Poor quality gasoline how the car behaves. What to do if the car was filled with bad gasoline

Every car owner values ​​​​his car and monitors its proper operation. Failure of a certain part can cause a failure and disrupt all your plans. It's no secret that many modern engines are extremely sensitive to the quality of the gasoline used. Low-quality fuel can cause the most unpleasant consequences, and a naive belief in the impeccability of gas stations does not always live up to expectations. The consequences can be very different: loss of power, unstable operation, and even a complete failure of the system when the car simply does not start. In this article, we will look at the main differences between high-quality fuel and low-quality fuel, talk about the consequences of using bad gasoline and try to answer the age-old questions “what to do?” and “who is to blame?”.

So why is gasoline considered bad? Only expertise can accurately answer this question. Usually, low-quality fuel contains an excess of acetone, naphthalene, ethyl, and metal-based additives. In some cases, ordinary water and dirt can be the cause. And it also happens that the declared octane number is lower than required.

What happens if you pour bad gasoline?

If you poured bad gasoline into the gas tank, the consequences will not be long in coming. Often, the first signs are felt a few minutes after refueling: engine power drops, reaction to the gas pedal and general dynamics are lost, various interruptions in operation occur, frequent changes in idle speed occur, and gasoline consumption increases. If the octane number in such fuel is lower than necessary, then it is possible. And if the engine stalls or the car does not start at all - a sure sign or dirt. These are just the primary signs and consequences. Long-term negative prospects will be indicated below.

The negative consequences of using bad gasoline

• Damage to spark plugs and their work. Spark plugs are the first to take a hit from the use of low-quality fuel. A sign of this situation is the appearance of a red coating.
• Reduced fuel system efficiency and oxygen sensor failure. This is due to the fact that the fine filter is clogged and the load on the fuel pump increases. The injectors are also clogged.
• Problems with the catalytic converter.
• Increased engine wear in general.

How to check the quality of gasoline

Obviously, the consequences of low-quality fuel are quite unpleasant. A reasonable question arises “how to check the quality of gasoline?”. The first step is to pay attention to the color. Quality fuel should be colorless.

An exception is gasoline A-76. This type is less transparent, because it has more impurities when compared with AI-95 or AI-98.

Below we will tell you some secrets with which you can recognize high-quality fuel.

Methods for checking the quality of gasoline

1. Take a white sheet of paper and wet it with a small amount of purchased fuel (a few drops will suffice). Blow on a wet area - complete evaporation of the liquid is necessary. As the leaf dries, pay attention to its color. If greasy spots or other shades remain, the gasoline is bad, there are impurities. Remember, only a clean slate will indicate good quality.
2. How to determine the content of resins in gasoline? Light a drop of gasoline on the glass and notice the color of the remaining stains. If they are light, then the resin content is acceptable. Brown or yellow shades indicate that the resin concentrate in such fuel is high. This can harm your car's engine.
3. Pour gasoline into a transparent vessel and add a solution of potassium permanganate. Shine and pay attention to the color. If such a solution has acquired a pink tint, this indicates the presence of water in the fuel.
4. If you don't have the tools at hand, you can use your own hand for the experiment. Apply some gasoline to a dry area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe skin and look at the mark left. A fat trail indicates poor fuel quality (with impurities), while a dry trail indicates good fuel quality.
5. The easiest way to determine the quality of your gasoline is by smell. High-quality fuel should not smell of sulfur. Otherwise, there is a high probability of containing naphthalene, hydrogen sulfide and other substances that indicate the poor quality of the purchased gasoline.

Filled with bad gasoline: what to do?

What to do if you have purchased bad gasoline? Always keep your receipt after refueling. If you have not gone far and feel that the productivity of the car has decreased significantly, then you should park. Stop the engine - this will reduce the likelihood of damage to it. After that, you can proceed to the gas station and, by presenting a check, express your claims about the quality of the purchased gasoline. This does not always help, but if the examination confirms your case, then you are required to pay the costs for damages. One minus - the examination is paid.

