What happens when you put gasoline in a diesel engine?
If you go to a gas station, you’ll notice that there are at least four different fuel options at the pump. The first three are regular unleaded gasoline, mid-range unleaded gasoline, and premium unleaded gasoline. The fourth fuel option available is diesel fuel. Diesel is not gasoline, unlike the first three options. Therefore, if you drive a vehicle with a diesel engine, you can’t expect gasoline fuel to be suitable for it. Diesel engines require a special fuel that is different from gasoline.
Comparing diesel engines to gasoline engines
You need to understand that diesel engines do not work in the same way as gasoline engines. Diesel engines still ignite the fuel, but only after the compression of the air has occurred. The injector delivers the fuel into the chamber after the compressed air has flowed in. This creates ignition without the need for a spark.
In a gasoline engine, the piston compresses the air as it mixes with the gasoline. The spark plug then creates a spark to ignite this mixture.
Comparison of diesel fuel and gasoline
Both diesel fuel and gasoline are derived from crude oil, but they are made up of different classes of hydrocarbons. Diesel fuel has been refined to make it heavier, so its compression creates ignition in the engine, so there’s no need for a spark like there is with gasoline.
Now the big question: what happens if you put regular gasoline in a diesel engine? Will it still work? The same is true if you accidentally put diesel in a gasoline car.
5 Symptoms of Putting Gasoline in a Diesel Engine
To prove this, here are the 5 most common symptoms that occur when you put gasoline in a diesel engine.
1) Fuel System Failure
The fuel system consists of the fuel filter, injectors, and fuel pump. In diesel-powered vehicles, these components are designed to handle the weight and grade of diesel fuel. If you put gasoline in your engine instead, you will permanently damage these components. If that’s the case, you will probably need to replace them all.
2) Ignition Error
Ignition is automatic in a diesel engine. This only happens with high compression diesel fuel. Putting gasoline in your engine will not automatically ignite it like diesel fuel does.
3) Engine Damage
If you accidentally put gasoline in a diesel engine and realize it right after, you still have time to save your engine from permanent damage by draining the fuel tank.
But if you don’t do anything and continue to drive your car on gasoline, your diesel engine will eventually fail. All you can do at this point is replace the whole part.
4) Change in Flash Point
The flash point (the point at which fuel ignites) is quite different for gasoline and diesel. This is important because when filling a diesel engine with fuel, the fuel can ignite prematurely in different places, almost certainly causing damage to various engine components, electronics, or wiring.
5) Mis-fueling
Diesel fuel is designed to lubricate diesel engine components. Gasoline does not have this lubrication. This means that as the gasoline passes through diesel engine components, there is no lubrication.
The friction caused by metal parts rubbing against each other is huge. Not only will this result in a lot of black smoke coming out of the back of your car, but it will eventually cause permanent damage to your engine.