Dodgy petrol?

[Admin]

I had been meaning to ask you about this Mark as I was thinking along the same lines as you have written... don't have to bother now!  

What likliehood another spate of cars suffering very poor running in a few weeks? Nice shiny new lambda sensors but completely  :-Xed cats..?

My other thought is, I wonder what creative excuse they are going to come up with as acceptance of liability is not going to happen!  :-/

[Ghosts in my machine]

I heard a report last night that stated that the AA had found very high levels of silicone in fuel they had tested. This can bugger up a Lambda sensor, although I have no idea how long it would take.

Certainly silicone sealant used incorrectly on an engine can clog up the sensor. Although, I'm sure that the "blowtorch" technique for cleaning the sensor would sort this out to an extent.

Mind you I think the press have been going through the periodic table combining chemicals to come up with speculation as to what could be causing the problem.

Apparently we'll find out later today.

[Marks DTM Calib]

Certainly silicone sealant used incorrectly on an engine can clog up the sensor. Although, I'm sure that the "blowtorch" technique for cleaning the sensor would sort this out to an extent.

Which is what hot exhaust agses will do......even a Forte dose would probably sort it....

[Kevin Wood]

I understood that the problem with silicone sealant was not the stuff itself but the gases given off during curing (Acetic acid IIRC?). It's supposed to be pretty inert once cured but if said gases get into the induction system they allegedly cause problems with Lambda sensors.

My other thought is, I wonder what creative excuse they are going to come up with as acceptance of liability is not going to happen!

Interestingly Tesco have put a statement on their web site:

We appreciate the inconvenience this is causing some customers and can assure them that if a problem with our fuel is confirmed we will do the right thing and act quickly to put it right.

Put their fuel right or their customers' cars right? I wonder...

Nothing on Morrisons site (where my fuel came from) but I got some satisfaction in watching their share price lose a few points yesterday.

They need to make up a story pretty damn quick. They must have an analysis of what was in that fuel by now. They could have run it up on a couple of test engines in a dyno cell and logged exactly what the failure mode was.

I guess they know full well and have done for some time (maybe even since before the hysteria picked up) but the lawyers are now debating over what they can admit to.

Kevin

[Ghosts in my machine]

Where there's blame . . . . . there's a claim! [smiley=smiley.gif]

[Kevin Wood]

Turns out my parents were picking up a new Corsa today from a small family run VX dealer, Spratleys in Mortimer near Aldermaston. They mentioned my fault and the advice was to fill with decent fuel, give it a bit of a spanking to clear the Lambda sensors as long as it's not running poorly and then get the codes reset. Popped round there this afternoon and £20.45 inc. VAT for a Tech 2 session to clear the codes.

Hopefully that's the end of it. They did say if it returns it's probably failure of the Lambda sensors. They certainly weren't as eager to dish out huge bills as the large main dealer I went to yesterday.

Kevin

[Taxi_Driver]

Bottom line is, its bloody hard to kill an O2 sensor.......and poor fuel wont do it......my biggest concern though.....is what is it doing to the CAT....

Just heard on the radio.....its 'something'- forgot   sulphate that being deposited on the O2 sensors thats killing them?? True?  :-/

[Kevin Wood]

It's still hard to believe that something that simply causes the Lambda sensor to misread is causing cars to run so badly.

In my case it did what I would expect - trouble codes on the Lambda sensors but carried on running OK. Why are so many people having running problems though?

Unless the normal symptoms of running in limp home mode are being hyped up beyond belief.

Kevin

[hotel21]

Am I the only one who remembers the Formula Shell fiasco in the early 80's that killed Vauxhall engines, almost en masse?

All due to the additive that was poured into the tankers by the drivers when they were being filled at the refinery.

I would lay short odds that its a similar thing this time round where the supermarkets are using lower quality fuel with some octane boosting fluid to get the fuel upto scratch, then getting the measuring jug wrong when adding it!

This would also account for the Tesco tanker in a Morrisons forecourt type scenario, methinks...  

HtH

B

[Marks DTM Calib]

There you go....silicon.....it forms Silicon Dioxide when burnt which forms a layer on the O2 sensor causing it to be unable to detect any O2.....the result.....a lean mix and very rough running....

You can clean it off the sensors though with the right solvent...ot if its still running, it will burn off with time

[Taxi_Driver]

There you go....silicon.....it forms Silicon Dioxide when burnt which forms a layer on the O2 sensor causing it to be unable to detect any O2.....the result.....a lean mix and very rough running....

You can clean it off the sensors though with the right solvent...ot if its still running, it will burn off with time

Yep thats the thingy .... silicon sulphate  

[Taxi_Driver]

Am I the only one who remembers the Formula Shell fiasco in the early 80's that killed Vauxhall engines, almost en masse?

All due to the additive that was poured into the tankers by the drivers when they were being filled at the refinery.

I would lay short odds that its a similar thing this time round where the supermarkets are using lower quality fuel with some octane boosting fluid to get the fuel upto scratch, then getting the measuring jug wrong when adding it!

This would also account for the Tesco tanker in a Morrisons forecourt type scenario, methinks...  

HtH

B

No i remember.....coz my dad at the time had a new cavalier....his local garage was a shell garage....he complained in the end that his engine was going thro more oil than petrol.....iirc shell changed/withdraw the petrol.....and vx changed the valve seals for double seals......foc  

[Tony H]

Am I the only one who remembers the Formula Shell fiasco in the early 80's that killed Vauxhall engines, almost en masse?

All due to the additive that was poured into the tankers by the drivers when they were being filled at the refinery.

I would lay short odds that its a similar thing this time round where the supermarkets are using lower quality fuel with some octane boosting fluid to get the fuel upto scratch, then getting the measuring jug wrong when adding it!

This would also account for the Tesco tanker in a Morrisons forecourt type scenario, methinks...  

HtH

B

No i remember.....coz my dad at the time had a new cavalier....his local garage was a shell garage....he complained in the end that his engine was going thro more oil than petrol.....iirc shell changed/withdraw the petrol.....and vx changed the valve seals for double seals......foc  

Was worse than just oil seals it actually burnt out valve seatings