it was practically full anyways.. guess i'll try calling the dealer... and asking procedure..??

TheGoodGuy

first off.. take that car off your girls hands..

j/k

but how the heck did she get diesel nozzle to get into a petrol/gasoline tank, they arent the same diameter. Its designed to be idiot proof.

The mechanic did right by draining the diesel, however if its continuing to act up, dont tell acura, take it to the dealer let them sort it out.

CL6

don't tell acura but take it to the dealer and let them waste tons of time figuring out what's wrong only to have them ask you why you put diesel in there so you can play dumb? that's your idea?

Colin

Hmm, a GoodGuy wouldn't do that.

I always thought to drain the tank you had to remove it from the car. If you were to do this, I would probably disconnect the battery.

Edit: I thought the nozzles on the fuel hoses were different. I didn't know you could put a diesel nozzle in a gas tank. Good (or bad) to know.

[R]isque'

I would say the ecu needs to be reset now.
Drain the tank, refill it, it will be fine.

nj2pa2nc

I hope not? My good friend is a acura service manager and that would not be fair to them. After they spend hours trying to figure the problem and hand you a expensive bill-will you then complain about that.

nj2pa2nc

I am a married female that takes excellent care of my 06 tsx. I know the difference between diesel and gas. I sure there are men that screwed up. After they take the car to the dealer to sort out will you be willing to pay the bill (which might be expensive)

litesout

How many miles have you put on it since you got it back from the shady mechanic? And has anything else been done since then? If you've more or less just driven it home, you haven't run the residual out of the fuel system. There could still be some diluted diesel in the fuel lines and the fuel rail. It'll take a few miles to burn it all out. And maybe I just didn't pick up on it, but did the shady mechanic change the plugs or not?

And is it just a slow start, or are there other problems? Is it sluggish? Hesitating? How's the idle?

An ECU reset may be in order, but probably wouldn't be necessary. The bad fuel wasn't in there long enough to majorly alter the adaptive memory. Within 10 key cycles with good fuel it should be back to normal. If the problem persists, you might want to do so, but otherwise I wouldn't worry about it.

The only thing I would be really worried about there being any permanent damage would be the cat or O2 sensors. Running that much unburnt fuel through the exhaust might have fouled them up. If you did foul up an O2 sensor it would account for a drop in performance and mileage, but not a slow start. Nor would a clogged up cat.

LukeaTron

The diesel fuel messes up some gaskets and rubbery materials. It can cause these materials to swell and fall apart after. I'm not sure what kind of fuel pump is in the TSX but the membrane type pumps are easily destroyed this way. The diesel takes a long time to flush out completely. And like litesout said above, there's a good chance your cat is fouled now.

I worked on a golf course for a while and we had both diesel and gas equipment. About once a month some one would put the wrong fuel in something and our mechanic would have to tear the whole thing apart and change the gaskets. If you put gas in a diesel engine though, you can destroy it in seconds.

kangta13

Only have 17 miles since mechanic, my girlfriend was the one who drove home.. haven't done anything else, but i am thinking of getting a bottle of seafoam to run in the tank.. it only starts with a lag.. but other than that the idle and running feels fines.. haven't done any check on mileage to see if o2 sensors may be involved.. was thinking about asking acura dealers if battery needed to be disconnected to get the fuel out of the tank.. because if it does.. they likely didn't do the drain because all my sound levels and the time clock are the same as previous.. also suspicious about the charge of exactly 18.6 gallons.. wouldn't think of taking it to acura because don't want to void her warranty..
oh yeah.. how long is "ten key cycles".. i would pay acura dealer and tell them the problem if i took it in.. it'd save time.. and it's her responsibility..


and yes a diesel nozzle will fit apparently, just the tip.. i think my girlfriend was holding it to the tank, and the only reason she stopped was because it was tiring.. heh heh..
also apparently there are a number of people that have done this..??

thanks for the help everybody, any suggestions have been appreciated.. i'll update after the tank is finished and plugs are changed how its running.. any more ideas how to prove if tank wasn't drained, i just don't like dishonest mechanics.. and wouldn't want him to get a freebie..

kangta13

yeah i read gas in a diesel = explosion.. so would the only gaskets needing be checked would be around the pump..?? i don't know.. i'll tell her and she if she wants to take it in to the dealer.. hmm..