What procedures should be carried out with the car if you used bad gasoline? You will need to remove and inspect the fuel pump, as well as the filter mesh. If the filter is dirty, then it This also applies to the fine filter. After that, it is necessary to drain the gasoline and flush the gas tank, clean the fuel wire, and also check the injectors.

Keep in mind that you should refuel at gas stations you have checked. Remember that not every car behaves the same when running on a certain type of fuel.

Periodically check the color of the candles, because you may not realize that you are using bad gasoline. Soot and unwanted shades on candles will indicate to you the poor quality of the fuel that you systematically pour into your tank.

An article about what can be done if bad gasoline is poured into the tank: consequences, precautions. At the end of the article - a video about bad fuel.

The content of the article:

Each car owner is regularly faced with the need to refuel his "iron horse", with the exception of drivers whose cars are driven by electric traction.

At the same time, it is no longer a secret that some gas stations, like fuel producers, trying to increase their profits, artificially increase the octane number of gasoline and diesel fuel using various additives. And everything would be fine if such fraud did not affect the "health" of the vehicle, which in the end could result in a long and costly repair.

That is why we decided to figure out what needs to be done if you refueled with bad gasoline and what consequences this could have for your vehicle. So let's go...

No matter how trite it may seem, but in most cases the reason for the appearance of bad fuel is the desire of gas stations and the manufacturer himself to make money by “upgrading” cheap fuel to more expensive one. This procedure is carried out by adding various prohibited additives to gasoline or diesel fuel, such as MMA and MTBE - as a result, the octane number increases significantly, which makes it possible to turn low-octane fuel into more expensive and even premium grades AI-95 and 98.

In some cases, the cause of the appearance of bad gasoline is banal negligence, when the containers in which the fuel is stored are not cleaned for a long time and various dirt accumulates at the bottom, which subsequently gets to the unsuspecting car owner and causes various car malfunctions.

If you refueled an almost empty tank, then you can notice the presence of low-quality fuel already a few minutes after leaving the gas station. However, if the "bad" fuel was poured into a half-full tank, then it will be possible to find out only after some time, when it gets to the fuel line.

Drivers note that when refueling with low-quality fuel, the following may occur:

• Noticeable increase in vehicle fuel consumption;
• Regularly stalling engine;
• Hard start and the presence of uncharacteristic sounds in the engine;
• Power plant power drop;
• Deterioration of response to the actions of the accelerator pedal;
• Detonation, etc.

You can also identify low-quality fuel by a number of signs:

• Premature appearance of soot on candles;
• The presence of foreign odors (acetone, hydrogen sulfide, etc.);
• The presence of foreign elements in the fuel (if you drop gasoline on a sheet of white paper and wait a few minutes, dirt will remain on it);
• The presence of water in the fuel, which can be detected by adding a little potassium permanganate to it. If the fuel changes color to pink, it contains water.

If you're unlucky enough to get low-quality fuel in your car's tank, you can go one of several ways:

1. Dilute the “bad” gasoline / diesel fuel in the tank with better quality, however, this method is only suitable if very little bad fuel was filled.
2. Add a special activator to the fuel (proportion 50:50). True, this method will only help if the gasoline had a low octane content. If it contains various coarse impurities, the activator will be useless.
3. Drain the gasoline from the fuel tank, then carry out a complete flush of the fuel system and fill in already high-quality fuel.

It is also worth noting that after using low-quality fuel, it is recommended to visit a service station, where specialists will carry out all the necessary work to resuscitate and replace the affected car elements: replacing fuel filters, washing injectors, cleaning the fuel line and testing the fuel pump.

If, after refueling with bad fuel, you have not driven far from the gas station, you must return and make a claim to the director of the gas station, and then demand an independent examination of the quality of the fuel.

