Diesel engines are now very popular in light trucks and are likely to get more popular in cars too . This article is meant to give some insight about diesel vehicles , to anyone thinking of buying a diesel powered vehicle for the first time as well as to give some pointers to , those who already own a diesel vehicle.
To start with the main differences with a diesel engine in comparison to a gasoline engine are ;
(1) a diesel engine will put out much more power and at lower engine speeds than comparable Gasoline engines.
(2) the fuel mileage is much better with a diesel engine than the mileage of a comparable size gasoline engine .
(3) the overall maintenance is less with a diesel . (no tune-ups )
(4) diesel fuel is “normally” lower in price .
(5) diesels emit less pollution than gasoline engines .
Proper maintenance and good quality Clean fuel are the main steps to successfully operating a diesel powered vehicle . Keeping records of fuel and maintenance is a good idea for any vehicle and even more so for a diesel , to maintain regular , proper maintenance . “ Always Get Fuel Receipts” and mark the odometer reading on that receipt as protection in the rare event of bad fuel .
Clean fuel is very important in any engine , but it is much more important in diesel engines .
For example , water in the fuel in most cases will cause the engine to run very poorly or even , not run at all . If the engine ‘does’ run with water in the fuel , the water turns to ‘steam’ under the heat of combustion . Steam has a much higher expansion rate from the heat of combustion , than the expansion rate of normal ‘air/fuel mixture’ combustion heat .
Therefore steam will cause the high combustion pressure in a diesel engine to be even much higher (far more than double) which can bent the connecting rods or crack the pistons or cause other internal engine damage .
To ensure you are buying clean fuel , I recommend buying fuel from “brand name” stations . In most cases the big brand name companies maintain their fuel tanks very well . Many of the small independent stations can not afford to do the same . This is not to say that all independent stations are bad . Some independent operators may maintain their stations well . If you know the station and know that the fuel is good you should be ok . If you buy diesel fuel at station were you see a very high volume of big trucks or were you know they sell a high volume of fuel , you can normally count on their fuel to be fresh and clean .
It is a good idea to buy your diesel fuel at the same station as much as possible as this will get “you” known to the people who work at that station . This could be helpful if any fuel problem should occur . Buying fuel at the same brand name stations (and always get fuel receipts and mark the odometer reading of the vehicle right on the receipt) , can also be of advantage to you if you ever have any problems with their fuel . Something to keep in minds on trips to areas you don’t know is to buy fuel at stations with high volume truck traffic . If the fuel is not good , the truckers will not go there . Use the same brand name stations as much as possible , and as said above , always write your mileage on the receipt you get . Receipts give you proof of where and when you bought your last fuel in the event that there was a problem with the fuel . Up to date “Fresh” diesel fuel is very important when the weather turns colder as summer diesel fuel can jell in cold weather . Winter diesel fuel as anti-jell agents that are not needed in the warmer weather . Low volume station may still have summer in their tanks when the cold weather arrives ? (See Fuels for more)
I have repaired diesel powered vehicles for contaminated fuel (dirt and or “water” in the fuel), in the past but it is very rare today . In the cases were the vehicle owners purchased the majority of their fuel at the same ‘brand name’ station and had receipts to prove it , the oil company ‘paid for all the repairs’ needed to resolve the problem and to repair any damage done to the vehicle by their fuel . Any problem with bad fuel will start within a very short time after the fuel is purchased . If you should develop drivability problems due to bad fuel , do not continue to run the engine until the problem is repaired as serious damage could result .
I repaired one diesel vehicle for water in the fuel , were the fuel was purchased from a small independent station . The station owner refused to pay for the repairs (which exceeded $2000.00 in 1996) as he could not afford to pay . The customer had to go through the inconvenience of a law suit to recover his money .
When buying diesel fuel be very sure that the pump is marked “Diesel” . Never put Gasoline in you diesel as it will not work in a diesel engine and can cause sever damage ! A “yellow” fuel nozzle and yellow hose was supposed to identify diesel fuel but ‘not’ all stations follow the rules .
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