Hey all, I'm not a Diesel truck engine expert. I was trying to help out a friend, but I'm worried I'm getting in too deep on this helping out project, and now I've got my wife yelling at me.
Start of story- 2024 GMC Sierra 2500 HD Diesel pickup. Only about 41,000 miles. This guy's daughter put DEF in his fuel tank by mistake. He claims a gallon's worth. I learned this stuff isn't supposed go directly in to the fuel tank- it has its own separate reservoir tank. So the girl borrows her parent's truck for the day, brings it back, he says it's smoking to beat the band, not running well, no power, some dash warning lights lit up.
I'm not up on this DEF crap, I don't own any Diesels, but it sounds stupid to me. Anyways, he calls me and tells me about it. I get this brain storm to drain the fuel tank. So I go over there, we crawl underneath and we figure a way to drain the fuel tank as best we could. So far so good.
We pour some fresh Diesel fuel in the tank, and I suggested we go get some fuel conditioner treatment to pour in the tank. We got some stuff called Stanadyne Diesel Fuel Conditioner. Then we poured another container of this stupid DEF crap in to the CORRECT fill hole. We took the truck to the gas station to completely fill the tank with new Diesel fuel.
Well, with a full tank of fresh Diesel fuel plus the Stanadyne fuel treatment, the truck continued to run like crap. No power, totally gutless. So I recommended we replace the fuel filter. Went out with my truck, bought a fuel filter. Got that accomplished, then primed / bled any air from the system according to instructions. His truck fired up again, but still ran like crap. I was thinking if we took the beast out and drove it for a bit, that it would eventually get some good fuel through the system and clear itself up. No go.
So now I'm running out of ideas. So next my wife calls and asks me if I'm done fixing Dave's truck. She has her list of crap she wants me working on at home. I said no we're not doing too good. Well, she ORDERS me home. Oh boy. She sounds pissed. I told Dave I gotta go for now. I get home- She *****es me out, accuses me of not knowing what I was doing, and told me to stop trying to help out working on that truck before I really mess it up and cause expensive damage. I said we didn't do anything wrong to it, we just tried some routine, basic service ideas.
She said let him take it to the dealer and let a professional mechanic clean out the fuel system. Sheesh. So, that was it for me. The boss lady had spoken. "Yes dear." So I called Dave, told him I was out of ideas, and suggested he take it in to the dealer to get a complete fuel system service on it. He called the dealer and told them what happened. They told him not to drive it in, that they would be sending a tow truck to pick it up. I wonder just how much they're going to charge him to flush the fuel system. We'd already did some of the work by draining the fuel tank, and adding fuel conditioner, and adding clean fuel, AND already installed a new fuel filter. But like I said, I chickened out of pursuing it any further. Thanks to the wife that is.
Dam! Any one else ever put DEF directly in to the fuel tank by mistake? Did it cause any problems? What did you do to fix it?
Start of story- 2024 GMC Sierra 2500 HD Diesel pickup. Only about 41,000 miles. This guy's daughter put DEF in his fuel tank by mistake. He claims a gallon's worth. I learned this stuff isn't supposed go directly in to the fuel tank- it has its own separate reservoir tank. So the girl borrows her parent's truck for the day, brings it back, he says it's smoking to beat the band, not running well, no power, some dash warning lights lit up.
I'm not up on this DEF crap, I don't own any Diesels, but it sounds stupid to me. Anyways, he calls me and tells me about it. I get this brain storm to drain the fuel tank. So I go over there, we crawl underneath and we figure a way to drain the fuel tank as best we could. So far so good.
We pour some fresh Diesel fuel in the tank, and I suggested we go get some fuel conditioner treatment to pour in the tank. We got some stuff called Stanadyne Diesel Fuel Conditioner. Then we poured another container of this stupid DEF crap in to the CORRECT fill hole. We took the truck to the gas station to completely fill the tank with new Diesel fuel.
Well, with a full tank of fresh Diesel fuel plus the Stanadyne fuel treatment, the truck continued to run like crap. No power, totally gutless. So I recommended we replace the fuel filter. Went out with my truck, bought a fuel filter. Got that accomplished, then primed / bled any air from the system according to instructions. His truck fired up again, but still ran like crap. I was thinking if we took the beast out and drove it for a bit, that it would eventually get some good fuel through the system and clear itself up. No go.
So now I'm running out of ideas. So next my wife calls and asks me if I'm done fixing Dave's truck. She has her list of crap she wants me working on at home. I said no we're not doing too good. Well, she ORDERS me home. Oh boy. She sounds pissed. I told Dave I gotta go for now. I get home- She *****es me out, accuses me of not knowing what I was doing, and told me to stop trying to help out working on that truck before I really mess it up and cause expensive damage. I said we didn't do anything wrong to it, we just tried some routine, basic service ideas.
She said let him take it to the dealer and let a professional mechanic clean out the fuel system. Sheesh. So, that was it for me. The boss lady had spoken. "Yes dear." So I called Dave, told him I was out of ideas, and suggested he take it in to the dealer to get a complete fuel system service on it. He called the dealer and told them what happened. They told him not to drive it in, that they would be sending a tow truck to pick it up. I wonder just how much they're going to charge him to flush the fuel system. We'd already did some of the work by draining the fuel tank, and adding fuel conditioner, and adding clean fuel, AND already installed a new fuel filter. But like I said, I chickened out of pursuing it any further. Thanks to the wife that is.
Dam! Any one else ever put DEF directly in to the fuel tank by mistake? Did it cause any problems? What did you do to fix it?