To protect yourself from buying low-quality gasoline and diesel fuel, you should adhere to the following unspoken rules of car owners:

• Fill a full tank exclusively at proven gas stations;
• When refueling, always pay attention to the external condition of the gas station and its employees;
• Avoid inconspicuous and unknown gas stations;
• Do not refuel where the price of fuel is an order of magnitude lower than the average market;
• Always pay attention to the presence and date of issue of the fuel certificate, which can be found in the consumer's corner at any gas station.

And the last thing - always keep the receipt, because only if you have it will you be able to defend your rights and demand compensation for the damage caused.

Conclusion

Video about bad gas:

The quality of car operation depends on many factors. It is necessary to perform good maintenance, replace filters and fluids, monitor problems and fix them in a timely manner. These are the basic principles of normal car service, taking into account all modern requirements. But the quality of the fuel is often overlooked. This is tantamount to the fact that a person will go to the gym, pay a lot of attention to personal hygiene, but will eat whatever. In this case, there is no need to talk about health. In the case of a car, the situation is identical. You can fill in the most expensive oil and service your vehicle at the best service in town, but bad gas will destroy the fuel supply system and the engine very quickly. Sometimes we do not even realize that we are driving on bad fuel. And there are not so many good and reliable gas stations in Russia. So you should be aware of the signs that indicate the low quality of gasoline or diesel fuel in your car.

There are cars that are more sensitive to fuel quality. Many world manufacturers specially prepare injection systems for operation in Russian conditions. Various solid inclusions, low octane, diluted structure and unstable chemical composition are just basic and common problems with the fuel mixture in Russia. Of course, such criteria cannot have a positive effect on the operation of your iron horse. You can protect yourself from such troubles, but for this you need to pay special attention to the important indicators of the operation of your car. There are many interesting features that allow you to determine the negative impact of fuel on the car, stop refueling at bad gas stations, and also help the car cope with unpleasant situations.

Refueling with bad fuel - the first signs

If you always refuel your car with good gasoline or selected diesel fuel, and today you have come across an unpleasant quality of the fuel mixture in an unfamiliar place, it will not be difficult to find out. The car itself will show you that it is extremely unhappy with the situation. The quality of the trip will change, there will be features of the behavior of the car that were not there before. All this will allow you to quickly identify the trouble and take measures to resolve it.

Here are some important factors in determining poor fuel quality:

• the car began to twitch when picking up speed, there were dips in picking up speed, unstable speed on a straight line, as well as at idle, noticeable jumps in speed;
• the on-board computer shows indecently high fuel consumption figures, this is often due to the quality of gasoline, so instant consumption can help;
• the computer starts to give errors related to the operation of the fuel system, some expensive cars have a fuel quality analysis system that issues warnings;
• transport began to go much worse, it seems that someone is holding the car, or the handbrake is on, there is no necessary acceleration, there is no normal dynamics of the trip;
• in the usual gearshift modes on the mechanics, there is a lack of engine power, the motor works worse from the bottom and causes certain difficulties in the usual operation.

These are simple methods for checking the quality of gasoline directly on the go. Of course, they only work if you usually fill up with normal fuel and also know your car well. Sometimes in the first months of operation, such a change in behavior is not felt, so even bad gasoline goes unnoticed. However, in terms of fuel consumption, it is always worth monitoring the car and drawing important conclusions.

What happens if you always fill with bad fuel?

