According to a recent survey conducted by AA Ireland, 10 per cent of Irish Motorists have accidently put the wrong fuel in their engine.

The AA Fuel Assist team reports attending to up to 200 incidents to date in 2010, the majority a result of petrol into a diesel engine.

"There has been a growing trend in motorists shifting to diesel fuelled cars since the government’s rise in carbon taxes and VRT changes as motorists switch to more energy efficient cars," says Conor Faughnan, Director of Policy.

According to recent CSO figures on new car sales, 34.2 per cent were petrol and 62.1per cent were diesel. However, one of the consequences of switching engines is a mis-fuel at the pumps. Old habits die hard. Many motorists admitted to filling up with petrol in error after changing engines when concentration levels were low.

The research showed motorists were most likely to inject the wrong fuel while using a rented or borrowed car. Motorists have reported a number of distractions at the pumps for personal reasons, haste, advertisements, poor lighting, distracted attendants and unclear markings of fuel.

There are cases where motorists mistake bio-diesel for diesel. Nozzle restrictors are not always in force at all stations. Motorists must remain alert as colours and procedures are not consistent across all stations, another reported cause of error.

Overall results convey men were 5 per cent more likely to misfuel than females. Only 5 per cent of motorists under the age of 25 have accidentally misfuelled. This is in contrast to 15 per cent of over 65 year olds.

Note: Ford have developed the Ford Easy Fuel system to tackle this very problem. Ford Easy Fuel is a capless refuelling system with a mis-fuelling inhibitor that can tell the difference between the fuel pump nozzles used for petrol and diesel. So you’ll never put the wrong fuel in.

Article courtesy of AA Ireland.