daveturnbull Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 My local Tesco filling station has been flogging contaminated Diesel. I'm one of their unsuspecting subjects, sticking a full tank of it in my P38. Linky to local press story I'm putting place the steps to claim for the damages, but am unsure as to just how much damage it's likely to have done. The car still runs, but has quite a knock (think old VM diesel noise), is down on power and exhaust smells funny. I've probably driven it about 40 miles since filling up. So has anybody else had similar issues in the past? Was it just a case of draining tank and lines, new filter, fresh fuel and injector cleaner or am I looking at new in tank pump, new injector pump, injectors etc...? Not a happy bunny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwakers Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 p38 engine is quite a simple old beast. drain the tank and change the filters, fill with derv and bleed it. start it up and it'll probably sound and be fine. if its not then you can diagnose from there. if it is ok dont forget to claim loss of use and labour for the repair.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveturnbull Posted September 21, 2014 Author Share Posted September 21, 2014 Oh I have no intention of covering myself and my driveway in diesel, it will be going to a local specialist so there will be a proper garage bill to pay. My main concern is what the contaminant is, and what it might be doing to the various seals it's coming into contact with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted September 21, 2014 Share Posted September 21, 2014 Having read that news story I wouldn't be surprised if you were to have some damage done, it seems that Tesco discovered it when their pumps stopped working. So if it has actually damaged the pumps at the petrol station that sounds pretty bad, I can only guess that the cleaning solution must have been pretty caustic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Smith Posted September 22, 2014 Share Posted September 22, 2014 I don't know what they use to clean tanks and tankers, but we had a mower come into the workshop a couple of years ago that had "just stopped" along with the customers car which had been taken away on a truck. When I stripped the mower engine, about a week after the incident, the carburettor was basically aluminium oxide, as was the cylinder head, block and piston to the point you couldn't turn the crank with a breaker bar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveturnbull Posted September 26, 2014 Author Share Posted September 26, 2014 Well a week on and we are no closer to finding out what the contaminant is. There have been various reports in the local press and social media of garages insisting on replacing the entire fuel system on affected vehicles, but most seem to be waiting to find out the results of the testing. In the mean time, Tesco have put hoardings around the filling station and started ripping up the forecourt with an excavator. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 I take it that means you are without your P38 then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveturnbull Posted September 26, 2014 Author Share Posted September 26, 2014 Correct. It's at my local specialist. I think he might be draining the system today. There was a report from somebody else on Facebook saying the main dealer had drained their van, put a sample in a plastic cup, which promptly melted. Doesn't fill me with hope, but Tesco do seem to be engaging damage limitation mode so hopefully they will come good on their promise to compensate. They are delivering me a hire car today too - have been pedaling everywhere for the past week! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 This is going to be very expensive for someone, with reports of about 100 vehicles and up to 5 grand each for repairs and then hire cars and the refurb of the filling station Hopefully they will payout without too much hassle, good luck with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rrr47 Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Sounds a very bad situation. Could the cup melting indicate petrol mixed in with diesel? We had a huge problem years ago with a company called "Action" selling very cheap petrol which was supposed to be the dregs from tankers, don't know if they meant ship tankers or lorry. But the petrol had sea water in it and a lot of people had problems with their fuel filters filling up with water and stopping the engines. My Dad's Volvo had this problem and the local dealer replaced everything to do with the fuel system, though I think this was so they could claim the work back from Volvo as the car was less than 3 months old. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveturnbull Posted September 26, 2014 Author Share Posted September 26, 2014 I've just been over to the garage to get a few things out of the Range Rover, tank is now drained. What came out looks a bit darker than diesel, and to my nose smells like white spirit. Would be interesting to find out what it really is tho. Hire car (Vauxhall Zafira touring) is now in my possession, not quite a Range Rover but better than some tiny 3dr korean junk that I was expecting. Cost of repairs has also been authorised, so once the parts arrive early next week that should be well under way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Well by the sounds of it you'll only end up with a lot of inconvenience rather than a large financial hit as well. Oh and maybe a nice new injector pump? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rrr47 Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Just a thought, but is it worth checking the engine oil as well for the smell? The substance may have passed the piston rings and contaminated the oil. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Sparkes Posted September 26, 2014 Share Posted September 26, 2014 Oh and maybe a nice new injector pump? Based on the information here so far I'd expect both the high and low pressure pumps to be changed, and all the injectors as well. It will be a lot more difficult to have the stuff changed in 6 months time when the lack of lubrication damage really starts to make it's presence known. Given that fuel pipes gain a coating on the inside, which normally stays in place, but this cleaner is obviously potent enough to loosen, then I'd want all the pipes flushed out, not so much to clean the rest of the residue off, but to force off anything that has been loosened. I'd also be looking for a couple of fuel filter changes, after the one they are going to do 'now'. Say after 100 miles, and again after 250 miles. Best of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveturnbull Posted October 8, 2014 Author Share Posted October 8, 2014 Bit of an update. Despite the fact that Tesco are remaining very tight lipped over what some idiot put in the tank, my Range Rover is now back in my possession and running lovely once again. It's had a full clean out, new in tank pump, new injection pump and a new filter. The tank has been out and scrubbed internally to super clean standards, fuel lines have been flushed through several times, injector pipes and spill rail all cleaned too. Total bill to Tesco, just over £2k Weather permitting I'll be giving it an oil change at the weekend too (had planned to do that anyway). I have another fuel filter to go on in a month or so too. Most of what came out of the tank was the consistency of diesel, but darker and smelled like white spirit. In the bottom of the tank there was some horrible sticky gunk, and below that a little bit of what looked like crude oil! It's no wonder all these modern cars were lasting mere hundreds of yards before expiring. Hire car has gone back to Avis. Glad to be rid of that piece of junk. I do hope for the sake of the motor industry as a whole that wasn't representative of typical modern cars. If Tesco do ever come clean, I'll post up the info here to satisfy your curiosities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CwazyWabbit Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Cheers Dave Glad to hear you're back in the Range Rover again. I bet there is some which hunt going on at Tescos ........ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rrr47 Posted October 8, 2014 Share Posted October 8, 2014 Glad to everything A O K, hope it stays that way. Did you find out why Tesco was digging up the forecourt? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveturnbull Posted October 9, 2014 Author Share Posted October 9, 2014 Update in the local press this morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rrr47 Posted October 9, 2014 Share Posted October 9, 2014 WOW! What on Earth is in those tanks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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