For diesel cars, this alignment is not at all pleasant. Diesel fuel must be clean, have a certain chemical composition, and not freeze in winter. You can use a number of additives, but there are not so many good chemistry in Russia as there are various fakes. So it is worth choosing a gas station for a diesel car in which you are completely confident. As for gasoline, with constant use of bad fuel, expect the following results:

• fuel consumption will be at least 10% higher than the passport one, often on older cars this figure becomes even higher, and the owners begin to look for causal such problems;
• the trip by car will not be dynamic and pleasant, there will always be difficulties with the engine, which actively interfere with the normal operation of transport;
• fuel filters will become clogged quickly enough, which indicates the low quality of the gasoline composition and the presence of various kinds of inclusions that remain on the cleaner;
• the gasoline pump will work unstably, the filter installed in its system will become clogged, which manufacturers generally do not recommend changing under normal operating conditions;
• the injector system, which is also clogged with various small inclusions and solid particles, will fail faster, the nozzles will have to be washed quite often.

Cleaning nozzles is an expensive and difficult task that can only be done qualitatively at a service station. As a result, it is better to refuel at an expensive and high-quality gas station than to go to the station every six months and clean the fuel supply system, change filters and service the fuel pump. This suggests that finding a good gas station is an inevitable process in order to achieve the desired results in moving on your vehicle.

How to protect yourself from bad gasoline and diesel fuel?

Protecting yourself from such negative influences is quite difficult. All drivers know that even gas station chains that everyone trusts are actively selling fakes instead of branded products, sometimes offering completely unimaginable gasoline and diesel fuel. The problem is that quality control in our country is at a very low level, and imported gasoline is practically not imported. There are several ways to save yourself from possible problems:

• refuse to refuel at unfamiliar gas stations that look unremarkable, are not part of large networks and are out of the way, these gas stations often cause problems;
• refuel at one company, cars do not like constant changes in operating conditions, so refueling at different gas stations is always fraught with a number of technical troubles;
• do not buy suspiciously cheap products with discounts, this may be an attempt to sell an illiquid product, expired fuel, since they do not make discounts for good liquids;
• give up chasing prices at gas stations - even a couple of rubles difference per 1 liter of fuel will not hit your pocket hard, but for a car this can be a great gift;
• do not save on maintenance - change the fuel filter on time and keep the nozzles clean, otherwise even good gasoline will behave disgustingly in your car.

Here are some simple recommendations given by experienced drivers who have already tried all the methods of buying gasoline in Russia. Despite this, even very large and respected chains often sell terrible gasoline and dirty diesel fuel. There is no guarantee that these problems will be avoided. Therefore, it is logical to move on to another point, which is very necessary for the owners of diesel cars, and sometimes it does not hurt the owners of gasoline engines.

What to do if low-quality fuel is already filled?

On the Internet, you can find thousands of recommendations on what to do if low-quality fuel is poured. In fact, it all depends on the degree of this poor quality. Diesel fuel should be drained immediately if there is even the slightest suspicion of a bad composition. It is also advisable to leave a sample and give it for examination, which checked the content of methanol, for example, as well as suspended solids. The actions for a gasoline car in this case are as follows:

• park and turn off the engine to calmly understand the situation, identify the symptoms of problems that will help you make the right decision;
• call the familiar masters or the service that services your car, get recommendations on how to proceed so as not to damage the engine or injectors;
• if your car is domestic or rather old, you can continue driving without overloading in order to naturally burn bad gasoline;
• at a good gas station, you can refuel to a full tank in order to dilute the unpleasant composition and make it less harmful to the vehicle's engine, this is quite good advice;
• it is necessary to drain the fuel from the tank and check the fuel pump mesh only in extreme cases, it is better to do this at the service station, and for this procedure you often need a tow truck so as not to ruin the engine.

As you can see, recommendations may differ in different situations. If the car began to stall and twitch after refueling at an unfamiliar gas station, you should really drain the fuel and not risk it. But if the consumption is simply increased, you should continue to move and dilute the low-quality mixture with obviously good gasoline. This will help you run out of bad fuel normally and refuel with good products in the future.