LukeaTron

If there's not a thick cloud of smoke billowing out behind you, he changed it. He probably rinsed the tank a few times with gasoline too so there's your extra gas.

LukeaTron

At this point I'd drive it for a while and see if it gets better. You might want to see what plugs he put in. He might have put some cheapy plugs in there. I think the OEM plugs are the expensive iridium tipped ones. They make a pretty big difference in things like how easily the car starts and how smooth it runs.

HeavyDuty

Relatively good article regarding potential harm to a gas engine ingesting diesel fuel.

http://www.straightdope.com/columns/...of-regular-gas

CraigMacDTA

Wow...I'd seriously snap if my gf did such a stupid thing. Good luck man...just remember - you now hold the upper hand when arguments come into play

Good Luck!

CL6

Having hand is like having a nuke... it's better to have it than to use it!

Colin

Key cycles refers to 10 "start, drive and stop" cycles. it is not 10 starts without driving.

I'm sure diesel in a gas tank has happened before, but you are the first I've heard about. Does this warrant congratulations or condolences?

kangta13

haha.. i feel bad enough for her already.. i think i'll have to let this one slide.. i'm gonna let her read this thread haha..

kangta13

cool actually doesn't seem that bad.. it was a smaller amount of diesel.. thanks for the article.. i have a better understanding of octane ratings..

kangta13

Update.. car is starting better.. definately less lag.. almost can't tell unless pointed out.. so seems like everything will be fine.. still going to end up changing the sparks on recommendations from here.. thanks peeps.. haha i like being a member of acurazine even though i don't own an acura.. very helpful site n members!!..

valeratj

Its not the first time I hear about girls doing this

MMsTSX

make sure you use high quality replacment plugs.
iridium ones.

LuvMyTSX

Bite your tongue. My dad put regular gas in his diesel car TWICE while living in Europe.

I'm a female also.....and take impeccable care of my car.

valeratj

How old is your dad? 80? Also, if he always drove a motor powered car, its no wonder that he filled up a diesel one with motor fuel. I dont mean to offend anyone, but I hope u agree that there are more.... umm careless or less accurate female drivers/owners than male ones when it comes to percentage. this is like 3rd story that I am hearing about girls and yet have to read 1 about a guy. My own sister is a great example. man, I dont even want to talk about her and my girl neighbors...

LukeaTron

Do you understand the concept of sample size and it's relationship with your ability to make accurate predictions about the population as a whole?

I'll just go ahead and answer that for you, no.

valeratj

^ Actually.... I do.

LukeaTron

Then you should know that making an assumption about big P from a small little p has a low certainty. You're taking three anecdotes and drawing a conclusion about a population of millions. You know what they say about assumptions...

Colin

I don't think I knew this....(the female part) I know you take care of your car.

nj2pa2nc

If a guy did this would they actually admit to it and post it. I notice that is guys saying their girlfriends did it. The acura dealer where I take my tsx for service had to deal with a new tl that had a tank full of diesel put in by accident by a male.

valeratj

^ Now I am not saying that men never make any mistakes, and if they do, they rarely admit it. However, the female drivers that live near me sometimes make me wonder how their cars are still alive...


PS: I am not a sexist or racist or anything, I am just saying my own short observation...

nj2pa2nc

[QUOTE=valeratj;10459720]^ Now I am not saying that men never make any mistakes, and if they do, they rarely admit it. However, the female drivers that live near me sometimes make me wonder how their cars are still alive...


PS: I am not a sexist or racist or anything, I am just saying my own short observation...[/QUOTE


As a female I take excellent care of my 06 tsx. I can not do the service myself but I make sure it is done when it is due. I check the tire pressure on a regular basis. I also know how to check the oil. I can change a flat tire. When I am in NJ I make sure the gas attendant presses the right button when filling my car with gas.

visuelz

Diesel has 0 octane while gas has 93. That means diesel will burn easily. To check if the mechanic did flush the system, you can analyze the gas by probably sending it in or something. The first place I would have went is the dealer.