Summing up

The troubles associated with the quality of gasoline, as you can see, haunt almost all motorists who travel on the roads of Russia. It is interesting that in Moscow the situation with filling stations is more or less normal. But in the regions there is a real bacchanalia with the quality of fuel products. The problem is that there is no verification, and companies want to make money without thinking about the quality of their products. Therefore, all low-quality gasolines and diesel fuels are sent to regions where even enthusiastic drivers do not check them. Therefore, the consumption on a standard small car can reach up to 12-14 liters in the combined cycle.

It is worth more respect for yourself and your transport. Look for the opportunity to fill up with quality fuel and get more benefits from the operation of your car. If it so happens that you have already filled in too low-quality gasoline, do not rush to panic and pay money for unnecessary services. Find out what else could be the problem, and also test the response of the car in different driving modes. It is possible that you can do without the services of specialists. And even more practical advice would be to refuel only in a place well known to you and always fill in gasoline from the same manufacturer. What do you think about the quality of fuel - where to buy good gasoline and diesel fuel?

1. How to understand that you refueled with low-quality fuel?

It will be difficult to make a mistake here: your car will tell everything. Gasoline is bad if:

• the car starts poorly or does not start at all after refueling;
• the car stalls for no apparent reason;
• idle speed floats and is unstable;
• the engine does not pull, the acceleration dynamics drops, and the response to the gas pedal is inhibited;
• the car jerks when accelerating;
• a metallic knock and extraneous noises are heard from the engine - signs of detonation;
• the exhaust has darkened - this indicates the appearance of soot in it and incomplete combustion of the fuel;
• fuel consumption is unusually high.

It is worth mentioning all kinds of "rapid tests" offered to assess the quality of the fuel. So, it is usually said that gasoline should be transparent, and to evaluate it, you need to drop it on a piece of paper or on your hand and see what is left after it has completely evaporated. If there is a greasy stain, black dots or other debris on the surface, this clearly indicates that the gasoline is bad. All this is true, but it is simply impossible to conduct such a test before each refueling - as well as follow the advice to sniff the fuel for the smell of sulfur. The smell emanating from a container of gasoline is so strong that you are unlikely to smell a distinct smell of sulfur before you become sick from the inhaled fumes.

2. What should I do if it becomes obvious that the gasoline you filled in is bad?

First of all, dig in the car and find a check from the gas station: this is your main and only evidence in case of further proceedings. It is impossible to give unequivocal advice about the continuation of the movement. Yes, under normal circumstances, you should stop immediately, turn off the engine, call a tow truck, and begin to repair the consequences of refueling and protect your rights. But if there is severe frost outside, you have already driven 50 kilometers from the gas station, and the nearest tow truck is located in the regional center, then the risk of freezing on the highway is much worse than a potential engine repair. However, continuing to move, it is already worth understanding that you are doing this at your own peril and risk.

Ideally, you should do something like this:

• stop driving, turn off the engine and call a tow truck;
• return to the gas station and contact its management, presenting a receipt and explaining your claims;
• call an expert or a mobile laboratory for fuel analysis.

An expert will arrive to take samples from your tank and the dispenser where you refueled. There should be three samples: one directly for analysis, one for gas stations and one control, which can be checked in case of disagreement. If the result of the analysis confirms that the fuel was of poor quality, you must be reimbursed for both the cost of the examination and the cost of correcting the consequences of an unsuccessful refueling. True, this compensation can take place both in pre-trial and in court order.

3. What is fraught with refueling low-quality fuel?

The advice to immediately turn off the car and stop moving from the previous paragraph is not an exaggeration at all. If you have a modern car, the consequences of driving on bad gas can be quite expensive. Candles will be the first to suffer: by the way, they are also an element of primary diagnostics. A coating on them - for example, red or black - indicates that the fuel is bad. The next element that directly suffers from the “palenki” is the fuel system: coarse filters (mesh on the fuel pump) and fine filters are clogged, which increases the load on the fuel pump and reduces its resource. The injection system and sensors like a lambda probe do not feel very good. Another expensive part that is sensitive to fuel quality is the catalyst. Well, among other things, detonation that occurs when working on poor fuel with a low octane number actively harms the cylinder-piston group, increasing engine wear as a whole.

Low-quality gasoline is also dangerous because the consequences of its use are often not immediately noticeable. So, a small moisture content may not cause serious deviations in the operation of the engine, but it can provoke or aggravate corrosion of the fuel system. The increased sulfur content, which, as we said above, is almost impossible to determine "by eye", negatively affects the alusil and nikasil coating of the cylinder walls. Benzene and methanol will also not cause the engine to stall, but in the long run they will cause both a short catalyst life and corrosion in the fuel system. Therefore, when choosing even a “every day” gas station, be as critical as possible in your assessment.

4. What to do with the car after refueling with bad fuel?

One apparently unsuccessful refueling will cost you dearly, not only in the event of a breakdown. In order to completely eliminate the consequences, it will be necessary to carry out many works:

• remove and flush the gas tank;
• flush the fuel line;
• clean the coarse filter on the fuel pump;
• replace the fine fuel filter;
• check the cleanliness and correct operation of the nozzles;
• clean or replace spark plugs;
• check the correct operation of the fuel pump and the fuel pressure it produces.

Of course, some items like checking the injectors are slightly less important than flushing the gas tank, and you can do without them when you consistently find out the consequences through the further operation of the machine. But when conducting a dialogue with gas stations and planning repairs, they must be taken into account.

Hi all,

Last week my car wouldn't start in cold weather. When it got warmer, I put in a new battery and tried again, but it didn't work. At first, there were attempts - something seized, but it didn’t start, and then it stopped seizing. Took the car in for service yesterday. There, the masters looked at everything. We measured the compression in the cylinders - it turned out that it was not. Thinking of a timing belt. Removed the cover - the belt is intact. Then they found out that the oil was below the mark (here I apparently slammed it), but it seemed like the light on the panel was not on. They said that the rings were coked. They poured oil on top of the engine, waited. While they were waiting, they said that the only option now is to buy kerosene and fill the rings with it, then they will decoke and if you're lucky, you won't even have to make capital. And most likely - to disassemble the engine, change everything, etc. But this is done as usual, but it’s easier to buy a new engine, because the engine bulkhead will cost 40 thousand, and a new one - somewhere around 20. I was upset, they measured the compression again, - it appeared. What, slacked off? They began to turn, and it seemed like the engine began to sneeze, and after 20 seconds it started up. Worked stably, one might say - as usual. I must say that I do not understand the detailed operation of the engine, but it seemed that this was all because of the oil. With a further attempt to find out something from the masters, it seemed that they were also not particularly in the subject. Then they told me that the engine was already old, and if you traveled on it without oil, then you definitely need to sort it out. Or keep adding oil. I say that he did not smoke, everything was fine, well, now look - it probably will. The rings got coked and everything. I asked what smokes - is it when the smoke is blue? The masters said yes.

Further, I paid off, got into the car, began to start it - but again it would not start. The satisfied master said that this is "what was required to be proved." All as before, no response. They began to understand further. I srzu say that can measure the compression? They froze, everything is fine. That is, everything is in order with the rings, what's the matter? They shrugged. How did she work 5 minutes ago? What then was required to prove that? Without doing anything else, they twisted it for 15 seconds - and it started up again, then they asked not to turn it off until the evening - supposedly the rings would decoke there and the oil would not get into the cylinders. Further attempts to get an explanation were of little use, purely logically - it's not about compression, even with it there was a problem. Due to the fact that the smoke is not blue, but gray (in the sense of ordinary), I was told that it smells of oil.

It seems to me that the masters are not very well versed, please give your assessment of the problem. I think it's an ignition problem.

And is it even possible to say that the car did not start because there was little oil?

P.S. Last night I turned off and started the car many times. Everything was fine. Today she started up, as usual, but I'm afraid until the next frost. And the smoke isn't blue, by the way.